Despite anyone’s best intentions of buying fresh, local produce and cooking it at home, circumstances can get the best of you. Maybe you’re too tired to cook, or didn’t have time to prepare lunch ahead of time. Maybe you’re waiting around for an appointment or meeting, and need to eat something beforehand. Maybe you’re specifically going out to eat as a treat.
Regardless of the circumstances, you can still make healthy choices at a restaurant and feel guilt-free afterwards. WebMD has a great list of tips for staying strong, including deciding what to order before you sit down, drinking lots of water before the food arrives, and asking for steamed vegetables instead of fries.
We messaged and emailed over 120 local restaurants to ask them for the healthiest item on their menus, in their own opinions, and got the following responses:
Blondie’s Trolley Diner
“I have customers on both the no-carb diet as well as calorie counters, so one of my customers’ absolute favorite is the breakfast quesadilla for a total calorie count of 490. It consists of bacon, peppers, onions scrambled eggs and a cheddar cheese, served with a little fresh spinach salad and salsa!”
-Amy, owner
Bowery Dugout
“Shellfish or fin fish, depending on the mood I’m in. I’ll steam my lobster or king crab legs and hold the butter. I like mine with cocktail sauce. I’ll have my fish Cajun-style, grilled, or poached sometimes. Paired with steamed mixed veggies.”
Bread Alone
“Our roasted broccoli sandwich is a delicious, vegan option that packs in lots veggies but is also substantial thanks to a generous serving of walnut pesto. Served, of course, on organic bread!”
-Kristen, brand & community manager
Broadway Lights Diner
“Spanakopita or spinach pie is a great, healthy dish that is my mom’s recipe. We have been serving it in the diner for the past 43 years that we have been in business. A Greek dish that everyone loves!
-Litsa, owner
The Corner Bar & Grill
“The Corner Bar and Grill offers healthy choices such as a beautiful garden salad with or without grilled chicken. Grilled Chicken wraps. Or just some grilled chicken with peppers onions and mushrooms!”
-Julie, owner
Crazy Bowlz
“My healthy to go options on our menu are grilled shrimp or chicken Asian rice bowl (no rice) with red curry, or a salad bowl. And very often, I see myself ordering a noodles soup bowl with either less noodles or no noodles, just the protein and a bunch of fresh veggies. Our bowls are customizable to fit for each individual specific diet they are on.”
-Jenny, co-owner
Dallas Hot Weiners
“I would order soup, which I make myself with lots of vegetables, and grilled chicken souvlaki or grilled chicken salad with real Greek olive oil and red vinegar.”
-Nick, co-owner
Diego’s Taqueria
“One of our healthiest, and coincidentally most popular, menu items is the Smoky Beet Taco. Beets are loaded with health benefits, as is the arugula it is deliciously paired with. A corn tortilla makes the combo naturally gluten free, and eliminating the crema (and adding guac!) makes it completely vegan and dairy-free!”
-Elena, co-owner
Duo Bistro
“I would say the Chefs Breakfast would be my go-to healthy breakfast. It’s sprouts and spinach scrambled with eggs, bacon, jalapeno, garlic, goat cheese with Duo Pantry wheat toast.”
-Shawna, catering manager
Opa!
“Healthy eating is always ingredients and preparation. Our traditional Greek salad is topped with a choice of chicken souvlaki, grilled shrimp, grilled salmon or falafel balls. The meal can be completed with a side of roasted eggplant babaganoush, hummus, tzatziki and stuffed grape leaves.”
-Johnny, owner
PAKT
“PAKT’s menu is customizable so you can adjust for what’s healthiest for your body and mind. The build your own skillets are the best! My healthiest/happiest option would be the seasonal vegetable patty (currently beet, cauliflower and butternut base) grilled over braised collard greens and kale with white cheddar, sunny eggs and an extraordinary amount of cracked black pepper and our coconut sriracha sauce. It gets a ton of veggies in you and is low carb/sugar, but has just enough unctous melty cheese and runny egg to hit that “comfort food” spot without making you feel like you need to have a lie down.”
-Eryn, owner
Peace Nation Cafe
“We have a variety of healthy dishes on our menu. Our healthiest is probably the mixed vegetable dish accompanied by a real fruit smoothie. The majority of our food is gluten free, without any additives or hormones , freshly prepared which is the first ingredient to a healthy nutrition.”
-Ewelina, co-owner
Roudigan’s Steakhouse
“Our grilled, blackened cajun salmon is a high protein, low fat, low carb option. Our aged filet mignon is also a great healthy choice. We are also one of the only family-owned restaurants that includes soup and salad bar with your entrées.”
Rough Draft
“If I had to pick one item for people trying to eat healthy, I’d choose our curry vegetable pie from DUB (Down Under Bakery) Pies. It’s made with potato, carrot, cauliflower, zucchini, mushrooms, onions, garlic, peas and sweet corn in a flaky crust — and it’s vegan, so it’s good for people who want or need to avoid dairy. It’s a nice serving of veggies, and it makes a great lunch or hearty snack. I’d pair that with a coffee or green tea, both of which are packed with antioxidants.”
-Amanda, co-owner
Sissy’s
“The healthiest item we have on our menu is probably the makers salad. it has protein from the egg and the tempeh, good fat from the avocado, leafy greens, fresh sprouts, carrots and cabbage for roughage and topped off with a home made tahini dressing filled with extra virgin olive oil, garlic and parsley.”
-Shani, co-owner
A Slice of Italy
“Our healthiest item would be the grilled chicken salad. We also give vegetables as an option in place of pasta for our dinners.”
Super Bowl Cuisine
“I would order long life vegetable, tofu home style, carrot dried todu with Kung Pao sauce with beef flavor. All these dishes I mentioned are very healthy, nutritious, and low calorie. Tasty and good for digestion.”
-Kuan, owner
Sushi Makio
“The sashimi dinner is the most wholesome and simple item we have. It’s packed with protein from the fish, nutrients from the daikon and seaweed garnishes, and a side of steamed rice is the balance of carbohydrates needed for energy.”
-Maximilian, executive chef
Tony’s Pizzeria
“I’d probably have to suggest our beet salad. It’s fresh and light, with an abundance of vitamins, minerals and flavor!”
-Nealey, owner
Tubby’s
“I would go for the burger! Either local grass-fed beef from my small farm, or our house made falafel veggie burger. Jon Dixon, our Chef, makes both versions exceptionally, and both choices are good for your body and our environment. I also sing praises to our salad, which can get over looked at a bar, but it’s a good one with mixed greens, avocados, and ancho-guajillo harrisa dressing. “
-Morgan, co-owner
We Got The Juice
“Juiceppe journey, a mix of greens, beets , ginger , carrot and apple.”
-Liz, owner
Yasuda
“There is lots of sushi to chose from all healthy except for the fried ones. Also all kitchen food can be changed to make it more healthy(ex. Steamed, low sodium or less oil).”
Yum Yum Noodle Bar
“I would order miso salmon on raw kale salad because raw kale is packed with nutrients and miso salmon is high in protein, omega 3, and vitamin D.”
