Sometimes it’s hard being low carb

Apparently I am pretty hard work to go out for dinner with, or out for breakfast or lunch for that matter. Admittedly I’m guilty of assuming that I know best how to order for those around me. More often than not when we dine out , my long-suffering husband sits back and lets me order for him. He knows that I know best.

Things have got more difficult for me lately since I have been eating low carb. I have become one of those people who cannot order directly from menu items. I always have a special request or feel the need to combine two menu items, you know , that person who orders ‘the chicken breast but no plum sauce, but can I have the blue cheese sauce istead, the one from the steak and no potatoes please but salad would be a good replacement thanks, oh and can I have that as an entree size but at the same time as the others have their mains, thanks‘, ( I always say thanks). Recommendations by my husband to ‘maybe just order off the menu, rather than try to manipulate it to suit yourself’ is actually a ridiculous suggestion for someone whose life and interest revolves around food.

Most restaurants and cafés do their best to accommodate alternative food requests, so I thought that ordering bacon and eggs, no toast but mushrooms instead was a fairly reasonable request when out for brunch recently. I should have realised when the concerned and confused waiter asked 3 times ‘mmmmm no toast?’ that something had got seriously lost in translation. After a very long wait my breakfast was served, and my bacon egg and mushrooms arrived, served between 2 very thick slices of toast. Essentially a bacon, egg, and mushroom toasted sandwich.  What to do? Probably what I should have done in the first place (and what my husband had suggested), accept the meal as is and discard the bread myself. I hate it when he’s right.

A similar situation when eating out with my daughter recently resulted in me being on the receiving end of one of those ‘OMG mum you are so embarrassing’ lectures, ‘can you just order off the menu for a change, and you really need to apologise to that waitress!!’ I actually wasn’t rude at all to that confused waitress, just kind of raised my eyebrows when my succulent and low carb camembert stuffed chicken breast was served, doused in the sweet plum sauce I had specifically requested be replaced by blue cheese sauce and served as entree size…………..

So as I have said most restaurants and cafes are good at adapting to low carb and other food requests, and more and more often the menu is, if not tailored to, at least appropriate for Paleo and low carbers. What I have learned however is that preparing and cooking wholesome low carb food yourself is  easy and rewarding. I very rarely enjoy a dinner out as much as I enjoy preparing food at home for myself my family and my friends. At least I know I am serving good wholesome food, and that I have the control I do so enjoy over those around me!  A meal which without fail will instigate a conversation that will start something like this  ‘mmmmmmm no potato’ or ‘did someone forget the sugar?‘