Philamore

Wha-ha-ha, I return to drink your blood, um, I mean, to regale you with fine tales of mirth and misery (as the case may be.) Today's tale is really neither, so I suppose I have lied once again. I've been silent for the past few days because I have been in Philadelphia for a training and (gasp) I have had no internet access. So today's topic is yet another wide-eyed observation on how quickly technology is changing. Before leaving for my trip, I received my first birthday present: a GPS. Now, I am not certain how I ever lived without one of these gadgets. Totally gone was all my normal away-from-home stress. Need gas, but don't know which way to turn? Type "fuel" into the "where to?" line, and you're off. I loaded addresses of my uncle, my friends, and the train station, and was instantly directed to my destination each time. I was lucky enough to meet a friend in the city for lunch, but had I been unlucky, I could have typed "food" and received walking instructions in the middle of the city. So cool!

This leads me to a second brilliant and astute observation: all cities in this country are the same. I passed about 20 eateries in Philadelphia which are located in my own B-more Backyard: PF Changs, Sullivan's Steakhouse, Whole Foods, Trader Joes, ESPN Zone, Hard Rock Cafe, Ruth Chris, etc, etc. My uncle told a story of an awesome Brazilian restaurant he went to, and I found out it was Fogo de Chao - which we have in Baltimore. It's crazy. One of the other girls in the seminar mentioned great drink specials at a bar called Tir Na Nog down the street...and 100 miles away on Baltimore's harbor. I thought many of these were unique, yet I continue to discover new locations in every city. Perhaps the mom-and-pop diners went out with the shops.

Restaurant Week

Once a year, the pish posh, hoity toity restaurants of Baltimore offer special menus in order to get poor lowly patrons like me and my friends to have girls nights out. The cost is still up there - $30.09 (why the extra nine cents?) per person. But - this is for an appetizer, a main course, and a dessert. So, compared to the average chain restaurant, is this really so much?

Case Study - I picked three random items at Applebees: Dynamite Shrimp ($6.99); Fiesta Lime Chicken ($10.99); and then my purpose became rather anti-climatic because they do not have the prices for desserts listed. But let us say for the sake of argument that the "Strawberry Cheesecake" costs $3.99. Grand total: $21.97. So not too much less.

You may notice, however, that the above "meal" is enough to feed a family. I participated in three girls nights out in a span of six days. At my first outing, I toughed it out. No doggie bags for me! I was brave! Sure, I could have taken that ginormous piece of chocolate cake home. But what message would that convey? That I am a quitter? That I can't take the heat? Heck no! I stuffed myself so much that I could not move for the rest of the night.

And no, I am not truly proud. Truly, I am disgusted with myself. At my second outing, I ordered the salad. I was pleased with myself, and then the waitress brought out my food. And only mine. Boy, I hate that. I sit there, hungry, with a plate of food in front of me, and my friends wait. After 5-7 minutes, I take a nibble. After 10-12 minutes, I have finished half my plate. After 15 minutes, the waitress returns with two coldish burgers and fries. As I am nearly done with my salad, I can do little but drool over their heavenly burgers. Argh. I end up eating half of my friend's burger AND my meal.

OK, number three. This place was oh so yummy with its tuna AVOCADO plate for an appetizer. I have a mini-obsession with avocados. I do not know why. For my main course, I skipped over the meat trio, and tried the "Vegetarian Nirvana". Honestly, I am not sure what was in this dish, but it satisfied my new rule of going out - that it should be something I will not turn around and make at home. Whatever it was, it was a heavenly blend of black beans and pineapples. I could have done without the large banana leaf used as a garnish. (Do I eat this, or is it for looks? Really, there should be an instruction manual with some meals.) I then ate my yummy bananas foster bread pudding. At the end of my meal, I was full, but not stuffed. However, this was achieved with no will power of my own, so I think I will chalk it down as a draw.

Many of the restaurants have decided to extend their specials until Feb 8th. Is it possible for me to win one yet?

Eating This, Not That

I bought a new book: "Eat This - Not That". You've probably heard of it. (It was all over the book store.) It addresses my most formidable adversary in the weight loss battle: unplanned meals. This includes meals eaten out at a restaurant, holiday meals, and party meals.
When left to my own devices, I do OK. Luckily, I already enjoy preparing home-cooked meals from fresh foods, so I have few issues with packaged goods. It's a whole new ballgame when I have reached the food table at a potluck supper, which includes everyone's specialty item. The longer I avoid the temptation by chewing gum or simply sitting at an inconvenient table, the more likely I am to crack under pressure and begin devouring brownies Tasmanian Devil style. I am just a blur with crumbs flying out in all directions to the average bystander.
The purchase of this book was prompted by my friend (who also bought it) and a recent trip to "Romano's Macaroni Grill" (incidentally given an "F" grade in the book). I perused the menu, and found only 2 items listed as "Smart Choices". One was a salmon fillet with broccoli on the side, the other was "Skinny Balsamic Chicken" listed right next to the obviously more delicious "Basalmic Chicken". The skinny recipe was unappealing due to its proximity to its regular counterpart, and the salmon lacked flair. I have salmon in my freezer at all times, and if I am paying $14.95 a meal, it better be for something I can't/won't make myself. This left all the pasta dishes. I reasoned that I could limit myself to half an entree and still be ok, but which to choose?
On the bright side, Macaroni Grill does list its nutrition information online, a feature I find extremely useful as a calorie-counter. On the dark side, I ended up choosing the pasta dish with the most calories of any other dish!! This, while I was attempting to make the right choice. That is where the book comes in. The basic premise is that simple substitutions can go a long way in reducing overall calorie intake. For instance, the chicken burrito bowl without rice at Chipolte has 489 calories, while the chicken burrito has 1092. It also reveals some truths which even the health conscious may not be aware - like fish tacos may sound like fewer calories than steak fajitas, but they are really not.
I think I can live without some frills like cheese or mayo, and I can begin training myself to eat half the meal by getting a box right off the bat. It is either that, or skip these wonderful meals altogether, and to me, that's just not living.