- 5 Raw Food
Tips For Dining Out
- By: Karen Knowler
Choosing to eat raw when out
and about doesn't have to mean that the dining experience needs
to become something you come to dread.
Follow my 5 Raw Food Tips for
Dining Out and I'm positive your future meals out will be all
the more enjoyable for it!
1) Enjoy your meal! Naturally it's important that
what you eat out is something you are really going to enjoy.
No good salivating at the sight of your favourite cooked dish
being devoured by the person sitting next to you while you're
left trying to make a side salad last all night and searching
for something filling (or palatable) in amongst the limp pale
lettuce! This is where preparation comes in, so either call up
the restaurant in advance and spell it out to them what you'd
really, really love (be polite, friendly, grateful and painstakingly
precise and you should be fine) or select very carefully from
the menu so that you have the finest plate of food in the restaurant.
People cannot fail to be inspired by colour and variety on your
plate - I've seen heads turn time and time again at the rainbow
salads I've created from an apparently limited menu. For how
to do this, read on.
2) Made to order. If you don't have time to ring
ahead or check out the menu in advance, then you are taking a
chance, but it doesn't have to end in tears. The best way I have
found to get something I'm happy with (sometimes even delighted
with!) is to master the art of menu scanning. This means looking
at everything on the menu, memorizing what bits sound raw, and
then asking the waiter ever so politely if they would mind making
you a HUGE salad (you have to overplay this bit just to get a
decent size!), and then adding (fill in the blanks from what
you see). For instance, I usually start with melon - easy, straightforward,
delicious. Then for main, I will request
the HUGE salad, and then, assuming I've seen avocado, nuts, olives,
sundries tomatoes and fruit somewhere (anywhere!) on the menu,
I'll ask for as many of those things to be added on to my plate
as possible. I've never been refused yet, and rarely disappointed.
And yes, heads turn and people drool!
3) The final analysis. When it comes to dessert,
as above, this can make or break the evening. This isn't about
being "perfect" or holier than thou, but if you've
taken good care to order fresh, raw food for your starter and
main course then it would be a real shame to drown it in cream
and pastry afterwards wouldn't it? If you're new to this or not
ready (or willing) to forgo rich desserts, that's definitely
your prerogative, but if you do want to stay on course then a
fresh fruit salad should always be available, even if it's a
simple bowl of berries or a second helping of melon. (Yes, I
know, not ideal food combining, but hey!)
4) After dinner quiz anyone?! Post dessert, more
questions may follow. You'll be feeling ready to rock and roll,
while your companions might be feeling ready to fall asleep!
This is the time when they'll be reminded why they don't always
enjoy the meal as much as they thought they might (and you'll
be reminded of why you do), and this will also be the time when
they may very well start to take more of an interest in what
you've eaten that night. This is the time to stay relaxed and
at ease with it all, keep answering those questions and if it
feels appropriate why not offer to email them a recipe or two,
or invite them over for a raw night? People love novelty and
if you can let them know to expect more than a restaurant-style
salad then you'll stand a much better chance of them accepting!
(For a great dinner or party recipe, checkout my Perfect Pizza
- everyone loves it and it looks and tastes amazing!)
5) What it's really all about. And finally, remember,
eating out may be a lot about the food but primarily it's about
the company. So don't shortchange your friends and family by
retreating into your shell when you're eating out with them.
Share who you are, raw vibes and all, and talk about things other
than food as much as humanly possible!
Have fun - and enjoy your meal
(c) 2008 Karen Knowler |
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