When I met Lammer and we were in that beginning “honeymoon” stage of our relationship where we were going out to eat or ordering in all the time…you know how that goes at the start of a new romance. Well, he quickly learned that it wasn’t really working for me. Eating out for me is not easy – only sometimes enjoyable and leaves me feeling not-so-great most of the time afterwards. I expressed to him how infrequent it was for me to eat out because I enjoy preparing my own food. I also did the math for him and broke down how utterly expensive it is (this got his attention).

After that, he was all for trying prepping our own meals at home… and LOVED it! It didn’t take long for him to feel the difference of a home cooked meal verses one from a restaurant. He stopped ordering his weekly Chinese food (hello, MSG, natural flavors and a host of other additives). He started brewing his own organic coffee at home each morning. It was great!

Here is a perfect example that I just experienced recently that validates why I don’t eat out very often:

Lammer and I have decided to declare a “date night” one night per month where we get dressed and go out to dinner/drinks at somewhere special in town. This is usually one of the few times we actually eat food out during our month. This past month we went to an excellent restaurant (I don’t want to call them out). It was fancy, high end, excellent service, incredible food. We left with our bellies full and happy, we knew we’d return. So we did. Excitedly, we chatted with the waiter about what we should order. I asked a question about how they prepared their Spanish potatoes (and I’m glad I did). He said they were their signature side dish that people adore. They were thinly sliced potato chips fried. I closed the menu and said, “No thank you.” (Because anything fried is contaminated with gluten.) He assured me that it was the only thing they fried in the restaurant and that they were in fact gluten free. I perked up!  Then he said, “We fry them in canola oil.” I slumped back down and said, “No thanks.”  Potatoes fried in heart destroying, cheap, trans fatty GMOs…GROSS!  Of course I went on and on to Lammer about how deceiving it can be to be out in a high end restaurant like this and just assume that they’re using higher quality foods in their kitchen. They’re NOT!

Here’s exactly why I don’t enjoy eating out very often, and prefer making my own food at home:

You get to decide exactly what you want to eat.

You get to pick the quality of the ingredients.

You know exactly what is going into the food.

You get to control your portion size.

You can use the time to prepare a meal as a meditation.

You can enjoy quality time with your family by cooking together and passing on traditions.

You don’t consume as much salt, sugar & trans fats when you cook at home.

You reduce your risk of an allergic food reaction and/or food poisoning.

You save money because preparing your own food costs much less than meals out.

You get to put vitamin L, the most nutritious vitamin there is, into each and every bite!

About to dig into a bucket of garlic crabs from Bum Rogers in South Seaside Park!!

On the contrary, I understand that eating at home for every meal is close to impossible for many of us. It can get overwhelming when you start to think about how and what to order when you’re out. Here are a few ways that I’ve learned to get around this confusion and enjoy my meal out: When I’m eating out I usually am a gluten free pescatarian. I avoid gluten where possible because it just makes me feel crummy (tired, bloated, fog-headed, joint aches, headaches, stomach upset, skin rashes, etc.). I opt for wild fish or seafood on the menu. Most restaurants (unless farm to table), serve poor quality, conventionally raised animals who were sick and tortured, pumped with antibiotics and hormones. They serve pretty poor quality low-fat, pasteurized dairy, too (so beware of cream sauces, soups or cheeses). I love ordering a side of veggies or greens, but request them to be prepared in butter rather than oil. Just keeping those points in mind have made eating out much more enjoyable for me. Of course, keeping a relaxed attitude about it has helped the most. I do my best where I can, when I can…and am content with that. I’m not in the kitchen prepping my meal when we’re out, so I can’t drive myself crazy.

I hope you find this helpful-