[OT] Official Bar & Restaraunt Endorsement Thread

[cdexchange]

Congrats on your weight loss! That's awesome.

 

You might want to look up the caloric content in Chipotle. It is astronomical...

 

Most of my meals consist of steel-cut oats, berries/pineapple, and garden salads with chicken.

 

Oh yeah, I always check nutrition info online, and like almost everywhere I go I have to make some tweaks when I order. Light rice, light cheese, no sour cream or guac...it's still delicious and their burritos are so huge I eat half for lunch and the other half for dinner. :thumbsup: (the old me would have probably eaten two for lunch and wings for dinner, lol)

 

Plus, I only eat out once or twice a week, so even a "lightened" burrito like this would actually be considered a splurge for me.

 

 

i need your secret. i've tried it all: exercise, cutting portions, kicking soda to the curb, pounding 64 oz of water a day ... nothing. what's your trick?

 

edit: ohhhh ... there's the kicker--healthy AND delicious. doesn't that narrow the menu to like 5 things? ;)

 

See my response to Scott above, lol. It takes a huge amount of self-discipline. Also, everything you mentioned above is all good (although I would up the water intake - I drink 75-100oz per day). You should also be eating lots of fruits and veggies and whole grains every day.

 

There is no trick, sorry. Believe me, I wish I had found a "trick" as I'd surely be wealthy because of it.

[cdexchange]

We ate at the Buffalo Hyde Park shortly after it opened - worst steak ever! Service was lousy, food was tepid (despite us sitting right next to the kitchen). It may have been a fluke, as I hear other locations are really good...

 

As for other places in WNY - Curly's in Lackawanna, (Caribbean influenced), Eckl's in Orchard Park for beef on weck (better than Schwabl's IMHO) and 31 Club downtown or Rick's on Main in East Aurora for fancy meals. Root Five in Hamburg/LakeShore for some good food and drinks on a lakeside patio (great place to watch a sunset).

 

 

totally agree with this :thumbsup:

[That Aud Smell]

in response to scott's call for healthy eats, i commend the grilled lentil and wheatberry sangwich at amy's place on main street, near ub south. served on flat bread with all manner of fixins. the thing is just a molten mound of goodness. dose liberally with the original louisiana hot sauce (the label with the red dot). i don't recommend you eat the thing in one sitting, though. you may consider splitting it with your significant other - that's calorically justifiable.

 

Speaking of out of the way places, Rudy's in Medina is always great.

love rudy's.

[SDS]

That ain't living man, that's surviving. :ph34r:

 

 

Eh, that's fine. I want to feel good about myself and I want to live a very long, active life. Carrying around an extra 50-100 lbs. just doesn't jive with my goals. Plus, I married a very beautiful gal. That fat guy, hot chick thing may work on TV, but not in real life. ;)

 

 

Me and my daughter...

 

[Sterling Archer]

MUST NOT MAKE SEXIST STATEMENTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[X. Benedict]

 

Most of my meals consist of steel-cut oats, berries/pineapple, and garden salads with chicken.

 

FWIW a Naturapathic doctor, who is an old friend, turned me on to making my McCann's oatmeal savory rather than sweet....

 

I started sauteing peppers, onions, sometimes a little ham or chicken, cracked pepper, sometimes scallions, or even chopped tomatoes, sometimes just the slightest pinch of salt....It really makes a nice lunch or dinner.

 

It is surprisingly good.

[cdexchange]

Eh, that's fine. I want to feel good about myself and I want to live a very long, active life. Carrying around an extra 50-100 lbs. just doesn't jive with my goals. Plus, I married a very beautiful gal. That fat guy, hot chick thing may work on TV, but not in real life. ;)

 

Good for you man. I'm glad I finally came to realize this too. As much as I love, crave and am obsessed with food, nothing tastes as good as how I look and feel now. And my wife sure does appreciate it too, which of course leads to a myriad of additional benefits for me, all of which are more enjoyable than the best pizza or wings. B-)

[korab rules]

Good for you man. I'm glad I finally came to realize this too. As much as I love, crave and am obsessed with food, nothing tastes as good as how I look and feel now. And my wife sure does appreciate it too, which of course leads to a myriad of additional benefits for me, all of which are more enjoyable than the best pizza or wings. B-)

 

Have you been to the Bar Bill in East Aurora?

[darksabre]

I've always been past bar bill. I'm going to have to try it one of these days.

 

It's good to be young. I eat as healthy as I can and sit around 200-210lbs at 6'2". I used to weigh 175 in HS, but I wasn't as strong then. Nice part is I can eat awful and then burn it all back off. I drink A LOT of water and eat a lot of Kashi cereal and bananas. I bike and run in the summer and play as much hockey as I can get in the winter.

 

My one weakness is beer though. I love beer. And I refuse to stop drinking it just to lose a pound or two.

[5th line wingnutt]

 

Steak: As previously observed, I think by Drain, there really isn't a steak joint that's incredible here, but if you're looking, try Russell's (the only reason to go to the burbs besides visiting my parents, IMO) or EB Green's. Russell's is better. By far. Chop house is, well, meh.

 

 

I have not been in Beefalo since 1994 but I liked Manny's Supper Club. It was the place for carnivores.

[R_Dudley]

Don't any of you like to eat good food?

 

Tex-Mex: C'mon. Mighty? Shame on you. That's canned beef on a crappy tortilla. Find Lloyd the Taco Truck and eat up! (And that one's cheap.)

 

Steak: As previously observed, I think by Drain, there really isn't a steak joint that's incredible here, but if you're looking, try Russell's (the only reason to go to the burbs besides visiting my parents, IMO) or EB Green's. Russell's is better. By far. Chop house is, well, meh.

 

Sushi: You're not gonna beat Kuni on Lex.

 

 

 

Too many posts to multi quote.

 

It astounds me that Buffalo doesn't have a consensus, to die for, steak house. Its not that hard. Buy great cuts of aged meat, gently season it, sear it over seriously high heat, throw it on a plate with butter and get it to the table before it gets cold.

 

 

Well I have not lived in the Buff since 92 but still have family there and visit regularly.

 

For pizza and wings I do La Belle Sicilia in Cheektowaga on Genesee st, good wings, pizza and anitpasta try the vegetarian if you are watching your waist like Scot.

 

For Asian; sushi, kimchi and specifically Korean BBQ try Woochon in Evans town plaza in Williamsville, excellant Babimpbop(not sure of spelling?)

 

For steak or a great filet my favorite if you don't mind a little drive was Garlocks in Lockport on Transit Rd, quick trip up the 990 and I still think it's open.

 

For mexican it was always Granda Mora's in Black rock but pretty sure they are no longer there

[cdexchange]

Have you been to the Bar Bill in East Aurora?

 

Have you ever met my wife?

 

On second thought, don't answer that, Hedgehog... :lol:

 

Yeah I grew up in EA so I've eaten many a wing at Bar Bill. They are fantastic. Since I decided to get healthy I only eat wings once or twice a year, believe it or not. It's definitely not easy.

 

I'd love to hear more suggestions for healthy fare. It's really easy to find truly great pizza, wings, subs, fish frys, etc in WNY, but finding healthy stuff that actually tastes good is a much bigger challenge. C'mon lurkers, Scott and I can't be the only ones!

[Weave]

Have you ever met my wife?

 

On second thought, don't answer that, Hedgehog... :lol:

 

Yeah I grew up in EA so I've eaten many a wing at Bar Bill. They are fantastic. Since I decided to get healthy I only eat wings once or twice a year, believe it or not. It's definitely not easy.

 

I'd love to hear more suggestions for healthy fare. It's really easy to find truly great pizza, wings, subs, fish frys, etc in WNY, but finding healthy stuff that actually tastes good is a much bigger challenge. C'mon lurkers, Scott and I can't be the only ones!

 

Learn how to cook foods from different cultures. Lots of variety of healthy flavors.

[cdexchange]

Learn how to cook foods from different cultures. Lots of variety of healthy flavors.

 

I do my share of cooking, and I enjoy it. But I love going out to eat too.

 

Anyone know if there are any Ethiopian restaurants in WNY? That cuisine looks really interesting but I have yet to find any restaurants in the area.

[Bmwolf21]

Dear god this thread is making me hungry. I'll add a few favorites that haven't been mentioned yet. I gave up greasy fatty food for the most part a few years ago (and have since gone from 305 to 187 lbs :)), so my focus is always finding stuff that is both healthy and delicious. :thumbsup:

Congrats on the weight loss, cd. That is impressive. Most I've been down was about 60 pounds, but since then I've put about 15 back on and I am struggling to get back under control.

 

 

Don't live in Buffalo. I went from 250 my junior year of HS (about 7 years ago) to 172 (about 18 months ago) to 210 (now). I should have never moved to Buffalo. Blowing out my knee hasn't helped either.

A lot of my weight gain was similar circumstances - living in WNY, eating all the good (fattening) local foods and blowing out my ankle the summer after HS. Started on the long slide down (or up?) and really fought recently to get it back to where I should be.

[Sterling Archer]

Congrats on the weight loss, cd. That is impressive. Most I've been down was about 60 pounds, but since then I've put about 15 back on and I am struggling to get back under control.

 

 

 

A lot of my weight gain was similar circumstances - living in WNY, eating all the good (fattening) local foods and blowing out my ankle the summer after HS. Started on the long slide down (or up?) and really fought recently to get it back to where I should be.

 

 

Yeah. Can still hide it tho. Being 6'4" helps.

[SDS]

Have you ever met my wife?

 

On second thought, don't answer that, Hedgehog... :lol:

 

Yeah I grew up in EA so I've eaten many a wing at Bar Bill. They are fantastic. Since I decided to get healthy I only eat wings once or twice a year, believe it or not. It's definitely not easy.

 

I'd love to hear more suggestions for healthy fare. It's really easy to find truly great pizza, wings, subs, fish frys, etc in WNY, but finding healthy stuff that actually tastes good is a much bigger challenge. C'mon lurkers, Scott and I can't be the only ones!

 

Here are some of my staples. For breakfast I'll have a Zone bar and a glass of water in the car:

 

http://zoneperfect.com/products/ZonePerfect-Classic-Fudge-Graham

 

For lunch at work I have oatmeal:

 

http://www.seriouseats.com/2010/06/trader-joes-frozen-steelcut-oatmeal-might-cha.html

 

and a cup of frozen blueberries

 

http://www.wymans.com/retail/products.php

 

I'll have skim milk and a serving of protein powder at breakfast and lunch most days too.

 

http://www.amazon.com/Optimum-Nutrition-Standard-Double-Chocolate/dp/B000QSNYGI

 

I treat myself to a square of dark 70%+ chocolate every day for the flavonoids.

 

Then we just do a variety of chicken salads for dinner where we marinate the chicken in different sauces or perhaps skip the salad and do cut up pineapple/strawberries. I eat a lot of omelets on the weekends. Because my diet is so low on starchy carbs, I don't crave them anymore and that is the key. Break the carb-craving cycle and you can shed a ton of weight.

[korab rules]

<br />Have you ever met my wife?  <br /><br />On second thought, don't answer that, Hedgehog... <img src='http://forums.sabrespace.com/public/style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif' class='bbc_emoticon' alt=':lol:' /><br /><br />Yeah I grew up in EA so I've eaten many a wing at Bar Bill.   They are  fantastic.  Since I decided to get healthy I only eat wings once or  twice a year, believe it or not.  It's definitely not easy.  <br /><br />I'd love to hear more suggestions for healthy fare.  It's really easy to find truly great pizza, wings, subs, fish  frys, etc in WNY, but finding healthy stuff that actually tastes good  is a much bigger challenge.  C'mon lurkers, Scott and I can't be the only  ones!<br />

 

Fish. Lots of fish. Ahi tuna, salmon, grouper, you name it. Grill it smoke it marinate it blacken it. Season it slather it eat it raw. Good for your brain, good for your gut. Good lean protein. Find a good seafood shop and visit often.

[Braedon]

 

Then we just do a variety of chicken salads for dinner where we marinate the chicken in different sauces or perhaps skip the salad and do cut up pineapple/strawberries. I eat a lot of omelets on the weekends. Because my diet is so low on starchy carbs, I don't crave them anymore and that is the key. Break the carb-craving cycle and you can shed a ton of weight.

 

 

A key component, thanks for sharing.

 

A colleague of mine in Behavioral Science researches weight loss. She says one of the most depressing trends in weight loss studies is the linear upward trend of weight GAIN at the 6 month mark. Many studies show effectiveness inside 6 months, but you should see the steep slope at that mark. I asked her what she recommends and she says not just portion control, but ratio of foods. She endorses the plate method, which is basically filling your plate with mostly fruits/veggies, and controlling simple carbs and meats. My description doesn't to it justice, however you can Google it.

 

A couple other things from reading/experience: 1) alcohol has to be controlled 2) coffee can actually lead to weight gain long term. Switching to green tea is a great alternative 3) Don't eat after 8pm. 4) Skim milk isn't good for you. I know it sounds crazy, but stripping fat out of your diet isn't the answer to long term weight loss. Plus, skim milk is just plain nasty once you know what's really in it: Skim Milk

 

Very simplistic and crude, however these rules have done wonders for me. I check my diet similar to CD and SDS. Morning is either steel cut oatmeal, eggs, or grape nuts. Lunch is always a salad, and not the American iceberg kind; the more wild and green, the better; Dinner is carb light, however I will have rice or pasta periodically. I hit up a yogurt with flax seed or grapefruit around 8pm, and that's it. I do splurge on 2 meals a week, It just keeps me sane. However rarely eat fried food. If you eat 19 good meals and 2 bad ones per week, you're not going to go off the rails.

 

Some science behind what's listed above, some personal experience. Take if for what you will.

[Braedon]

A key component, thanks for sharing.

 

A colleague of mine in Behavioral Science researches weight loss. She says one of the most depressing trends in weight loss studies is the linear upward trend of weight GAIN at the 6 month mark. Many studies show effectiveness inside 6 months, but you should see the steep slope at that mark. I asked her what she recommends and she says not just portion control, but ratio of foods. She endorses the plate method, which is basically filling your plate with mostly fruits/veggies, and controlling simple carbs and meats. My description doesn't to it justice, however you can Google it.

 

A couple other things from reading/experience: 1) alcohol has to be controlled 2) coffee can actually lead to weight gain long term. Switching to green tea is a great alternative 3) Don't eat after 8pm. 4) Skim milk isn't good for you. I know it sounds crazy, but stripping fat out of your diet isn't the answer to long term weight loss. Plus, skim milk is just plain nasty once you know what's really in it: Skim Milk

 

Very simplistic and crude, however these rules have done wonders for me. I check my diet similar to CD and SDS. Morning is either steel cut oatmeal, eggs, or grape nuts. Lunch is always a salad, and not the American iceberg kind; the more wild and green, the better; Dinner is carb light, however I will have rice or pasta periodically. I hit up a yogurt with flax seed or grapefruit around 8pm, and that's it. I do splurge on 2 meals a week, It just keeps me sane. However rarely eat fried food. If you eat 19 good meals and 2 bad ones per week, you're not going to go off the rails.

 

Some science behind what's listed above, some personal experience. Take if for what you will.

 

 

Fish. Lots of fish. Ahi tuna, salmon, grouper, you name it. Grill it smoke it marinate it blacken it. Season it slather it eat it raw. Good for your brain, good for your gut. Good lean protein. Find a good seafood shop and visit often.

 

Ah, thanks Korab, knew I was forgetting something. We eat a lot of fish, at least 3 dinners a week. I also drink fish oil in the morning (I know it sounds nasty, but it's infused with orange and you don't taste the fish) as it has more EPA and DHA than capsules.

[SDS]

A key component, thanks for sharing.

 

A colleague of mine in Behavioral Science researches weight loss. She says one of the most depressing trends in weight loss studies is the linear upward trend of weight GAIN at the 6 month mark. Many studies show effectiveness inside 6 months, but you should see the steep slope at that mark. I asked her what she recommends and she says not just portion control, but ratio of foods. She endorses the plate method, which is basically filling your plate with mostly fruits/veggies, and controlling simple carbs and meats. My description doesn't to it justice, however you can Google it.

 

A couple other things from reading/experience: 1) alcohol has to be controlled 2) coffee can actually lead to weight gain long term. Switching to green tea is a great alternative 3) Don't eat after 8pm. 4) Skim milk isn't good for you. I know it sounds crazy, but stripping fat out of your diet isn't the answer to long term weight loss. Plus, skim milk is just plain nasty once you know what's really in it: Skim Milk

 

Very simplistic and crude, however these rules have done wonders for me. I check my diet similar to CD and SDS. Morning is either steel cut oatmeal, eggs, or grape nuts. Lunch is always a salad, and not the American iceberg kind; the more wild and green, the better; Dinner is carb light, however I will have rice or pasta periodically. I hit up a yogurt with flax seed or grapefruit around 8pm, and that's it. I do splurge on 2 meals a week, It just keeps me sane. However rarely eat fried food. If you eat 19 good meals and 2 bad ones per week, you're not going to go off the rails.

 

Some science behind what's listed above, some personal experience. Take if for what you will.

 

A good simple, common sense "diet" can be found here:

 

http://www.nosdiet.com

 

After reading the whole page, you can really use it as a rallying point. I too cheat on the weekends, but that is good for you to keep your body from lowering its metabolism and to reset your leptin levels which controls a bunch of important stuff.

 

I hate whole milk or 2%. Always drank skim milk. I'll look into the processing part. Thanks.

[SDS]

Ah, thanks Korab, knew I was forgetting something. We eat a lot of fish, at least 3 dinners a week. I also drink fish oil in the morning (I know it sounds nasty, but it's infused with orange and you don't taste the fish) as it has more EPA and DHA than capsules.

 

http://www.coromega.com

 

that stuff is pretty good.

[cdexchange]

Fish. Lots of fish. Ahi tuna, salmon, grouper, you name it. Grill it smoke it marinate it blacken it. Season it slather it eat it raw. Good for your brain, good for your gut. Good lean protein. Find a good seafood shop and visit often.

 

Yeah I looooove fish, especially blackened. Also a huge sushi and sashimi fan.

 

Good stuff from Braedon too, particularly the link about skim milk which I happen to use every day. I'll think about bumping that up to 1% milk instead.

 

While this is a very interesting tangent, I'm also hoping for some lighter healthy restaurant recommendations in keeping with the original spirit of the thread. I see that O3 has recently opened on Elmwood...anybody try it yet?

[SDS]

Yeah I looooove fish, especially blackened. Also a huge sushi and sashimi fan.

 

Good stuff from Braedon too, particularly the link about skim milk which I happen to use every day. I'll think about bumping that up to 1% milk instead.

 

While this is a very interesting tangent, I'm also hoping for some lighter healthy restaurant recommendations in keeping with the original spirit of the thread. I see that O3 has recently opened on Elmwood...anybody try it yet?

 

what is going to help with that is a new law requiring any chain with 20 or more locations to print calorie info on their menus. Restaurants are in a panc because most dishes have between 1000-2000 cals (a full day for me) in them.

[Braedon]

http://www.coromega.com

 

that stuff is pretty good.

 

 

Actually, I've never heard of coromega, will have to check it out. The stuff I drink is Carlson's Fish Oil. Comes lemon or orange infused. Always get it from vitamin shoppe, it's the cheapest.

 

Carlson's