Eating out while on dietary restrictions is never easy. You can either eat before you meet up with friends or do your best to pick the correct item off the menu. Sulfates, vegan, and keto are three dietary restrictions new to the hospitality industry and can be a challenge trying to accommodate. Keto, in particular, is something still new and, of course, hard to pivot around while eating out. So what are some things you can eat on a keto lifestyle? Check out these pub foods that you can quickly adapt to keto diets.
What is Keto?
Keto is the utilization and optimization of fats as the primary source of fuel in your body. Keto means to reduce carbohydrates down to a bare minimum. Those who are keto consume up to 80% of their overall daily caloric intake as fats. This leaves about 20% as proteins and carbohydrates. Anything that is a carb is low on the glycemic index. Starches such as bread, pasta and rice are not a part of the keto diet. Instead, veggies such as tomatoes, lettuce and celery are a primary source of carbohydrates. So what do you eat at a pub in terms of keto? Follow along from appetizers to dessert.
Keto Appetizers
Appetizers that have lots of cheese or meat and no bread fit a keto lifestyle perfectly. Mozza sticks are very common in a pub and are mostly cheese. Another good appetizer would be steak bites or bacon-wrapped scallops, primarily made of meat and fat.
If a pub serves chips and guacamole, ask for celery or cucumber instead of the chips. These all make great appetizers when starting your dinner with friends.
Keto Mains
The easiest main meal to order off the menu would be a burger. Many mains are easy to accommodate for keto than appetizers or dessert. Instead of the high carb bun on the burger, ask your server for lettuce and opt-out of the tomato, onion, and pickle (if you are not a super strict keto, keep it). Instead of fries as a side, request a Caesar salad without the croutons. Lettuce is very low in carbohydrates and calories.
If you are a big fan of steak, most pubs offer some style of steak sandwich. Order the sandwich without the bread or fries, ask for veggies or a plain salad instead. If you want to turn up the flavor and the pub offers prawns or a version of steak oscar, request the extra proteins and hollandaise.
Choosing your dinner is very easy in a pub as everything is deep-fried or grilled. Mains to avoid include pasta dishes, rice bowls, and anything with a sugary sauce.
Keto Desserts
Dessert can be a tricky course to pivot around when on a keto diet. You have two options, save all your carbs for dessert or try and reduce the sugar intake as much as you can.
Cheesecake is a typical dish served at a pub, and despite the amount of sugar on it, try it without the toppings, whipped cream and push the graham cracker shell to the side.
The easiest way to enjoy dessert at a pub is to try and make your appetizer and main as low carb as possible, allowing you to bank those extra sugars for the end of the road.
Another standard option in a pub is ice cream. Even though there is quite a bit of sugar, reduce the carbs by getting a scoop simply on its own with no drizzled syrup.
Keto is much easier in a pub than you think. You can eat your cake and enjoy it too, figuratively, that is. Critical concepts of keto in a pub are to stay away from the bread, reduce the veggies and, of course, reach for the cheese!