Restaurants that Won't Wreck Your Resolutions

How to Make a “Better-Not Best” Choice When Dining Out

When you’re watching what you eat, going out can become a stress-inducing situation. You can’t control the ingredients. There will be a whole menu of temptations. There will likely be drinks (to booze or not to booze is always the question).

Don’t let your fitness journey ruin your date nights or brunch dates. But also don’t let your date nights or brunch dates ruin your fitness journey. Just keep a few guidelines in mind to help you make a better choice:

1. Read the menu ahead of time. Give yourself time to “digest” (see what I did there) the options available to you and make an intentional choice. I’ve always read menus in advance because I love to get excited about what I’m going to eat. But now reading menus has also become an exercise in planning. Because remember, as my Body Back instructor is fond of saying, a failure to plan is a plan to fail.

2. Consider brunch or lunch if the idea of dinner without a couple of cocktails is too much to aim for. It’s much easier to pass on a drink when it’s before noon, and daytime meal options tend to be lighter fare. Some of my favorite eats are in the coffee-and-brunch category!

3. Decide in advance what, if anything, you will indulge on. If it’s a special occasion, I allow myself to choose between a portion of a less-healthy appetizer, a cocktail, or shared dessert. Picking one indulgence allows me to find the balance between healthy but deprived and unhealthy but content.

4. Avoid split-second decisions and stick with your plan! This is key. You’ve taken the time and energy to follow the first steps above; don’t ruin it in the 11th hour with an impulse decision. Stay with the choices you decided on before leaving the house, and recognize that your first instinct is usually the correct one. Note: Alcohol makes it much easier to go off-plan because it lowers your inhibitions.

5. Drink all the water you are offered and more. Just keep having your water glass refilled. This is important for so many reason: It helps you feel full. It gives you something to do that isn’t eating. And if you decide to have a drink (or drinks), make sure you down two full glasses of water for every alcoholic beverage.

6. Have a selection of go-to spots where you know the menu and you know what you can eat. Don’t be afraid to suggest these options whenever you have a say, and don’t feel limited by eating at the same select places. Yes, it’s fun to try something new — but it’s also reassuring to have standby favorites that are reliably delicious and healthy.

How do you find your own handful of restaurants that meet this criteria? Know your target: Look for buzzwords like clean, organic, locally sourced in their marketing. When you peruse the menus, look for whole grains as ingredients, especially quinoa or brown rice. Check the salad section and evaluate whether any of their choices would satisfy you (also be alert to too many red-flag ingredients in the salads: tortilla strips, creamy dressing, too much dried fruit or sweetened nuts). Restaurants that highlight their vegan or dairy-free options are also often a good choice; while vegan entrees don’t necessarily equate to “healthy”, it demonstrates the restaurant is mindful of current dietary trends.

Local Love: Chicago Western Suburbs Restaurants That Won’t Wreck Your Resolutions

Here are my picks for restaurants in the western suburbs I return to again and again for healthier options that taste delicious:

1. Maize + Mash, Glen Ellyn

Maize + Mash is my original Body Back-approved date night choice. Their salads are so inventive and well-rounded that I actually crave them (hello, ahi tuna salad). Because of the menu’s attention to detail with flavor and texture combinations, I don’t even need any dressing! If you don’t think you can eat a salad without dressing, order it on the side and then use it sparingly; dip your fork in for a taste instead of tossing it in it.

My picks: Literally any of their salads. I’ve tried them all and none have failed me. If ahi isn’t your jam, try the Maize Salad with salmon.

Bonus: Sister restaurant Barrel + Rye in Geneva offers similarly delicious entree salad options.

2. Moveable Feast & Co., Wheaton

I frequent the Wheaton Moveable Feast so often, I fear they are soon going to start bringing me my Hot Shot of juice as they seat me. For breakfast or brunch, it’s to die for. But #DoneWithFun Daddy and I recently tried it for dinner … and it was also to die for. (Refer to beautiful cheeseboard picture above.)

My picks: I have yet to try anything here that I didn’t like. But my love of the Hot Shot (a combination of ginger, lemon, apple, turmeric, and jalapeno) is approaching obsession level. The El Rey eggs and the Grain Bowl are a toss-up for my favorite breakfast entree. And if you’re thinking about a splurge, the millionaire bacon, OMG. It’s worth it.

3. Blackberry Market, Glen Ellyn

Another downtown Glen Ellyn culinary scene cult favorite, Blackberry Market brews a beautiful latte and bakes a cinnamon roll so decadent that it might wreck your resolutions. But their breakfast menu is one of my weekend favorite spots. It’s informal enough that you can bring your kids without getting dirty looks, and cozy enough that you’ll want to stay all day (if you don’t have your kids with you).

My picks: The Breakfast Powerbowl, with perfectly poached eggs and Mediterranean quinoa seasoned just right. Try the Turmeric-Honey-Cinnamon Latte on the side; it’s a seasonal special but I’m going to be devastated if and when they take it away this winter.

4. DOC Wine Bar, Lombard

Another date-night favorite, #DoneWithFun Daddy and I have figured out that we can come to DOC Wine Bar and curate a Butcher’s Plate so filling that we make it our meal. The combination of meats, cheeses, and bruschetta options are a little more indulgent than some of my other picks, but a date night is a splurge night in my book. Especially when a date night happens only once a quarter if that.

My picks: Start with a Butcher’s Plate and include the Old Amsterdam or Barely Buzzed cheeses and Tomato Mozzarella bruschetta as some of your picks. If you’re still hungry, try the Wrightwood salad (skip the croutons; request the dressing on the side.) To comfort yourself that you aren’t indulging in the admittedly amazing Lincoln Park Chocolate Chip Cookie sundae, order the Ricotta Pistachio bruschetta to finish off — the honey glaze is the sweet finish you’re craving.

5. Le Pain Quotidien, Naperville

Downtown Naperville is a dining destination unto itself but while there are many delicious options, not all of them fit the #fitnessjourney lifestyle very well. For breakfast or lunch, though, Le Pain Quotidien does, with its menu based around local, organic choices.

My picks: The Sunny Side Breakfast Bowl or the Baker’s Breakfast if you’re in a breakfast mood. Try one of the tartines or salads for lunch; I sampled the Prosciutto, Fig and Goat Cheese Tartine on their signature whole-grain homemade bread.

Honorable Mentions:

Any sushi restaurant (Hokkai in Glen Ellyn, Kizuna in Lombard, and Chef Soon in Lisle are three of our current favorites) or poke bowl restaurant (try Aloha Poke in Naperville and the soon-to-open LemonShark Poke in Wheaton)

You have to order smart when going out for sushi: tempura rolls are out. In fact, basically all rolls are out. The sauces that make rolls so delicious are either mayo-based (nope) or sugar-loaded (also nope). But sashimi, a poke bowl over brown rice or greens, or a sushi salad are healthier options that I’ve actually come to prefer over rolls. Request any sauces on the side and choose the low-sodium soy sauce. Opt for brown rice if it’s available. Skip sake.

What would you add to this list of local spots? I’ll take one for the team and try out your recommendations and report back (such a burden, I know). Share your favorite date night spots with #NeverDoneWithFun on social media and follow me on Instagram and Pinterest for daily ideas and inspiration!