Soup/Salad Bars: Salvation or Devastation?

One of those great coupons appeared in our local paper: $19.99 dinner for four at our local all-you-can-eat salad/soup/pasta/bread/etc. bar. (You probably know which one I'm talking about, but I won't call them out by name.) Such a great deal, we couldn't pass it up. Plus, it was salad and soup--a healthy meal, right?

Well, it probably could have been, but here's what really happened. We walked in the door and were met by a huge salad bar: undressed greens and fresh veggies galore, in addition to higher-calorie add-ons like croutons, shredded cheese, sunflower seeds and dried fruit. There were also dressed mixed salads, pasta and potato salads, along with a varied selection of dressings (including low- and no-fat varieties, plus oils and vinegars). After loading up our plates with low-cal salad, we paid the cashier, found a booth and got our drinks. Here's where the interesting part began.

A different section of the restaurant offered a variety of hot soups, chilis, cheese-topped focaccias, two types of hot pastas with sauce, baked white and sweet potatoes with toppings, and a few other bread items. It was all too easy to load up on creamy shrimp bisque, mac and cheese and focaccia, in addition to the potatoes--talk about carbs and fat! How much is enough? And how much is too much? There's no one but you monitoring how much you can take--and it's all included in the price--so the temptation to load up is pretty high. Plus, all that food looks, smells and sounds so good. AND you've just been virtuous and had a huge salad (with low-fat dressing), so don't you "deserve" to taste the yummy stuff? I certainly found myself thinking that way.

Finally, there's the dessert bar: two types of non-fat frozen yogurt in a swirl dispenser, plus toppings, a warm brownie-type muffin to place under it, sugar-free chocolate mousse, Jell-O, plus a warm fruit cobbler. Again, no one to tell you how much to take--it's all up to you. So you take it all.

You only realize how much you've eaten when you stagger out of the place, bloated and regretful. But it was only soup and salad, you tell yourself. Deceiving, isn't it?

Now I'm not saying restaurants like this one don't have a place in a healthful diet plan. But unless you have huge willpower--and measuring cups and a calorie counter handy--it'is very difficult to control your intake. So if you have any trouble avoiding temptation or gauging portion sizes, my advice is to avoid the all-you-can-eats, no matter how healthy they seem. Or just resolve to make up for it over the next few days.