Comical fast food orders
 

I'm finding that choices at fast food restaurants aren't as bad as what I first thought. Come with me in the drive-thru lane to my McD's visit 2 weeks ago...

Annie: Yes, I'd like your dollar double-cheeseburger. Hold the bread and ketchup.
Girl: (long pause, as in "Huh"?)
Annie: Did you hear that order?
Girl: Yeah, uh, I just don't know how to do that.
Annie: Well, can you just make the burger without putting ketchup on it, and hold the bread? I am doing Atkins.
Girl: Uh, I just don't know how to do that...
Annie: That's ok, just give me the dollar cheeseburger and I"ll do it myself.

The second time I went in, I politely spoke with the woman manager and shared my experience. She chuckled and said, "Oh, we get Atkins orders all the time now!" Next time, tell them you want it in a box."
I went further the following time and asked that they put the cheese in the middle, so it doesn't melt into the box. ( I later was told by the manager that when the girl said "I don't know how to do that", she was referring to punching in the order, not excluding the buns. ;)

This weekend, while on vacation, I went to BK. The order-taker said, "You'll need a box with that, a fork and a knife. We get orders for Atkins all the time now."
My mouth dropped to the floor, we exchanged smiles, and she made my day!
Has anyone else had any other comical experiences with orders? Or any ideas for other orders? :wave:

too funny. i haven't tried that yet but i plan to as soon as hubby wants to go out for a quick bite. :)

Too funny!
 

Please friends, don't think I eat every meal at McD's or BK! LOL

Cetacean, let us know what their reaction is! We need a good laugh! :p

Nope - still getting the raised eyebrows here. "No bun?" :rolleyes:

When I worked at a "healthy fast food" restaurant say 8 years ago, we had a no bun button. I never used it, and had no idea who would want to use it. Times sure have changed.


Beth

I'm too chicken
 

I haven't gotten up the nerve to ask for my burger sans bun-- I always just take it off myself. I had a great lunch at Subway today. I found out you can order any sub as a salad. Their dressings are all fat free, though, so I asked for some oil and vinegar.

In N' Out Burgers
 

In N' Out Burgers has a "protein style" option for their burgers. They wrap the burger in lettuce leaves for you! It's very cool. :roll:

Here is their website... you can nutritional info there. I think I remember the protein style burgers being about 11 g carbs each.

http://www.in-n-out.com/

Shel

One of my first experiences ordering LC happened when a friend and I were in the food court of a shopping mall in Seattle; I asked for a cheeseburger without the bun, and the young woman behind the counter gave me a blank look and asked, "What do you mean?" It took several tries at explaining what I wanted before she got it. I guess she just couldn't imagine someone not wanting bread.

Karla

Annie,
:p Yep, I can relate! I've chuckled about this several times after making a quick morning run through McD's for an "Egg McMuffin...but no muffin, please". The first time, the McD's worker (in her best Charlie Brown's teacher/speaker voice) stammered "I'm sorry, you want...you want.... what?" :lol:
One day, when I first starting LCing, I had ordered a salad and before I realized what I was doing, I had crunched up 2 packs of crackers and dumped them on my salad :exclm: :exclm: (I know, most people eat them on the side... I like them ON my salad). After I realized what I had done, I frantically started picking out cracker pieces and piling them on a napkin. About that time, the server came back to ask if I needed anything... she couldn't take her eyes off that little pile of cracker crumbs. I just kept on picking cracker crumbs and told her that everything was just fine.
This past weekend, I had a Philly Steak 'n cheese sandwich at a local restaurant. I decided to just go ahead and get it with the roll and take it home for my dog (it has all those yummy beef juices in it!). The waitress gave me the funniest look after I ate all the meat and cheese ..then asked for a "to go" box for just the bun.
Heehee... it's actually kind of fun to be :D "different", isn't it?

I went to Wendy's a few weeks ago...and asked for a Classic Triple, plain, no bun...The woman asked if I was on "that no bread diet." I said, yes...and she told me that half the employees there are on that diet.

Places I've ordered without the Bun:

McDonalds (N 9th Ave, N Davis Hwy)
Wendys (N 9th Ave)
Burger King (ATL -- Delta Terminal)
Chilis Too (FLL -- US Air Terminal ?)
Sub Place (MCO -- Delta Terminal)

Chilis Too and the Sub Place (can't remember the name, but BK was closed at the time) were the only ones who gave me an odd look.

Someone I know told me McDolnalds now has a button for no bun-I never order it that way because they ususally mess up my order anyway and this will just make it more difficult for them :(

LOL I do that all the time. I don't ever order with out the bun because I just pick it off myself and my puppy dogs sure enjoy them when I get home (We dont eat out often so its a nice treat for them). I have come very used to asking for a second small plate when we go out (We don't ever go anywhere fancy....) and picking out the things I cant have and then asking for a togo box. Most of the waiters ask me if everything was OK I just smile and say yep! While my BF looks at me and shakes his head.... What can I say never a dull moment with me!

Sarah

I should probably mention that there was a time (before 1992) when I didn't eat buns, rolls, or biscuits. It wasn't because I was dieting...I just didn't eat them. This was mostly because my mom cooked all of my meals before then and I'd just gotten used to a meal being meat (beef, chicken, fish), mashed potatoes, and green beans or peas.

She never made bread with meals. That is probably why I was skinny until 1992. On the occassions when I ate out, I would order a burger with no bun. I got quite alot more questions back then than I do now.

But, alas...I tried bread (other than the breading on fried foods or the occassional slice of birthday cake) for the first time in 1992 and became instantly addicted. Around that same time, she got a new job and stopped cooking...we started eating out and I started eating alot of bread.

ha ha ! I have only been doing this for 2 weeks and felt really uncomfortable when I asked for no bun at Wendy's and I got that blank stare. Thanks for letting me know I'm not alone. The first time I went to McD and got a double cheeseburger plain I didn't ask for it that way and lost all my cheese because it was stuck to the bun...so I learned fast :>).

LOL. Yup, that was me today at lunch. When I peeled off the bun, I had to take the cheese off too because it had bread bits stuck to it. I've learned my lesson at McD's. I've gone back to plain burgers w/o buns and a side salad. Two times I ordered those new premium salads. First time, I ordered grilled chicken on a bacon ranch salad with a cup for water. I got crispy chicken, no cup. Second time, I ordered grilled chicken on a bacon ranch salad with a cup for water. I got grilled chicken on a caesar salad w/o croutons, and a cup! Then I learned, those salads are waaay too salty for me (must be in the seasonings they use on the "grilled" chicken). Good luck on your LC journey!

Cheese stuck on bun
 

Yeah, that's what I discovered after the first LC trip thru that McD's drive-thru...the cheese did stick to the bun and it was nearly impossible to get off. So it has only taken 3 trips to get the order straight, whether it's BK, McD's, or Wendy's..."Double cheeseburger (or whatever kind) without the bun. Put it in a box, with the cheese in the middle of the patties. No ketchup. I'll need a fork with that, please.

As for ordering the bread and taking it home, that's a swell idea~ Our dog would love the taste of all that grease! Thanks for the idea!

Also, when I was at Wendy's this weekend, they put it in a plastic plate with sides--meant for their salads--and it wasn't a problem at all. I noticef while waiting for my order, that 2 people next to me ordered a huge salad with scoops of chili on top..plus fries and a T-a-l-l- order of sugared pop. (Is anything in America ever small-LOL)...Before I felt good about judging them, I realized I used to order all those carbs myself and who was I to even point a finger? All I could do is look at the food, hope they would someday see the benefits of Atkins, and for myself, be very thankful that I no longer even crave those sugared, carbed foods! :roll:

So true, Annie-Pie. It's tempting at the grocery to do judge, while strolling through the aisles, but then I remember it used to be me putting all those carbs in my shopping cart. LOL.

I work near a sub shop and got a craving for a cheese steak sub so I called up and asked for a double stuffed cheese steak with mayo, lettuce and onions and no bread he was dumbfouded ahhh okay now I order there once a week and as soon as they hear my voice "Hi! Shawn same order cheese steak salad" heehee

Its one thing when I see a fat person loading their cart with carbs...But, I get really annoyed when I see some skinny ass supermodel type (the same kind who made fun of me in MS/HS because of my size) loading her cart with bread, cake, pie, ice cream, pasta, a 5 lb bag of potatoes, potato chips, doritos, cheetos, etc...

I see it all the time...walk by the bakery and I see some waif thin supermodel loading up her cart with cake and pie. Walk by the junk food aisle and another is loading her cart with cheetos, doritos, salsa, potato chips, etc...on the bread aisle, another is throwing loaves of bread and pasta by pound into her cart.

I'd just love to see how these waif thin types would cope if they had to give up their HC foods or get fat...

I'm in the habit now of asking for my fast food burgers "on a bed of lettuce instead of the bun"... sometimes it registers with the order-taker a little easier, but you just have to make sure that they don't charge extra for the lettuce...the idea is to REPLACE the bun with some lettuce...

Should be no big deal...but In & Out is the best...they already get it!
:wave:

Same here, sadly :(

hi everyone!
 

I thought I would join in by saying that another good food to get at lunch time is pizza hut buffet. You scrape the toppings off and eat a salad. Its good. At first I felt wierd with this pile of crust pieces next to me. The waitress said "Are you on the Atkins?" and we visited about it. Ever since I feel more comfortable when she is working. Im on my second try with Atkins as of Monday. Good luck to you all too.

Quesedellas
 

Get this. I actually took two low carb tortillas with me to my regular Wednesday breakfast place with me this morning. I have been really missing my chicken cheese quesedillas. I asked if she could make it with my La Tortilla tortillas and she did!! Ye haw! It was great. The other girls came in and said your eating tortilla's, I just grinned and said "yeah but it's legal". yum.. :roll:

mWhat a hoot reading all these stories and comments. The skinny-minnies? Well, some day it may or may not catch up with them. The key thing is, we are only in control of ourselves. However even if they do remain skinny (it may be in their genes)--we all know that excess sugars aren't good for the kidneys. There is a huge article about that in today's Seattle Times, and how unhealthy eating can lead to a horrible routine of weekly kidney dialysis. So, skinny or fat, they can do what they want, cuz I have been in both shoes. The ones that matter are my own, eh? LOL ! :daze:
~Annie-Pie~

I finally summoned up the courage to order a plain double cheeseburger w/o bun in a box and w/the cheese in the middle of the two patties and a knife and fork at McD's. They got it correct!!! I was pleasantly surprised.

It's getting more common
 

But, it takes a lot of people ordering our LC way to really make it mainstream. Spread the word.

I remember lots of restaurants I've visited - Subway, Mcd's, BK, Jack in the Box, Carl's Jr., etc. Even three years ago when I started this I was too scared to ask, and if I got up the courage to do so I always got 'the look'. Now, it's different. Not perfect, but most places don't look at you like you are insane anymore.

Went to a restaurant with my Mom. Ordered salad, no onion, no croutons, bacon/mushroom/cheeseburger with no bun. The meal came with pasta salad, or fries, etc. As soon as I said NONE of ANY of that, the waitress asked: "You're doing Atkins?" Well, it was sort of a question, sort of a statement. If that makes sense. :)

Now that I am doing CAD, I sometimes get the (insert bun/bread/fries/carb sidedish) instead of asking for it without, but I still love asking for it without some of the extras that aren't necessary.

The more people who are doing LC that ask for these things, the more restaurants and fast food places will accomodate and understand us.

I've gotten to the point where I am not afraid to ask for the food the way I want it. If the establishment is worth their salt, they will do whatever they can to accomodate you. And, they are getting better, as more and more people speak up.

I fill out comment cards wherever I can get them, asking for more low-carb/low-sugar options on the menus. I'd love if sugar free ketchup, sweet n' sour sauce, etc were available. I'm gonna make this stuff at home, but I think there are so many people out there with sugar issues, that we need those substitutes when we eat out. Heck, if I can't get it at a restaurant, I'm gonna start bringing my own damn ketchup. :) Eventually, though I predict that we'll have low-carb restaurants on every corner, right next to the Starbuck's (who will have a whole selection of sugar-free syrups and whole cream delicacies - if they know what's good for them.)

God, I really do babble, don't I.
Sorry!

Melissa

fast food choices
 

We dont go out often (cause there IS no fast food where I live) but when we do go somewhere, i do the pizza hut thing like mentioned earlier, just eat the cheese and meat, little sause as possible, or Arby's order a big montana and take the bun off, no sauces or cheese to worry about scraping off the bun

I can't wait hehe

I have been going to Captain D's & ordering the broiled shrimp lunch without the rice, vegetable medley, or breadstick. I'm not sure how the prepare the vegetable medley so I don't take any chances. I pay over $5.00 for 10 pieces of broiled shrimp. Nobody's said anything though, at least not yet. It is sad that you have to explain to so many people why you can't have this, that or the other. :rolleyes:

for our british people on the board, sandwich shops are the best. Subway isn't bad, but quite expensive. I normally order a BLT without the bread, in a box and extra salad. I never got a funny look. Shame though, that all the low-fat brigade has had such a lot of influence, that the only "mayonnaise" they have is low fat salad cream.....

I also just started a new job. They have a little cafe at work. First day, I just ordered a normal coffe with milk (semi skimmed, urgh). Out of fun, I asked, if he has full fat milk or cream. He laughed and said "not another one on the Atkins diet", went to the kitchen and gor me a coffe with real double cream.... Yummm :D :D

I think we have come a long way, if even the cafe at work is starting to cater for LC food. :D

Oh, and the best thing: I now order my lunch there (burger with no bun or chips and extra salad) and I pay £1 less !!!!! Now if that isn't encouragement :D :D