100% keto restaurants—will the future see them?

(Brian) #21

I think we’re more likely to find keto options becoming a little more visual in restaurants that are already there.

I was actually kinda surprised when we went to the local Cracker Barrel on Friday. Our waiter actually had an intelligent conversation with us about low carb eating! Cool! When we did not want the biscuits or cornbread and ordered low carb stuff, he actually got what we were doing and mentioned he thought he should do something like that himself. (He didn’t look like he was overweight at all but was practically giving high fives when he found out that my wife and I have lost almost 60 pounds between the two of us.)

It’s neat when other people “get it”. :slight_smile: And I do think that it will become just a little better known as time goes on and more and more people have success with this WOE.

I’ve no plans to “preach it”. But I don’t plan to hide it from anyone who’s tuned in enough to recognize that something seems to be working for me.

(Paul Melzer) #22

Sort of depends on how popular the food truck is, since the contact time is based at a window. I do think a food truck would be very cool! I could see this as a slam dunk in Los Angeles/Hollywood.

(Paul Melzer) #23

SlowBurnMay, wanna go into business? Sounds like you’ve considered the same thing: It’s something whose time is coming, and there’s an opportunity if some will take it.

I agree that some of its success could be to have a portion of the menu rotating between various ethnic cuisines, somethings to keep customers returning to try new things.

Thanks for your reply!!

(Michel Labelle) #24

There is a great Paleo, Low carb restaurant in Vancouver BC called Caveman Cafe if you want a feel for how to do this.

Still a lot of high carb options, but since they can customize any menu item to your needs, it is simply a matter of remembering what is Keto and what is not.

(Bacon is a many-splendoured thing) #25

I don’t always feel in the mood to discuss it, but whenever I have mentioned I’m eating LCHF (“keto” doesn’t seem to be on the radar in the places I frequent), I have gotten a great response from the serving staff.

As others have mentioned, there is certainly room for a “keto corner” in most restaurant menus, the way there’s a vegetarian section in a lot of menus these days. Any restaurateurs on these forums who’d be interested?

I would dearly love to patronize a restaurant that was all about LCHF (with a decent number of zero-carb entrees and with all the items marked with carb content, perhaps). We took my niece out last night for her birthday. We tried out a local high-end Italian place, and literally every dish came with scads of carbohydrate. Fortunately I found a dish of chicken with shells that wasn’t otherwise too bad and had them hold the shells, but a lot of the dishes featured either pasta or breaded meat.

(Brian) #26

That’s pretty much been our experience with most Italian places, too. And I wish it weren’t so. I LOVE Italian food. But for the most part, it’s pasta, pasta, and more pasta. :frowning:

(Patrick Sullivan (KetoBJJ)) #27

Here in the Huntsville, AL area we have an establishment called Nourish Kitchen and Bakery. This is not quite a Keto place…but, they specialize in special eating habits.
The staff is extremely knowledgeable about our Ketogenic lifestyle and have tweaked some of their staples to fit what we consume. This type of establishment might be the way of the future. A place where lower carb eating is the norm. Going full Keto as a restaurant might not work because it is too specialized. But, tapping into the various low carb lifestyles like Paleo can strengthen the whole movement for bettering our world.

(Kelly) #28

I’d be more excited for a meal delivery service…I’ve seen some that say they are low carb but the ingredients are pushing the limits for me. I have thought that it would be fun to start something like this if I wonder the lottery

#29

Hahaha, thank you for the biz offer Paul - I don’t have the extra time/energy , but was thinking:

Famous actor Matthew McConaughey is based part or all of the year in Austin - and he’s a keto dude from what I’ve seen in some articles. He’s also adventurous and activist enough to possibly be someone to pitch to. Also, the keto world-class athletes and entrepreneurs Sami Inkinen & Meredith Loring.

Or, maybe some of the Silicon Valley VCs mentioned in this article: https://www.cnbc.com/2017/04/28/ketogenic-diets-silicon-valley-investors-body-hack-for-better-health.html

#30

Hey, thanks for the link. One of those restaurants is opening up down the street from me! I’ll be sure to give a full report.

#31

Oh hey, I’ll go into business with Matthew McConaughey!!!

(Elizabeth ) #32

There are a few local restaurants here that have gluten-free menus I normally ask for that it makes it easier to pick keto friendly meals

(Keto Travels) #33

This would be one example of a chain catering to all sorts of different “real food” diets - lots of vegetarian and vegan, but I could totally get on board with the poached egg with Ham and truffle breakfast pot for instance :slight_smile:
http://leonrestaurants.co.uk/menu/breakfast/

(Stephanie Sablich) #34

My mom has mused about starting a “Diabetic-friendly” Cafe and Bakery here in Ann Arbor, MI. Where everyone is a snowflake (and we like it that way :wink: She has a friend who is an incredible baker and has created some marvelous keto-friendly creations. Imagine a world in which diabetics (keto or not) can get sugar-free, low-carb baked goods without sweeteners that do more harm than good. Where the food is so good that everyone wants to eat there, and they can share a food community with their families, friends, and colleagues. Where eating out isn’t fraught with health concerns, constantly being tempted and reminded of physical issues.

I think it would do incredibly well, without having to call it keto at all. They might not know is that "diabetic-friendly IS keto, right? We can educate them after they come in the door :wink:

#35

You can order a steak with some broccoli pretty much anywhere.

#36

Right - grain fed beef though - which creates an unnaturally fattened and nutritionally inferior meat - just like grains do in the human body in some ways. Cows are ruminants, grass-eaters - they only eat industrial grains because of human profiteering - and sometimes those grain pellets contain “protein” which is cow meat! And thus we got Mad Cow Disease etc. Such cattle are often penned and slaughtered under conditions that increase the adrenaline levels in the meat which in turn affects human endocrine system.

So… I look for grassfed or pastured beefbison/lamb, grassfed chicken, and wild-caught fish - which is still unheard of in large chain restaurants and generally found in just a minority of upscale restaurants.

Fortunately though in the case of lamb - as sheep are ruminants, they are kept with their mothers until they wean and then are grassfed on beautiful green pastures until they are at least 6 months old or older, then often fattened more on grains before slaughter, which is not as severe as what’s done with cattle - and you can find very tasty lamb on the menu in many Indian/Pakistani and Middle Eastern restaurants - just eat it with a salad and a bit of yoghurt on the side and you’re good to go (that is, for those who like tender lamb, which I do!).

As far as fast food though, places like P Terry’s in Austin offer grassffed beef and hormone-free chicken - and even Chipotle has moved in that direction, yay!

(What The Fast?!) #37

There are definitely Paleo restaurants popping up, and I bet those places will offer keto selections.

(Paul Melzer) #38

A restaurant where you don’t have to make special requests. “Please no this, only that, more of the other” gets old after awhile. We shouldn’t have to move through obstacle courses when we go out to eat (and pay extra for the experience).

There, my first opinion of the day.

#39

Telling the waitress how you like your food isn’t moving through an obstacle course, its actually pretty simple. I don’t recall paying extra for getting veggies instead of fries or mashed potatoes when I went out.

(betsy.rome) #40

Perfect name, though - “Outcast”. Fringe eating at its best.