All You CAN Eat...Not All You SHOULD Eat

Appetizer

Put more thought into what you're ordering at the all-u-can-eat buffet. Whether you're planning a trip to Las Vegas - home to some of the most lavish buffets in the country - or whether you and your family are just headed to the Golden Corral (or Old Country Buffet, Shoney's, Super China Buffet...take your pick here), you don't have to walk away with unbuttoned pants and a guilty conscience.

Main Course

1) The best thing about a buffet is that you can walk around and look at all that it has to offer BEFORE you start piling up your plate. As you look around, pick out your "must haves" and put only those things that you cherish the most on your plate.

2) Be sure to include veggies and lean protein on your plate, and limit yourself to only one spoonful of anything creamy (mac & cheese, cream of broccoli soup) or white (garlic mashed potatoes, ranch dressing).

3) Limit yourself to one plate. Buffets are notorious for providing a never-ending supply of clean plates for your multiple trips to the line, but resist the urge to dirty up another one. By limiting yourself to a single plate, you are forced to make smart decisions the first time around.

4) Control your portions. If you do this effectively, eating at the buffet can end up working in your favor. Restaurants always give us more food than we need when we order off of the menu. At a buffet, you have ultimate control over your portions because you're serving yourself. Use this control to your advantage by sticking to appropriate portion sizes. See this past post for more info on portion sizes.

Dessert

I guess you could say that I'm a buffet snob because I don't like them at all. I don't like them for 2 reasons: (1) I don't like the idea of other people breathing all over my food and potentially touching it (I've seen folks stick their finger in the salad dressing which is so gross) and (2) I don't know when to stop. I mean, mentally I know when enough is enough, but when faced with all of those choices I end up "squaring my shoulders and preparing for battle." Given this level of drama, I try to stay away - far away.

As I write this post to you now, I feel like a bit of a hypocrite because I'm providing all of these sensible tips for handling buffet temptations yet I'm unable to follow my own advice. So, in order to rid myself of this guilt, I would like to make this little PSA:

"Follow the tips above if at all possible. If not, just step away from the buffet. I repeat, step away from the buffet."

Not all battles were designed to be fought. The smartest warrior is the one that knows when to lay down the sword. Ha, ha...that was corny, wasn't it? But seriously, you don't HAVE to learn how to conquer the buffet line. You can always be like me...Choose your battles, and avoid the darn place if need be.