Travel Restaurant Dilemmas - UPDATE

[DenverGuy]

Before I switched the The Starch Solution I never really thought about eating right when I travel. Sure, I avoided animal products, and I thought that was good enough.
I'm going to Puerto Vallarta this winter and have started the restaurant search. The travel sites talk about the vegan restaurants, and we all know that they aren't all that when it comes to eating right.
I am looking for authentic Mexican or Chinese places. Many that I have seen online don't post their menus.
How do you handle this when subject when traveling?
On the other hand, I bet 99%+ of people barely give this a thought. That kinda makes me think I am bordering on on having othorexia nervosa (an obsession with healthy eating).
Any thoughts.

[QubitBob]

Jeff Novick has a wonderful discussion thread in his forum addressing the challenges of eating out. Here is a link to it: https://www.drmcdougallforums.com/viewt ... 22&t=60642.

This topic comes up frequently in this forum. If you search on "restaurants" you will find many of those discussion threads and can read them to find the helpful hints shared by your fellow McDougallers.

[DenverGuy]

Thanks. Will do.

[JeffN]

That kinda makes me think I am bordering on on having othorexia nervosa (an obsession with healthy eating).Any thoughts.

Think about this….

You hadn’t been practicing good oral hygiene habits and as a result had to have major dental work done including root canals, extracted teeth, implants etc, As a result you decided to practice good oral hygiene and made a point of brushing several time.a day and using a water pic, flossing, etc too including taking care of your teeth after each meal And when you traveled you made sure you had the things you needed to continue to do this while on the road and wherever you were staying. My guess is, no one would think you were weird, or had an addictive or obsessive compulsive disease. Many would think you were a shining example of you might even inspire some of them (without even preaching to them) to be more conscientious of their oral hygiene. An if someone did ask about it and you explained the issue and the major dental work you have to have done, that would easily understand.

Yet somehow, if someone wants to make changes to their diet and lifestyle to avoid the epidemics of lifestyle related chronicle disease of which several are the leading cause of death, or to treat their existing lifestyle related medical conditions, they are thought of as weird, obsessive, strict, and the world has even named an official diagnosis for it, orthorexia.

Makes you wonder who the crazy ones really are.

[DenverGuy]

Well said! I appreciate your response. I never really thought of it that way. I used to feel awkward when I ordered non-meat options at restaurants with friends or family and sometimes felt I had to defend those choices. Now I couldn't care less. On the other hand, I never suggest to other people what they should be doing as it's not of my business. Sometimes they will ask, but when I tell them what I know, they use a counter-argument. It's not worth it.

I met a friend for lunch the other day at a Mexican place. They say they don't use lard. I ordered a veggie quesarito with no cheese. My friend, who is way overweight ordered the regular one:

"The house favorite! We start with fresh ground beef, delicately seasoned, add cheese, lettuce, and tomatoes, and roll it in a four tortilla. Smothered with cheese and our own special sauce, and then baked to a bubbly perfection."

I would never say anything, but wow...

P.S. So true about the dental part!

[michaelswarm]

Denver Guy,

In Vallarta Marina you will find Victor’s Place. We order corn tortillas, refried beans (no cheese), rice and salsa and make our own bean tacos. These are standard items for most Mexican dishes. It’s the simplest things on the menu. You can probably do the same or similar in any Mexican restaurant. Victor’s is rght on the water next to the boats.

Victor's Place Cafe Tacuba
Condominio Royal Pacific Yacht Club Uno, Av Paseo de la Marina Local #128, Marina Vallarta, 48335 Puerto Vallarta, Jal.

If you have a kitchen or kitchenette, or some creativity, you can easily do your own cooking too. Produce is fresh, plentiful, convenient and cheap. Neighborhoods have green grocers called fruterías, that sell fruit, vegetables and potatoes. Usually bulk beans and white rice too. Brown rice is available in all the supermarkets.

I live just north of Puerto Vallarta year round.

ps. Refried beans don’t usually include lard or oil. Just beans, onion and salt. (Watch out for topping of cheese “queso”.)

[DenverGuy]

Michaelswarm.
Muchas gracias por todo. Lo agradezsco mucho.
I will be staying in El Centro at Villa Premier.
I will head to Victors. Looks like a good place. I see that Planeta Vegetariano could be good, also.
I always say, "No queso y no champiñones, por favor."
Can you recommend any Asian places?
Thanks again.

[Taggart]

Plantiful Kiki who is on the Starch Solution has a few videos on her vlog about how she ate on her travels in Mexico with her husband and two children. Just do a search for "Mexico" on her channel and you'll find them.

https://www.youtube.com/c/PlantifulKiki/videos

From what I could see she's not perfect but just does the best she can and doesn't stress out about it.

Over twenty years ago Robert Pritikin had three sets of food choices which was "Better", "Better Still", and "Best". The titles are self explanatory and sometimes he admits himself he flips right off the chart. Occasional slips are going to happen he says, but next day he's up exercising, eating well, and back on the program.

Don't expect perfection, and you won't be disappointed. That's basically what I do the few times I fly overseas on vacation.

Enjoy your stay.

[A Balloon A Balloon]

Lots of good thoughts on this thread.

Hope it goes well for you - let us know your experience of eating on the trip. I'd be interested to hear more about Puerto Vallarta, as I've got a friend who goes there sometimes.

[DenverGuy]

Thanks, Taggart and Balloon.
I will check that video and will report back in January.
I am looking forward to Victor's and Planeta Vegetariano.

[DenverGuy]

I stayed in 5 de Diciember - just north of Centro.
It wasn't easy to be vegan in PV! Almost everything is steak, chicken, and fish. Vegetables are a low priority.

I went to Restaurant Fei Long. It was okay.

The next day I did lunch at Planeta Vegetariano and it was great!
The day after, it was AWFUL. They still had some stuff there from breakfast and several of the heating trays were empty. They had watery black beans - but no rice. This was at noon. I asked the lady if more was coming out and she said "no," so I filled up on filler. Adding insult to injury, they were bringing food out as I was finishing up. I wasn't happy and didn't go back during my stay.

I didn't make it to Victor's this time, as it was a little far.
Layla's Restaurant had falafels, which were good.
The Starbucks near the seahorse boy has soymilk. The one a few blocks north did not.
If you go to Mismaloya, good luck finding food.

[Taggart]

I stayed in 5 de Diciember - just north of Centro.
It wasn't easy to be vegan in PV! Almost everything is steak, chicken, and fish. Vegetables are a low priority.

I went to Restaurant Fei Long. It was okay.

The next day I did lunch at Planeta Vegetariano and it was great!
The day after, it was AWFUL. They still had some stuff there from breakfast and several of the heating trays were empty. They had watery black beans - but no rice. This was at noon. I asked the lady if more was coming out and she said "no," so I filled up on filler. Adding insult to injury, they were bringing food out as I was finishing up. I wasn't happy and didn't go back during my stay.

I didn't make it to Victor's this time, as it was a little far.
Layla's Restaurant had falafels, which were good.
The Starbucks near the seahorse boy has soymilk. The one a few blocks north did not.
If you go to Mismaloya, good luck finding food.

I was hoping you would eventually post your food exploits on your Mexico visit....and sure enough. Thanks for that.

I look at a number of youtube vlogs with people travelling around the world. They usually proudly show what they are eating, and I always think, I can't eat like that. Such is the way of the world, once you leave home to go international. Pity.

[DenverGuy]

Thanks, Tag. I didn't want to forget the update.
I agree with you.
Well said.

P.S. There is also a restaurant called The Green Place, but I ran out of time and didn't get there.