Eating out on a GLP-1: what to order
Restaurants are the hardest part of a GLP-1. Your appetite is suppressed to a fraction of normal, the menu has no nutrition label, and the dishes that sound like protein — pad thai, a burrito, a sushi roll, chicken parm — are mostly rice, oil and sauce. Eat the wrong thing and you've spent your whole calorie budget on almost no protein.
The fix is the same framework used across this site: every dish scored on Protein Density. On a GLP-1 you need to average Gold or Platinum tier at every meal to protect muscle and hit your target inside a small appetite. Below is exactly what that looks like at six common cuisines.
Get your daily protein target and the tier you need to average — then order against it.
By cuisine
Each guide ranks the menu by Protein Density and flags the traps. Estimate-based — these restaurants have no official nutrition label.
Best GLP-1 pick: Tuna Sashimi (6 pieces) — ~22g protein, 98 kcal (est.)
Best GLP-1 pick: Chicken Tikka (2 skewers) — ~47.2g protein, 260 kcal (est.)
Best GLP-1 pick: Carne Asada (plate, no tortillas) — ~45.2g protein, 255 kcal (est.)
Best GLP-1 pick: Steamed Chicken & Broccoli (sauce on side) — ~45.5g protein, 263 kcal (est.)
Best GLP-1 pick: Tom Yum Soup with Shrimp — ~30g protein, 135 kcal (est.)
Best GLP-1 pick: Grilled Chicken Breast (Pollo alla Griglia) — ~46.5g protein, 283 kcal (est.)
Going to a national chain instead?
Chipotle, McDonald's, Starbucks, Taco Bell and Tim Hortons publish official nutrition data, so those are scored from real numbers — not estimates — on our Highest Protein Fast Food guide. The cuisine guides above are for independent sushi, Indian, Mexican, Chinese, Thai and Italian restaurants, which have no label and are reconstructed from USDA ingredient data.
Eating out on a GLP-1 — FAQ
What should I order at a restaurant on Ozempic or Wegovy?
Prioritize the leanest, most protein-dense item on the menu and treat the rice/bread/sauce as optional. Across cuisines that means: sashimi (sushi), tandoori or tikka (Indian), carne asada or a fajita bowl (Mexican), steamed chicken and broccoli (Chinese), satay or steamed fish (Thai), and a grilled protein secondo (Italian). On a GLP-1 you can only eat a small volume, so it must be Gold or Platinum tier to hit your protein target.
How do I get enough protein eating out when my appetite is suppressed?
Order the protein first and the most protein-dense version of it (grilled/steamed, not battered or sauced), eat that portion before anything else, and skip or box the rice, noodles and bread. A 30–45 g protein restaurant portion is achievable in 250–350 calories if you choose a Platinum-tier dish — see the per-cuisine guides below.
Is fast food or a sit-down cuisine restaurant better on a GLP-1?
Both can work if you order by Protein Density. For national chains (Chipotle, McDonald's, Starbucks, Taco Bell, Tim Hortons) we have a separate guide built on official chain nutrition data. For independent sushi, Indian, Mexican, Chinese, Thai and Italian restaurants — which have no nutrition label — use the estimate-based cuisine guides here.
Why does protein matter so much on a GLP-1?
The SURMOUNT-1 lean-mass analysis (Aronne et al. 2024) found 25–40% of the weight lost on a GLP-1 can be muscle without intervention. Hitting a high daily protein target plus resistance training are the two evidence-backed defenses. Restaurant meals are where that target is easiest to miss, because the densest-looking dishes are often mostly rice, oil and sauce.