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Monday, December 6, 2010

Izzy's is pizza and a whole lot more!

We ate at Izzy's restaurant on Friday night.  My kids got free meal coupons from their dentist office the last time they were in for a cleaning.  For those of you who are unfamiliar with Izzy's, it is an all-you-can-eat buffet style restaurant.  They have a big salad bar as well as pizza bar.  They also have a hot-food buffet and dessert buffet.  It is a binge-eater's dream come true!  For a 10-month post-op lap-band surgery patient, not so much.

I know a few of you have gotten discounts at buffet style places by showing your lap-band card, but I guess I just didn't have the courage to do that.  So I was prepared to pay the $12 even though I knew I wouldn't eat that much.  It was actually a very good meal.  I had a small salad and a couple of bites of macaroni salad.  I also had a piece of cheese pizza and a couple of bites of mashed potatoes.  I was too full for dessert.

We went kind of late.  My oldest had an indoor soccer game so it was about 7:30 or so before we got there (Now I know that for people without children and people from some other cultures, 7:30 is not especially late for dinner.  But I digress.).  It wasn't busy, but almost every adult eating there was obese.  There were young couples, both of them big, going back for plate after plate heaped with food.  Last year I would have been one of them.

I also must have had five or six servers come by my table and ask if I wanted something to drink.  Why does it freak people out so much to see someone eating in a restaurant without a beverage?  I think next time I eat out, I will order a glass of water just so I don't get harassed.

My two daughters accompanied me as did a family friend, age 8.  She also had a coupon from the dentist.  I've never seen this eight-year-old eat so much or be so excited about food.  My kids were ecstatic too.  I'm not really sure what to make of all the food excitement.  I don't know if it is just the normal reaction to having so many more food choices than normal or if it is just that we don't eat out much.  Or maybe they're all emerging compulsive eaters, but I don't think so.  At any rate, I was glad to see them enjoy their meal so much without shame or self-disgust at how much they consumed.  I hope they never go there.  And for the record, I don't think my daughters ate too much.

All-in-all, it was a good weekend.  My oldest had the indoor soccer game and two volleyball games and my youngest had a basketball game.  The Oregon Ducks finished their regular season 12-0 by beating the Oregon State Beavers in the civil war game.  The Ducks will be going to the National Championship game against Auburn next month for the first time ever.  GO DUCKS!!!       

9 comments:

CeeJay said...

Isn't it amazing the perspective we have post lap-band? I have almost become a bit of a people watcher at restaurants and I am amazed at the portions that people eat--but I always think back to my high calorie, high volume ways of the past. Thank goodness for the lapband and for our change of thinking!

Debbie said...

I do not have the lapband, but since I have started to watch my portions it amazes me what people eat..

~Lisa~ said...

I'm not banded yet, but part of this "pre-journey" is becoming accustomed to my own eating habits - It is amazing how much I could eat at a place like Izzys, and how fast I could shovel is down as well. Two things I had never thought of before...

And way to GO DUCKS!!!

MandaPanda said...

OK. First off, for my kids, the allure of a buffet is just getting to pick whatever they want. Second, I have become seriously judgmental when I watch my husband eat. He like shovels food into his mouth, eats so much so fast! Disgusting. I know I shouldn't judge as I still probably eat too much and too fast (not all that restricted yet) but I can't seem to help myself.

Lyla said...

I hear you on the drink thing-- I just order water because otherwise I feel like I get harassed to get a drink. I sort of gave in after having a server ask me three times in a row if I was sure I didn't want anything.

Now it sits there, full, but they seem to be satisfied so whatever.

Jaime said...

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

Go Ducks! I'm so proud of those guys! It's going to be a great championship game, woohoo!

Silverhairedgoddess said...

Yes, eating buffet style is always an invitation to pig out - it is something I will have to handle when the time comes - but I certainly hope that I handle it half as well as you did.:)

You must be so proud of yourself !

Lonicera said...

Amanda - I'm sorry I didn't leave a message of cheer on your last post, when you needed it - I wasn't reading blogs very much. You've used the word 'struggle' a lot recently and I just wanted to send you a message of support. The brilliant thing about blogging is that it's free, and we can all pretend we're raising a glass of bubbly to hope for better times ahead for you... And a hug as well.
Caroline

Janelle said...

I feel like such a hypocrite these days when I go somewhere like that and see all the obese people and think "how can they eat so much??" Places like this shouldn't exist really, it is all part of the problem our country has with food... but I did love Izzy's before the band, I loved their green beans and their pizza is soooo good! But I am over it now, I can't go in buffet places because I HATE paying a bunch of money and not getting my money's worth. It's a poor thing, lol.