What To Order At Greek And Mediterranean Restaurants For Fat Loss

A server lights a block of cheese on fire and the whole restaurant claps. Coach Brian walks a Greek meal in the order it reaches the table and prices every stop along the way. You leave with three orders that fit a fat loss day.

A server lights a block of cheese on fire and the whole restaurant claps. Twenty minutes later your gyro arrives and the table has already worked through pita and three appetizers. This episode prices a Greek meal from the bread basket to the baklava.

The Table Fills Before Your Order Does

You sit down planning a chicken gyro and a side salad. Then the flaming cheese goes past and someone at your table orders one.

Warm pita lands in the middle. Hummus arrives with a pool of olive oil on top. Fried calamari arrives. Someone adds stuffed grape leaves.

The server has not written down a single entree yet. By the time your gyro reaches you the table has eaten most of a day of food.

The Greek taverna has always been a meeting place. The Greeks have a word for that hospitality. Philoxenia translates roughly as love toward a stranger.

That part is worth keeping. The calorie load that rides along with it is the part worth managing.

Where These Numbers Come From

Coach Brian uses The Great Greek Mediterranean Grill for the figures in this episode because it publishes its nutrition information.

Your local place uses different recipes and different portions. Treat every number here as an anchor rather than a measurement.

Nobody needs a food scale at dinner. You need three decisions made before the food arrives.

Three Decisions Before You Order

First. How much shared food do you want?

Second. What is your main protein? Aim for 30 to 45 grams at this meal. That is the range where the link to lean mass and strength levels off in men over 50. Lean lower on fat where you can, and if you want the lamb then eat leaner earlier in the day.

Third. Which starch do you want? Pita and hummus and rice and fries all appear on a Greek table. Pick one and let the others go.

The Bread And The Oil

One pita runs 125 to 175 calories depending on size. Add a tablespoon of olive oil and you are at 250 to 300 before anything else.

Two pitas with oil pass 500 calories before the hummus arrives.

Olive oil carries 120 calories and 14 grams of fat per tablespoon. A cook can add two or three tablespoons without changing anything about how the dish is made. It goes in the pan and it goes over the top at the end.

Count whole pitas rather than triangles. Cutting a pita into four pieces does not send three quarters of it into another dimension.

If a quarter is roughly 50 calories then you can keep a running tab without a calculator.

The Shared Plates

Hummus is a chickpea dip with oil in it. Chickpeas bring protein and fiber and both help a meal land more filling.

A full hummus appetizer with two pitas runs over 900 calories. It carries 25 grams of protein and 10 grams of fiber. Split four ways it lands near 235 calories a man. Split between two hungry guys it is 450 to 500.

Dab the hummus and the number stays small. Scoop the hummus and it climbs fast.

A meze platter is a spread of small dishes. Four dips with four pitas runs over 2,400 calories with 67 grams of protein. Split across eight people it works. Split across two it does not.

Dolmades are grape leaves stuffed with rice and sometimes ground meat. Four of them run about 140 calories with 21 grams of carbohydrate and 6 grams of fiber. Protein comes in around 3 grams. A full appetizer order lands near 250 calories.

They taste good and they anchor a table. They will not cover your protein.

Spanakopita is spinach and feta in flaky phyllo. One piece runs close to 300 calories and carries almost 20 grams of fat. That is well over half the calories coming from fat alone.

Calamari is squid, usually breaded and fried. One published order runs 450 to 500 calories with 32 grams of protein. A larger order reaches 600 or 700. The protein is real and the breading and oil come with it.

Saganaki is the fried cheese that arrives on fire. Cheese runs about 100 calories an ounce. Picture a cheese stick for the visual. Cheese is a fat source with a little protein attached rather than a protein source.

Feta Fries Are The One To Watch

Feta fries are fried potatoes covered in cheese. One order runs about 800 calories with 52 grams of fat and 23 grams of protein.

For most men that fat number is close to a full day.

Add an order of feta fries to a gyro and lunch lands close to fifteen hundred calories. If you are eating around 2,000 for fat loss then you have 500 left for the rest of the day.

These plates are built for a table rather than a person. A bite is about 50 calories. You can have a bite of anything here and be fine.

The Menu Splits Into Three Lanes

Once the shared plates are handled the entree side gets simple. Every Greek menu breaks into handhelds, things off the grill, and dishes out of the oven or skillet.

Pick your lane first and the rest of the decision gets easy.

Lane One: The Handheld

The gyro is the classic. Meat comes off a vertical rotisserie in chicken or lamb or beef or a beef and lamb blend. It goes into pita with tomato and onion and tzatziki.

A chicken gyro runs about 600 calories with 46 grams of protein and 46 grams of carbohydrate and 24 grams of fat. That is a workable workday lunch.

The beef and lamb version runs about 810 with 53 grams of fat. The gap between the two is roughly 200 calories and almost all of it is fat.

Ask for heavy tomato and cucumber and onion. Some kitchens ladle the tzatziki on with a serving spoon. Ask for enough to taste in every bite and no more than that.

Tzatziki is yogurt and cucumber and garlic and herbs. It belongs on your gyro. A full tzatziki appetizer with two pitas runs 810 calories with 43 grams of fat, so the sauce is worth watching once it leaves the sandwich.

Falafel is the vegetarian handheld. Four fried chickpea patties run about 250 calories with 33 grams of carbohydrate and 10 grams of fat and 11 grams of fiber. It is a solid fiber source and a fair plant option. It is a carbohydrate first rather than a protein.

Between the two gyros the chicken wins. Twice the protein per calorie and half the fat.

Lane Two: Off The Grill

Souvlaki is meat or seafood grilled on skewers. Chicken and pork and lamb and steak and shrimp are the common ones.

These arrive as plates with Greek salad and tzatziki and pita and a starch. The sides move the number more than the skewer does.

A chicken souvlaki plate runs about 1,100 calories with 84 grams of protein. Shrimp runs about 950 with 59 grams of protein and little fat. Lamb runs close to 1,200 with about 70 grams of protein, which makes it the highest of the three.

These are full meals. Order one when you want dinner to arrive in a single plate rather than in waves.

Lamb chops are the other grill order. Figure 700 to 1,000 calories with 45 to 65 grams of protein. Ask how many chops come with the order before you count on a number. Lamb is a higher fat protein and that is the tradeoff.

Branzino is a European sea bass that arrives whole or as a filet. A 200 to 300 calorie serving gives you 35 to 40 grams of protein.

Ask how it is cooked. Grilled fish with lemon and vegetables and a small starch is one of the best orders on the menu. Take double vegetables instead of the starch if you already had pita and hummus.

Coach Brian got served a whole fish with the fins still on during a missions trip to Romania. It was the first time he had met dinner face to face. The fish itself was a lean white fish and the protein was the point.

Lane Three: Out Of The Oven

Moussaka is layered eggplant and meat sauce under a creamy bechamel. Think lasagna in shape and richness.

Recipes vary a long way. A normal serving runs 500 to 800 calories with 25 to 40 grams of protein. The size of the slice decides which end you land on.

Order it with vegetables or a side salad and keep the rest of the table light.

Shrimp saganaki is a different dish from the flaming cheese. Shrimp goes into tomato sauce with feta in a skillet. It lands at 300 to 500 calories with 30 to 45 grams of protein before any bread or rice arrives.

The Salad Is Not The Safe Order

A Greek salad is tomato and olive and feta and onion and oregano with an olive oil dressing. American versions add lettuce, and entree versions add pita and tzatziki.

A side salad runs about 250 calories with a couple grams of protein. The salad is not where your protein lives.

The classic Greek salad with pita and tzatziki runs 850 calories. The large runs over 1,000 with about 20 grams of protein.

The vegetables are not what moved that number. The toppings did.

Two tablespoons of Greek dressing carry 190 calories and 21 grams of fat. Count a tablespoon at about 100 calories.

Use the dip and stab method. Keep the dressing on the side. Put your fork in it first and then spear the food. You get the taste in every bite for a fraction of the pour.

Feta And The Starches

Feta earns the same portion check as anything else. A serving runs up to 100 calories.

Stack a crumble of feta on the salad with the cheese inside the spanakopita and an order of saganaki, and you can clear 60 or 70 grams of fat from cheese alone in one day.

Rice pilaf runs about 450 calories with 80 grams of carbohydrate. A cup of cooked rice is about 200 calories with 40 grams, so that plate is roughly two cups. There is often oil in it too.

French fries land at 400 to 600 calories. Soup runs 300 to 400 if you want one.

Dessert

A single triangle of baklava can reach 500 calories with 38 grams of fat. Layered phyllo with nuts and honey adds up quickly.

Rice pudding runs 350 to 400 calories. Baklava ice cream clears 500.

Loukoumades are small fried dough balls finished with honey and cinnamon. Each one runs 50 to 100 calories. A six piece order is 300 or more.

Coach Brian found a plate of them on a bike tour through Athens after climbing the Acropolis. They were worth it. They still cost what they cost.

Greek yogurt with honey runs 300 to 400 calories. Ask for the honey on the side. A serving is about 30 calories and a kitchen will pour three or four without asking.

Three Orders Worth Knowing

Here is the light one. Order a chicken gyro with a side salad and dressing on the side. That keeps you under 800 calories with about 50 grams of protein.

Here is the dinner one. Order chicken or shrimp souvlaki with rice on the side and double vegetables. Skip the rice entirely if you already ate pita.

Here is the long social one. Split the meze platter with the table, then order grilled fish and vegetables as your own plate.

Action Steps

• Decide how much shared food you want before the pita basket lands.
• Count whole pitas rather than triangles.
• Pick one starch and let the rest go.
• Order the chicken gyro over the beef and lamb blend.
• Ask for tzatziki and dressing on the side, then dip and stab.
• Take double vegetables in place of rice pilaf when you already had bread.
• Split the feta fries or skip them.
• Send questions to brian@brianparana.com.

More From Driven For Health

• Episode 161 covers what to order at CAVA.
• Episode 145 opened the what-to-order series with Chipotle.

Get The Guide

Coach Brian built a guide for eating away from your own kitchen. It covers restaurants and travel and airports in one place.

Grab the Eating On-The-Go Guide at go.brianparana.com/eatingonthego.

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Frequently Asked Questions

How many calories are in a chicken gyro?

A chicken gyro runs about 600 calories with 46 grams of protein and 24 grams of fat at the chain used for reference in this episode. The beef and lamb version runs about 810 with 53 grams of fat.

How many calories are in Greek feta fries?

One order of feta fries runs about 800 calories with 52 grams of fat and 23 grams of protein. Add that to a gyro and lunch lands close to fifteen hundred calories.

How many calories are in hummus and pita at a Greek restaurant?

A full hummus appetizer with two pitas runs over 900 calories with 25 grams of protein and 10 grams of fiber. Split four ways it lands near 235 calories a man.

Is moussaka a good order for fat loss?

Moussaka is layered eggplant and meat sauce under a bechamel. One serving runs 500 to 800 calories with 25 to 40 grams of protein depending on the size of the slice.

How many calories are in a Greek salad?

A classic Greek salad with pita and tzatziki runs about 850 calories. The large runs over 1,000 calories with about 20 grams of protein.

Which souvlaki should you order for fat loss?

Shrimp souvlaki runs about 950 calories with 59 grams of protein and little fat. Chicken runs about 1,100 calories and lamb runs close to 1,200.

What should you order at a Greek restaurant to lose fat?

Order a chicken gyro with a side salad and dressing on the side. That keeps you under 800 calories with about 50 grams of protein.

What is the Call To Rise program?

The Call To Rise is a 100-day fat loss challenge built around strength training, personalized nutrition and real accountability. Most men lose 20 plus pounds and rebuild the confidence that comes with it.

Listen to the full episode of Driven For Health.

Read the companion article on brianparana.com.