Dining Out Low-Sodium Style - Not Impossible

One of my favorite restaurants is Sweet Tomatoes (also called Souplantation in other areas).  We usually go to the one on Ernest Barrett Pkwy. in Kennesaw, GA.  It's a bit expensive, even for lunch, BUT if you sign up to get their monthly coupons, the price is quite reasonable.  For myself, my husband and our 3 kids (ages 9, 5 & 3) we can eat lunch there for $25.  It is a buffet, but not the type of buffet that I usually avoid.  ALL of the food is fresh and I would say that 90% of all of their food would be considered healthy (low-cal, fat-free, low fat, vegan & even vegetarian).

I am looking for LOW SODIUM items, so this restaurant is where I begin when considering dining out with my family.  Pictured are the items that I found best to eat at Sweet Tomatoes for a low-sodium option.  If you pick all of the lowest sodium items from each category, then your total sodium count for your entire, HUGE, meal would be 530 mg;  and for the size of that meal, I'd say that pretty good.

Of course they have tons of fresh veggies and fruits which have NO SODIUM and you should fill up on those as much as possible to prevent from filling up on the other higher sodium options.  My absolute favorite salad there is one of their pre-made tossed salads called Wonton Chicken Happiness and for 1 cup of my fav salad it's 290 mg. (mainly due to the dressing used in the salad).  290 mg for a salad is a bit more sodium than I'd prefer, but I can also fill my plate with as much fresh lettuces and veggies that I'd like and use only 2 TBSP of dressing to create a huge, filling salad with only 90 mg of sodium.

So, my final take on dining out with a low sodium lifestyle:  very possible and very delicious.  I will post more restaurant low-sodium options later on.