Wednesday, June 20, 2012

Dietitians are Human Too

As a registered dietitian, one of the perks for working in a hospital is that you get free food. (Note: this differs from hospital to hospital, and the policy as to how much food you can get differs too. At my current job, we are allotted $8 per day.) This may sound great, and trust me it comes out to be a gigantic money-saver, but c'mon, you can only take so much hospital food! Everyday, my coworkers and I would trudge through the cafeteria, back and forth, back and forth, and 80% of the time, I would settle on salad because there really isn't anything else that appeals to my hungering tummy. (There is a handful of items that I would always get when they are on the menu ie anything with seafood, anything tacos or tostados, and anything pasta - but everything else is either too mystifying to figure out or just plain looks unappetizing.)

As my coworkers and I walk to our tables with our food, we nearly always receive comments on our lunches. This leads me into one of the biggest myths ever: that dietitians eat healthy. Sure, we love our salads and carrot sticks and fat-free plain yogurts and plain everything else (gags), but we are human too! Who doesn't enjoy a nice juicy burger followed by a side of hot, fried-to-perfection fries washed down with a jug of sweet, savory milkshake (mmm In-'N-Out)?? That's like assuming all doctors are fit and healthy and cancer-free, all models are size 0.01, all cops are righteous and never run red lights or speed, and all customer service representatives are customer-oriented. We (or at least the majority of us - why is there always a small percentage in every group that mess up the calculations?) just try to eat decent most of the time so we can goof off the rest of the time. 

Case in point, here are some food I ate from a recent trip to Washington DC:


Five Guys Famous Burgers & Fries - I know this is a well-known chain, and I know that on vacations you shouldn't eat anything chain-or-franchise-store-ish, but I've never had it and this was the only place we can find within walking distance. (Link may or may not point to where I had the actual burger.) It was a hot mess and I loved it. Not unlike an In-'N-Out but messier and juicier. The fries (unpictured) were really good too, especially with the cajun powder. 


Fries from Palena Restaurant - I have more comments about this place that can span another post but I shall refrain for now. These were like Jack-in-the-box fries that costs $8! (meaning that they were fast food fries trying to be all upscaly... insert angry face) The point is that we ordered fries on the side to attest to how much we enjoy fries in general.


Ben's Chili Bowl - If you've never heard of this place, that's ok - I hadn't either. But now that you do, you must go! It's supposedly President's Obama's to-go place. It's ghetto. It might be dirty. There might be filming in there. The line might be long. The food may be cheap (for DC). And it may or may not be one of the most tastiest, most comforting food you can eat at 11pm after the fries from the restaurant above disppointed you.

the inside "decor" and the menu

"people who eat free: bill cosby, president obama/family, and no one else"

what a lovely sight! and i don't even like hot dogs (yes it's blasphemous i know...)
framed celebrities. obama is at the far right.

chili dog & chili cheese fries
Next time you see me with a salad, don't assume I am trying to be healthy. Instead, take it to mean that there is nothing on the menu I want to eat. (Either that, or it is a god-damn, finger-licking GOOD salad made from truffles and chocolate shavings.)

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