• If you don’t know about how something is prepared, ask your server.
• Don’t eat more than you would at home. As soon as you get your food, put half in a take-home container.
• Order your fish or meat broiled with no extra butter.
• Order your baked potato plain. Then top it with a teaspoon of margarine or low-calorie sour cream.
• If you are on a low-salt meal plan, ask that no salt be added to your food.
• Ask for sauces, gravy, and salad dressings on the side. Dip your fork in the salad dressing first and then into your salad. You'll use much less dressing this way.
• Don’t order breaded or fried food.
• Instead of a dinner entree, order a salad and low-fat appetizer.
• If French fries come with the meal, request a double order of vegetables instead. If you can't get a substitute, tell the waiter you don’t want the French fries.
• Always order low-calorie salad dressings. If none are available, ask for vinegar and a dash of oil or a squeeze of lemon.
• Limit alcohol. Alcohol adds calories but has no nutritional value.
• If you're eating out with friends, ask them to eat at your usual time.
• Make your plans so you won't be kept waiting for a table when you need to be eating.
• If your lunch or dinner is going to be later than usual, eat a fruit or starch at your usual mealtime.
• If the dinner will be very late, eat your bedtime snack at your usual dinner time. Then, eat your full dinner at the later hour. You may need to adjust your insulin to do this.

Special cautions about fast food:

• Be aware of words like jumbo, giant, deluxe, biggie-sized, or super-sized. Larger portions mean more calories, fat, cholesterol, and salt. Order a junior-sized sandwich instead.
• Choose grilled or broiled sandwiches with meats, such as lean roast beef, turkey or chicken breast, or lean ham. Order items plain, without toppings, sauces, or mayonnaise. Add flavor with mustard, and “crunch” with lettuce, tomato, and onion.
• Skip the croissant or biscuit. Eat your sandwich on a bun, bread, or English muffin.
• Cheese has an extra 100 calories per ounce, as well as added fat and sodium.
• When eating Mexican fast food, order bean burritos, soft tacos, fajitas, and other non-fried items. Choose chicken over beef. Limit refried beans. Pile on extra lettuce, tomatoes, and salsa. Go easy on cheese, sour cream, and guacamole. Watch out for deep-fried taco salad shells — a taco salad can have more than 1,000 calories!
• Choose thin crust pizza with vegetable toppings only. Limit your serving to 1 or 2 slices.
• Finish your meal with sugar-free, fat-free frozen yogurt or a small cone of fat-free yogurt.

Source: www.diabetes.org