Question of the Day - 26 September 2019

The ketogenic diet (keto, for short) is low-carb high-fat. Replacing carbohydrates with fats puts your body into a metabolic state called ketosis. Instead of converting carbs into glucose, your body converts fats into ketones. The keto diet helps to reduce blood-sugar and insulin levels and has been shown to be effective for weight loss.   

As diets go, since it's not based on calorie counting or food deprivation, it's not too difficult to maintain when you go out to eat. It's a matter of limiting carbs (breads, grains, pastas, potatoes, starchy vegetables, high-sugar fruits, chips and crackers, sugars of any kind) and increasing fat intake (cheese, avocado, eggs, plain yogurt, nuts and seeds, nut oils, dark chocolate, berries, low-carb vegetables, butter). You can also eat fatty seafood (such as wild-caught salmon, sardines, mackerel, and tuna), skin-on poultry, and red meat, though too much protein will be converted into glucose through a process called gluconeogenesis, so protein intake needs to be monitored.

Also, fatty cuts of commercial beef are high in omega-6 fatty acids, too much of which can raise your blood pressure and lead to heart problems, while grass-fed beef balances it out with up to five times the omega-6 with the anti-inflammatory omega-3.

As for Las Vegas for keto dieters, buffets can be a good choice. They all have carving stations for protein (the Wicked Spoon serves lamb and roasted bone marrow) and salad bars, where you can make yourself a big bowl with low-carb veggies, avocado, eggs, cheese, hummus or tahini, some kind of meat or fish, and oil-based salad dressings (keto dieters of our acquaintance bring their own dressings to ensure the best olive, avocado, and nut oils). Seafood buffets in particular are conducive to a keto diet; the more expensive ones have wild-caught fatty fish. The one problem with buffets is the temptation to scarf on carbs and desserts, but if your wife can hold that in check, she’ll do fine at any of them.

Barbecue joints are good in a pinch, if you lay low on the sugar-laced sauces; brisket (no sauce) with a side of collard greens from Rollin Smoke is a great keto meal. Likewise, Brazilian steakhouses fit the bill: a ton of meat and big salad bars. And French restaurants are often keto friendly, using butter on everything.

Breakfast restaurants, including buffets, also qualify; half the menus consist of eggs and meat, and omelets, perhaps with avocado, cheese, and veggies, are an excellent keto choice. Eggworks, for example, with six Las Vegas locations, has a three-egg bacon-avocado-cheese omelet topped with sour cream and they’ll substitute cottage cheese for the toast.

Greens and Proteins, with five locations around the valley, features mix-and-match menus that address most diets; they also list the calorie, carb, and fat content for each food choice. Here, any burger, wrap, or taco can be rendered keto-friendly by replacing the bun or shell with lettuce.

Echo and Rig, 440 S. Rampart Blvd., is a combination steakhouse and butcher shop that has a grass-fed filet on the permanent menu and grass-fed specials that show up from time to time.

Bazaar Meat at the Sahara has a grass-fed Angus bone-in strip loin.

Andiamo at the D downtown serves all-natural lamb, veal, and chicken, all grass-fed, free-range, and raised sustainably and humanely. 

Wild-caught salmon isn’t difficult to find in Las Vegas; check the new Water Grill at the Forum Shops at Caesars, Mastro's Ocean Grill at Crystals Mall, and the Bonefish Grill at Town Center. 

You can even stay on a keto diet at fast-food places. The meat might not be the healthiest, but at Habit Burger, Five Guys, and In N Out (“protein-style”), you can request lettuce wraps to replace the buns. At Jimmy John’s, all sandwiches can be turned keto with lettuce wraps (“unwich-style”).  

We hope these tips and leads help make your Vegas vacation just as enjoyable as when you didn’t have to contend with special dietary needs. Please let us know how it all turned out, so we can share it with others.