Once you make the choice to reduce seed oils in your diet, dining in will be easier than dining out. Figuring out how to avoid seed oils at restaurants is far more challenging than doing it in your own kitchen, simply because you've lost control over the ingredients and preparation process. Seed oils such as canola, soybean, and combinations of vegetable oils are used extensively by most restaurants in many unexpected ways, including dressings, marinades, "grilled" vegetables, and even bread. In this article, I'll go through where seed oils are found on menus, how to get kitchens to meet your needs, and what to realistically expect so you actually know how to avoid seed oils at restaurants the next time you eat out.
Why Seed Oils Are Hard to Avoid at Restaurants
Seed oils tend to be the default cooking oil in most restaurant kitchens owing to their affordability, neutrality in taste, and high smoke point, making them ideal for high-volume cooking. In his book, Dark Calories: How Vegetable Oils Destroy Our Health and How We Can Get It Back, Cate Shanahan, a board-certified family physician, states that "eliminating seed oils is one of the simplest and most impactful steps you can take to improve your health." 1 Although you may choose to disagree with the strong wording of the quote above, the bottom line remains the same: seed oils are more common in the restaurant industry than most people are aware, and hence the process of eliminating them is somewhat different than when you're at home.
Why This Is Genuinely Harder Than Cooking at Home
In your kitchen, you have complete control over all the ingredients. But in the kitchen of a restaurant, there are several steps in between you and having control: the prep cook, who mixes up the marinade well in advance, the line cook who works from an established formula, and the sauces which have been prepared in advance as well. It is one of the reasons why when you ask about "what oil do you cook with," you rarely get an answer.
Where Seed Oils Actually Hide on a Menu
Obvious Sources
Deep-fried foods: potato fries, chicken nuggets, tempura, onion rings
Stir-fry meals and pan-fried foods
Pan-seared meats, unless stated
Less Obvious Sources
Salad dressings and vinaigrettes, even at more upscale restaurants, unless the menu states that they have olive oil
Mayonnaise sauces such as tartar sauce, aioli, and regular mayonnaise, generally made with soybean or canola oil
"Grilled" vegetables, that usually get coated with seed oils before being grilled
Restaurant bread and baked products, since most restaurant breads contain vegetable oils or shortening
Marinades, which are put on long before cooking and not listed on menus
Practical Strategies for Eating Out
Just Ask! And Be Precise
Instead of asking in a general way about healthy oils: "Do you use healthy oils?" Try something like: "Could you do this dish using olive oil or butter instead of vegetable oil?" A specific request is much easier to handle in the kitchen than a general one.
Get in Touch Ahead of Time When You Can
If it's a special dinner or you're at an unfamiliar restaurant, get in touch ahead of time or send an email, if they have such an option.
Opt for Cooking Techniques that Use Minimal Oil
Grilling, steaming, or broiling food poses less risk compared to frying, sautéing, and searing, as minimal amounts of oil are used in these cooking techniques, and it is also easier for the kitchen to serve the dishes using no oil at all.
Ask for Sauces and Dressings On The Side
This allows you to adjust the amount you put in your food, and you can also replace them with olive oil or vinegar.
Seek Out Restaurants That Promote Their Fats
Farm-to-table restaurants and those that promote their grass-fed, traditional, or “clean” cooking process will have fat sources like butter, tallow, and olive oil as part of their default menu. This could be your best bet if you are eating out often.
Make Requests When It’s Less Busy
Requests made when it’s not so busy at the restaurant are more likely to be attended to than when the dinner rush is on.
How to Avoid Seed Oils at Restaurants by Cuisine Type
Various types of cuisine have various degrees of difficulty associated with them, because some are traditionally prepared using fats whereas others are almost exclusively based on seed oil.
Italian and Mediterranean
The easiest choice, as traditionally olive oil is used in this region and restaurants probably use it by default, although you should check for bread and cream sauces anyway.
Steakhouses
Generally accommodating due to the nature of protein dishes being cooked fresh and not already prepared. It’s fairly simple to ask for your steak cooked in butter instead of seed oils.
Asian Cuisine (Chinese, Thai, Vietnamese)
Typically more challenging, as frying at high heat using seed or vegetable oils is part of the cooking process. Some kitchens can use avocado oil in place of seed oils or use smaller amounts of oil upon request.
Mexican and Latin American
Varies from place to place. While traditionally lard is used, modern or casual restaurants tend to use seed oil for frying. It’s good to ask explicitly about beans, rice, and anything fried.
Indian Cuisine
Ghee tends to be used in a lot of dishes, which means that it is likely good for you in this cuisine; however, some restaurants will use vegetable oil in its place for cost-cutting purposes.
American Casual Dining and Fast Casual
The hardest category for this reason. Standardized corporate kitchens with a shared fryer are the least accommodating in terms of restaurant type.
Realistic Expectations by Restaurant Type
Restaurant Type | Likelihood of Accommodation |
|---|---|
Farm-to-table / chef-driven | High — often already using olive oil or butter |
Steakhouse | Moderate-high — proteins can often be cooked in butter on request |
Fast casual / chain | Low — standardized kitchens have limited flexibility |
Fast food | Very low — deep fryers are shared and rarely accommodating |
Ethnic cuisine (varies widely) | Depends heavily on the restaurant — worth asking directly |
It is simply not feasible to completely avoid all instances where seed oils are served in a meal while eating outside on a frequent basis. This is something that we should accept without considering it as our downfall.
What to Order When You Can't Control the Oil
But then again, there may be instances wherein accommodation just will not be possible, like in a bustling fast-casual dining place, during lunchtime at work, and when dining with a large group of people. In such instances:
Select the simplest cooking style (preferably grilled rather than fried, and without sauce)
Avoid the dressing and ask for oil and vinegar or lemon to the side
No need to fret over one meal since the research regarding seed oil mainly pertains to consistent consumption.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it realistic to completely avoid seed oils when eating out?
No, certainly not for everybody, not every single meal. Rather, it would be more feasible to try and minimize exposure as much as possible, because exposure occasionally isn’t the same as exposure every day.
What should I say to my server without sounding difficult?
Precision and politeness are better: "Would it be possible to use olive oil or butter instead of vegetable oil for this dish?" Employees usually react better to precise questions rather than explanations about your diet.
Are all fried foods automatically off-limits?
Fried foods in restaurants usually use seed oil, while the oil used for frying is frequently recycled, reducing its quality even more. Fried foods are normally the riskiest type of foods in a restaurant.
Do farm-to-table restaurants really use different oils?
Yes, indeed. When the restaurant uses traditional or "clean" cooking methods, there is a tendency for them to rely on olive oil or butter as their cooking medium.
Key Points
Seed oils remain the default in any commercial kitchen, and can be found in places besides those which are immediately apparent, such as fried foods, dressings, marinades, “grilled” vegetables, and bread. The most practical strategy is not about perfection but about asking questions, sticking to simple cooking techniques, visiting restaurants that use traditional oils for cooking, and understanding that an occasional indulgence is not worth stressing over. Whether you believe in the larger arguments surrounding seed oils or not, these steps will certainly help your dining experience.
Sources & Research Cited
Kosterina. "The Truth About Seed Oils in Restaurants," quoting Dr. Cate Shanahan, author of Dark Calories: How Vegetable Oils Destroy Our Health and How We Can Get It Back (Hachette Go, 2024). kosterina.com
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