Slimming World Sunday - Lunch At Coffee Architects, Leamington Spa

The great thing about Slimming World is that you can fit the plan around going out and socialising. You don't have to miss out on the fun but you can still stay within your syns allowance. Some places can be trickier than others to find a Slimming World friendly meal, but most are happy to adapt a dish for you to cut down the calorie intake. One place where finding a SW friendly dish isn't a problem is a little cafe quite local to me called Coffee Architects. My consultant has raved about this place a lot, and I often see pictures on our facebook group of various members visiting and their food always looks so good. I went with a friend a few Sundays ago, but unfortunately it's only breakfast all day on Sundays, so my husband and I took another trip yesterday to sample their lunch menu.

As well as the menu above, they have various specials each day, ranging from superfood salads to burgers. There's also a tapas salad bar, which is what I opted for, where you can help yourself to various different mixed salads, packed full of speed foods, and "fillers" like the mini quiche above. What was so great about this place was that the portion sizes were really generous. When we got the bill it turned out that I had a small salad plate - yet I couldn't finish everything on it! Having seen some of the dishes that were being sent to other tables around us I'm glad I went for this option - their summer salad was huge, I doubt I would've got half way through!

And of course we had to make room for dessert! Coffee Architects make so many amazing looking cakes, there's something for everyone. They even cater for those of us watching our waistlines with their Slimming World friendly "bikini brownies". I went for the Oreo brownie (apologies, I made have had a couple of bites before I remembered to take a picture!) which I was told was just 5 syns. Amazing - and it tasted really good too!

I can't believe how much I ate and how little of my syns allowance I actually used up. If you live local to me I'd recommend checking this place out, though it is quite a small building and can get quite busy - they do offer take out though! If you're not so local, here are a few other great low syn lunch out options which are dotted all over the UK.

Subway 

This is a great option if you're on more of a budget or on the go. Ordering a salad bowl instead of a sub means you're staying well within your allowance, and really stocking up on those speed foods. I tend to have a chicken breast salad and then add in a few syns for some sweet chilli sauce.

Toby Carvery

Perfect for a Sunday lunchtime! Sunday roasts can be a great Slimming World option if you make the right choices. Enjoy your meat and fill up on plenty of free veggies. I do occasionally treat myself to a small Yorkshire Pudding too!

Harvester

Harvester pubs are a real favourite amongst Slimming World members, as there's so much choice available on the menu for us. I fill up my bowl at the (unlimited) salad bar to enjoy as a starter, and then go up again to get some more to go with my main course, which is usually grilled chicken breast, jacket potato & peri peri sauce - the sauce comes in a pot on the side too, so you're in control of how much goes on your plate. This is my favourite place to go for a meal when I want to stay in control of my syns.

Where do you like to go out for a low syn meal?