I have a friend who, trying to lose weight, sidled up reliably to the salad bar every time he went out to eat. Sadly, the weight loss didn't show up as predicted. Why? Well, salad bars are filled with good things -- and also fatty fatty foods.

See, salad bars take restraint. There's tasty tasty pasta salad, cottage cheese, cheese cubes, saline-injected, fatty compressed ham cubes, calorie-heavy bleu cheese and ranch dressings, and hidden calories -- including bad fats -- in the lite-looking italian dressings. And, mmm, those bacon bits and sunflower seeds.

So, go to the salad bar, but exercise restraint. Add many layers of tasty veggies, put on the olive oil and vinegar, add pepper and a pinch of salt, and enjoy a salad, not a pile of cheeses and cream-based dressings.