NYTimes -- Waiter, Are There Carbs in My Soup?

Eating out on the low carb diets.

New York City restaurants are being swarmed by a fat-seeking, protein-craving army. Local dieters are flocking to low-carbohydrate eating plans that prohibit all potatoes, pasta, bread and sugar, but seem to offer unlimited access to eggs, cheese, red meat and butter. It's a tantalizing prospect: weight loss without any hunger or deprivation.

Since Dr. Robert C. Atkins published "Diet Revolution" in 1972, his low-carbohydrate, high-protein, fat-friendly program and its cousins (among them the Zone, Stillman, Sugar Busters and Protein Power) have come in and out of fashion. But recently the low-carb principles have been embraced with new fervor. "I'd say most of my customers and half of my staff are doing some version of Atkins," said Reed Goldstein, general manager of Angelo & Maxie's steakhouse on Park Avenue South. He added that the restaurant was doing a brisk business in Michelob Ultra, a beer rolled out by Anheuser-Busch that is specifically targeted to carb watchers.

"Yes, of course you can eat steak and foie gras and be thin," said Raba Belkadi, an owner of Soho Steak on Thompson Street. "We have always known this in France. But not too much, yes? About eight ounces. This is what the models eat. They have a green salad and they are thin and beautiful."

Be sure to take a multi-vitamin and magnesium pills on the diet. It can cause kidney stones and an unbalanced selection of vitamins and minerals. Depending on what version of a low-carb diet and how you pursue it additional fiber may also be needed.