Gen Con. The Best Four Days In Gaming. This weekend long gathering of geeks in downtown Indianapolis is one of the few times in your life where the large majority of people who you meet on the street will have a set of polyhedral dice on their person. Call it a bad stereotype if you like, but chances are a lot of the people you meet are (or should be) trying to shed some of their natural encumbrance. Unfortunately for them it’s difficult to eat wisely when you’re at a convention, but it isn’t impossible. All it takes is a little homework and self-control.

We here at ShrinkGeek are going to do some of the homework for you.

Underneath the cut you’ll find a list of some of the restaurants in the downtown Indianapolis area that Gen Con attendees tend to frequent. We’ll give a brief overview of the restaurant itself and try to point you toward some of the less calorie blasting choices off of the menu. Check back often as we’ll be updating this list as we gather additional information and take suggestions from some of the attendees themselves!

See you in Indianapolis!

The Ram

The 2010 Gen Con seasonal brew at The Ram

Unlike many of the restaurants near the convention center, The Ram doesn’t just look forward to the business that Gen Con brings in – The folks there embrace it. Every year they take several items from their menu and put a gamer spin on the name, and the entire restaurant is decorated in posters and banners representing different gaming companies. They also have a Gen Con themed t-shirt you can buy that is unique every year.

Oh, yeah…The food is also damned tasty and they have a microbrewery with a large selection of delicious beers. What more could you ask for??

Unfortunately there isn’t a lot of “official” nutrition information available out there for The Ram. We did manage to find a few items with calorie counts over at MyFitnessPal, but without having verification from the company itself we have no guarantees that what is listed there is official. That said, we’ve taken a peek at the menu and used some of the information from MyFitnessPal to pick out some of what we consider to be the “healthier” choices from their offerings.

Appetizer – Hummus and Veggies. Hummus is one of those “high in calorie but delicious and good for you” foods. It is made out of chickpeas, spices, and a healthy amount of olive oil, and it happens to be one of the most versatile dips you’ll find. The Ram serves this with vegetables and pita wedges. If you’re being really good you’ll pass on the pita wedges, but even if you don’t this is probably the healthiest appetizer option they offer.

Main Courses – The Ram offers several grilled entrees that won’t offend the calorie conscious. Try the Simply Grilled Sockeye Salmon or the Special Sirloin with vegetables if you’re in the mood for an entree. If you’re feeling like you want a sandwich grab a Turkey Havarti Melt, Simply Grilled Chicken Sandwich, or the Simply Grilled Turkey Burger.

Dessert – Honestly, there really isn’t much in the way of dessert that you’re going to get away easy on if you’re trying to watch the calorie intake. That being said, if you absolutely have to have dessert I’d go with the Mixed Berry Skillet. Out of all the options they have on the menu, that one seems to be the least decadent.