March 24, 2025, 2:17 pm | Read time: 6 minutes

Refined sugar has become an integral part of everyday life. However, those who try to do without it often come up against obstacles — in restaurants, for example. This is because sugar is a popular addition to dishes in restaurants. Nuno Alves, who has been sugar-free since 2018, would like to see a return to traditional cuisine — and more transparency.

Sugar in Restaurants: Ask or Cheat Yourself?

Admittedly, I belong to a small minority that avoids sugar entirely. I’m sure most people wouldn’t even think of questioning the use of sugar in restaurants. Nevertheless, I wonder why so much of the menu has to be pumped full of it. And I wonder what about all the diabetics who sometimes wonder about their rollercoaster values — not knowing how sweetened even savory dishes can be.

At restaurants, people like me basically have two choices: don’t ask and ultimately cheat yourself, or really want to know if the food contains refined sugar. The latter can be frustrating. Conversations go something like this: “Is there sugar in it?”. Answer: “No.” Follow-up: “Really not?” Answer: “No, I can’t imagine.” Further follow-up: “Could you kindly ask in the kitchen?” Two minutes later: “Yes, there’s some sugar in there.” And “a little” is very relative. Depending on the restaurant and chef, tomato soup can contain significant amounts of sugar, as can pizza (in the dough and tomato sauce). Even burgers are not immune to sucrose (in buns, ketchup, gherkins…).

You might think at least there’s always the option of a sugar-free salad. But no way! There’s a trap lurking in the dressing. Hardly any restaurants still use the traditional vinegar and olive oil. And quite a few even use ready-made dressings, which are pure sugar bombs anyway.

Is Sugar Supposed to Compensate for a Lack of Cooking Talent?

In Berlin, I now know where I can trust the food and even ask about the ingredients without getting a dirty look. Elsewhere, I often get the impression that I’m the complicated customer queuing up. And actually, I am.

Tricky customers like me could simply stop going to restaurants altogether. Nobody would have a problem anymore. That would be one solution. The other would be for restaurants to simply start leaving sugar out of their food. Very few traditional dishes around the world contain (or require!) this insidious sweetener. Although it has a tradition going back thousands of years, for the longest time, it was too expensive as an everyday ingredient. It was not until the 19th century that sugar became a mass product.

And it is now so cheap that it is increasingly being added as an ingredient. Over the past few decades, we as a society have been conditioned to sweetness. Sugar has the ability to enhance almost any flavor, mask a lack of culinary skill, is inexpensive, and has been heavily marketed by sugar producers.

The best example of this is Brazil, where I regularly visit my family. If you ask for fresh mango juice there, which is already naturally as sweet as possible, you have to ask specifically for no household sugar to be added. The frequent answer: “Really not? Then I’ll put some sweetener in it. Okay?” Please don’t!

Sugar Has Its Place in Desserts, Not in Soups!

Sugar trickles through our lives. If you cook for yourself, you can avoid it, but in restaurants, it often remains a black box where it is used. Unfortunately, the use of sugar has become widespread in restaurants and cooking schools almost everywhere in the world. In a few cases, it may actually make sense to add a pinch for flavor, consistency, or other reasons. Most of the time, however, it’s an almost reflexive reach for the stuff. It is sweetened, soured, salted, and then sweetened, soured, and salted again. Hardly any food seems safe from it.

My appeal to the many chefs in this country and elsewhere: just leave out the sugar! Forget what you have been taught as an “insider tip.” Sugar belongs in desserts, not in soup. And not in sauces, stews, coleslaw, or roasts, not on meat or cheese. Let’s return to the authenticity of most recipes! A good salad dressing needs nothing more than olive oil, vinegar, and salt. A salad doesn’t have to taste like dessert. And if it does, then refine it with real fruit and leave out the refined sugar.

Of course, it would be wrong to lump all restaurants and chefs together. Many take great care not to use sugar and use spices and natural ingredients like artists use their paints to bring out nuances. They are probably as annoyed as I am that this ingredient is also used outside of desserts. Let’s take the example of pizza: sugar makes the dough rise faster. Some use this effect; others give the process the time it needs.

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Restaurants Should Be Transparent About What Has Sugar

Perhaps a straightforward solution to the sugar issue in restaurants lies in transparency. There is already a labeling requirement for a number of additives, such as allergens, but also for quinine, caffeine, sulfur, and even sweeteners. Why not make it clear on menus when sugar is used, especially in savory (starter) dishes? It would also make sense to indicate the total sugar content of a meal. Not only diabetics would be grateful.

This kind of transparency could likely lead to two outcomes: On the one hand, some customers would think twice about ordering a dish to which refined sugar has been added. And on the other hand, it would give restaurants more reason to consider whether they would prefer not to list the sugar and thus avoid the sugar itself.

Are you also trying to reduce sugar consumption in your family? Write to Nuno Alves at zuckerfrei@fitbook.de.