nibble, nibble, nibble
Food: If you are on a "special" diet, forget it! Let it all out. You gotta have a pancake or burger and fries at the Portal. Also, the Alabama Hills Cafe has excellent food. There are also two espresso places with wifi. Subway. Seasons has excellent food in a semi-formal atmosphere. The Pizza Factory! These are my preferred choices. Your choices may differ. There is a McDonald's. Refer to the Orientation notes about the layout of Lone Pine.
CincyHiker, Pay special attention to this if you've not done this kind of serious mountain before. Chances are once you get over 10,000 feet, you won't feel like eating. That has always been my biggest problem at elevation, and it's extremely common. You will burn about 6000 calories on Whitney, so you need as many of them as possible in your system
before you hit the trailhead. Protein is good but carbs are by far the best - the two days before Whitney, take in as many complex carbs as you can (pasta, breads, rice, potatoes). These will give you an energy store for the long haul instead of the quick energy burst of simple carbs. Save those sugary simple carbs for the mountain itself when you need a pick-me-up.
For the mountain, take foods that normally appeal to you. Don't load your pack with stuff you
think will help you if it's not the kind of food you normally enjoy. With a suppressed appetite, you just won't eat them. Eating is a chore above 12,000 feet, and where you'll really need the food in your belly is coming down those 11 miles. Don't think that because it's downhill that it's easy and the miles will fly by. You're much more prone to exhaustion and fatigue issues coming down than going up.
Personally, I eat as much pasta and bread as I can during the 48 hours before a Whitney start, or any other hard trek. It's almost impossible to take in too many helpful calories before heading up the mountain. I promise you, you'll weigh less coming down than when you started.
