Finding a keto friendly restaurant can be hard if you don’t know what to look for. Menu options are skewed towards the standard American diet of high carbs and large portions.
Then there are the hidden carbs and sugar that most people don’t even know are there. For example, many of the sauces and gravies used at restaurants have added sugar and flour.
It sounds overwhelming, but don’t worry. Today, I’m going to show you how to avoid all the stress of eating out by giving you 15 popular keto friendly restaurant options.
Good keto fast food options can be a lifesaver when don’t have much time to eat. Admittedly, they aren’t on the same level with healthy fats and quality as you would make at home.
These are some cheap and quick options that won’t derail your health or your keto lifestyle.
1. In and Out
You don’t have miss out on the delicious burgers if you’re lucky enough to have an In and Out near you.
Option#1: Cheeseburger (protein style). Make sure to ask for it protein style. 11g carbs – 3g fiber = 8g net carbs and 330 calories.
Option#1: Double-Double (protein style). If you really hungry this will definately hit the spot. 11g carbs – 3g fiber = 8g net carbs and 520 calories.
2. Chick-fil-A
There aren’t a bunch of good keto options at Chick-fil-A, but here are a couple that keto friendly:
Option#1: Cobb Salad. You can ask for it without the tortilla chips to cut a few carbs and blue cheese is your best dressing option. 22g carbs – 5g fiber = 17g net carbs and 430 calories.
Option #2: Grilled chicken sandwich without the bun. 6g carbs – 3g fiber = 3g net carbs and 130 calories.
3. McDonald’s
No matter where you are in the world chances are you’re no more than a couple of miles from the closest McDonald’s. While they don’t have the highest quality options, you can find a keto friendly meal that will hold you over until you can figure out something better.
Option#1: The Big Mac without the bun. This can be tailored to keto if you order it without the bun, sauce, or ketchup. 8g carbs -3g fiber = 5g net carbs and 330 calories.
Option #2: Egg, sausage, and Cheese Muffin without bun. This breakfast option has 26g of fat and 15g of proteins. 7g carbs – 2 fiber = 5net and 330 calories
4. Taco Bell
If you have a craving for something south of the border but don’t want to sacrifice your keto lifestyle here are a couple of good options.
Option#1: Mini skillet bowl: Basically, it’s the breakfast version of Taco Bell’s Cheesy Fiesta potatoes. However, you want to skip the potatoes and add sour cream, guacamole, beef, and creamy chipotle sauce. 13g carbs – 10g fiber = 3g net carbs and 430 calories.
Option #2: power menu bowl without beans or rice and with extra steak, avocado, cheese, sour cream, pico, and other fixings. 14g – 11g fiber = 3g net carbs and 310 calories.
5. Chipotle
Chipotle is famous for serving delicious, high-quality Mexican foods. Also, they have recently developed a Lifestyle Menu serving a Paleo, Vegan, and Keto Salad Bowl that contains salsa, carnitas, Romain Lettuce, and guac. Of course, you need to skip the rice, chips, beans, tortillas, and swap them with healthy veggies. Plus, you can pile on healthy toppings like cheese, avocado, and sour cream.
Option #1: Keto salad bowl. The best combination is chirizzo, cheese, guacamole, lettuce, and sour cream. Skip the salsa and other toppings. 17g carbs – 10g fiber = 7 net carbs and 535 calories.
Option #2: Whole30 salad bowl. This one is very similar, but without the dairy. 20g carbs – 10g fiber = 7 net carbs and 500 calories.
Bonus tip: Chipotle has an easy to use Nutrition Calculator,so you can easily calculate the macros for any customized meal.
6. Wendy’s
If you love bacon, then Wendy’s makes a great fast food stop. Here’s how to tailor the cheeseburgers to keto-friendly meals:
Option#1: The Baconator. Typically, this comes with bacon and two beef patties plus you can request toppings. Skip the bun and ketchup to cut the carbs. 8g carbs – 2g fiber = 6g net carbs and 740 calories.
Option#2: Breakfast Baconator. Similar to the lunch option, the breakfast baconator can be keto friendly if you ditch the bun. 8g carbs – 2g fiber = 6g net carbs and 560 calories
7. Subway
Subway makes it easy to turn any of the sandwiches into a salad. The salad portions are larger than other fast food eateries adding an extra helping of healthy veggies to your meal.
Be sure to avoid toppings that contain sweet sauces like meatball marinara or teriyaki and increase fat content with low-carb dressing, guacamole, or cheese. Also, be aware Subway creamy soups pack 15g carbs a bowl.
Option#1: Chicken & Bacon Ranch Melt. This is a great option from Subway to stay keto. 15g carbs – 4g fiber = 12g net carbs and 460 calories.
Option #2: Spicy Italian. This a tried and true offering at Subway. 13g carbs – 4g fiber = 9g net carbs and 310 calories.
Bonus tip: double meat is a great option that only adds one and three grams of carbs. For the exact amount check out the Subway Nutrition Info.
8. Noodles & Company
Noodles & Company has really stepped up their keto game with their zoodle bowls.
Option #1: Zucchini Pesto with Grilled Chicken. With a zoodle base this one their best keto options. 18g carbs – 5 fiber = 13g net carbs Calories: 480
Option #2: Cauliflower Rigatoni. If you’re in the mood for something cheesy this will hit the spot. 12g carbs – 1g fiber = 11g net carbs Calories: 210
9. Jimmy John’s
Now you can get freaky fast service with a keto friendly sandwich.
Option#1: Beach Club Unwich. This is one of my favorites with bacon and guac. 8g carbs – 1g fiber = 7g net carbs Calories: 470
Option#2: Italian Night Club Unwich. A meater option with a few more calories. 9g carbs – 0g fiber = 9g net carbs Calories: 594
10. Five Guys
This is another keto friendly restaurant where you can get a great burger. Be sure to ask for a lettuce wrap instead of the bun. They can get a little messy so sometimes I ask for a foil stray align with a fork and knife to avoid a mess.
Bonus tip: you can add extra cheeses to your burger or hotdog for free!
Option#1: Bunless Bacon Cheeseburger. I like mine with extra cheese, mayo, mustard, and grilled onions which adds a few extra carbs. 1g carbs – 0g fiber = 1g net carbs Calories: 660
Option#2: Bunless Bacon Cheese Dog. If you’re looking for a non-burger option, there hot dogs are the way to go. 2g carbs – 0g fiber = 2g net carbs Calories: 440
Below is a Pinterest friendly photo…so you can pin it to your keto board!
Tired of feeling guilty about eating unhealthy food because you wanted to share a meal out with your family or family? Worried about meeting with the boss or an important client over dinner?
Here are 5 popular casual dining keto friendly restaurant choices able to fit the whole family.
1. Applebee’s
The dishes served here are total keto winners. Popular options include grilled chicken, sirloin steak, and steamed broccoli. What’s more, Applebee’s has a habit of kicking its dishes a notch higher by adding buttery shrimp.
Option #1: Shrimp N’ Parmesean Sirlion. This is a great surf and turf option. 5g carbs – 2g fiber = 3 net carbs and 560 calories.
Option #2: USDA Sirlion. Here’s another simple option. Although if you add the steamed broccoli, it has about 6 total carbs. 0g carbs – 0g fiber = 0 net carbs and 280 calories.
2. Outback Steakhouse
Option #1: 10 oz. Ribeye steak with steamed broccoli. This delicious steak is a great option. 13g carbs – 4g fiber = 9 net carbs and 690 calories.
Option #2: Aussie cobb salad. This keto friendly salad is great way to go if you feel like a lighter meal than steak. 14g carbs – 3g fiber = 11 net carbs and 510 calories.
3. Chili’s
Craving for some ribs but not sure if it’s keto-friendly? Here are a couple of the keto friendly options at Chili’s.
Option #1: Classic Ribs with broccoli. These ribs by themselves or topped with garlic butter are a great option. Just remember to skip the potato side dish. 13g carbs – 4g fiber = 9 net carbs and 630 calories
Option #2: Grilled Steak Fajitas. These are Chili’s specialty and you can still enjoy them on keto. Make sure to skip the rice, beans, and tortillas. 18g carbs – 3g fiber = 15 net carbs and 670 calories.
4.Olive Garden
An Italian restaurant seems an odd choice for keto meals due to the abundance of bread and pasta. However, Olive Garden touts a few keto-friendly entrees, most of which even come with with healthy fats and veggies. They include:
Option #1: Chicken Margherita. This is an excellent keto option just skip the unlimited breadsticks. 13g carbs – 4g fiber = 9g net carbs and 570 calories.
Option #2: Salmon Piccata. The phrase piccata in Italian just means doused in butter, which is exactly what we’re looking for. 12g carbs – 3g fiber = 9g net carbs and 580 calories.
5. Texas Roadhouse
You can get any steak from Texas Roadhouse and stay keto. Here are a couple of my favorite options.
Option #1: Dallas Filet With Ribs and sautéed mushrooms. Skip the side of mushrooms to lower the carbs even more. 12g carbs – 3g fiber = 9g net carbs and 820 calories.
Option #2: Grilled Pork Chops With Peppercorn Sauce. If you’re looking for a change of pace these pork chops are a nice option. 9g carbs – 2g fiber = 7g net carbs and 410 calories.
Whether you accidentally burn the bacon or you’re just too tired to cook after a long day, you should find a few keto friendly restaurant options you enjoy to keep you on track. They also come in handy when you want share a meal with family or friends, but don’t want to wash the dishes.
A local keto friendly restaurant also comes in handy when you light the oven on fire like I did a few years ago. My loving wife gave me a fire extinguisher for my birthday so I won’t burn down the house the next time.
Sometimes recipes don’t work out the way you would want know matter how good of a cook you are. It takes a great deal of pressure off you if you know you have a keto friendly restaurant as a backup.
You can find keto friendly options at any restaurant even though they’re focused on making popular dishes for people on the standard American diet. Here are three tricks you can use no matter where you end up going out to eat.
#1: Research the Menu
It’s never been easier to check out the menu ahead of time online to find items that are Keto-friendly so you can walk in confident and ready to make healthy choices.
#2: Ask for keto-friendly substitutions
Most servers are happy to help if you ask them politely and stay flexible. One of the most common substitutions is to swap carb-loaded sides for healthy vegetables. Restaurants often have seasonal veggies on hand and are happy to make the switch.
While not technically a substitution, many salad dressing is an invisible source of sugar and carbs. If you’re looking for that dressing flavor, I recommend asking for blue cheese.
Most importantly, when you ask for special substitutions make sure you tip the server generously for putting in the extra effort to help you stay healthy!
#3: Beef up your plate
Keep cravings at bay by asking for extra meat added to your meal. Beef, pork, and seafood are the best options because of their higher fat content. While chicken and turkey are ok too and much better than the carb-loaded side dish.
Also, avocado and many nuts are a great source of plant-based fats. Go ahead, and get that extra scoop of guacamole!
Yes, you may pay more for these extras, but your health is worth investing in.
Looking for more keto resources? Check out my series on the best places to shop keto.
Also, If you’re looking for other resources you’ll want to read the best FREE keto apps along with 4 best exercise programs for keto online.
Until next time, remember it’s about progress, not perfection and keto on!
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