Keto and Fast Food: How to Eat Keto on the Run

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Keto and Fast Food – sounds like a contradiction, right? Staying Keto isn’t always easy when you’re on the run or on the road. Luckily most fast food restaurants now feature low-carb sides, and other keto-friendly swaps.

Before I get into some of my favorite Keto fast food options, please know this: I consider pretty much all fast food keto options to be dirty keto. Meaning it’s not what I call IDEAL, & it’s definitely not strict keto.

But it will work in a pinch!

Please note: for the items that are modified with no bun, no tortilla, etc. – I wasn’t able to locate the exact nutrition information from each place. The carb / sugar information that you will see below was pulled directly from each fast food restaurant’s nutrition guide.

Chick-fil-A

Chick-fil-A is one of my favorite fast food places to order from! These are some of my favorite options from Chick-fil-A:

Breakfast

• Egg White Grill: No Muffin
• Bacon or Sausage, Egg & Cheese Biscuit or Muffin: No Biscuit or Muffin

Lunch & Dinner

• Grilled Chicken or Grilled Chicken Club Sandwich: No Bun
• Grilled Nuggets
• Cobb Salad with Grilled Nuggets: No Crispy Bell Peppers
  • Other Chicken Options: Spicy Grilled Filet (Cold), Grilled Filet (Cold), or Grilled Filet (Warm)
  • Dressing: The Cobb comes with Avocado Lime Ranch Dressing – 3g Carbs
  • You can opt for another dressing if you’d like though – see sauces & dressings below

Sides

• Side Salad: No Crispy Bell Peppers
• Kale Crunch Side

Sauces and Salad Dressings (Carb count is per packet)

• Mayo – 1g Carbs
• Garden Herb Ranch Sauce – 1g Carbs
• Zesty Buffalo Sauce – 1g Carbs
• Garden Herb Ranch Dressing – 2g Carbs
• Light Italian – 3g Carbs
• Avocado Lime Ranch Dressing – 3g Carbs

My Favorite Meal: 8 ct Grilled Nuggets with Garden Herb Ranch Sauce or Zesty Buffalo Sauce, and a Side Salad with Garden Herb Ranch Dressing

My Dirty / Lazy Keto Treat: Chick-fil-A Nuggets (an 8 count is 11g Carbs) & Chick-fil-A Sauce (7g Carbs)

Jimmy Johns

When you think of Jimmy Johns, I know you instantly think of bread – BUT JJ’s has made it easy to grab a quick Keto lunch by offering all their sandwiches with an Unwich option.

What’s an Unwich? An Unwich is the same sandwich you always order at JJ’s, but instead of the French or Wheat Bread, they wrap it in crunchy lettuce!

Here are some of the lowest carb Unwich options at Jimmy Johns:

• All of the Slim’s – ranging from 1-5g Carbs, with Slim 3 having the most at 5g Carbs
• #2 Big John – 4g Carbs
• #4 Turkey Tom – 5g Carbs
• #6 The Veggie – 7g Carbs
• J.J.B.L.T. – 4g Carbs
• #8 Billy Club – 7g Carbs
• #10 Hunters Club – 5g Carbs
• #13 Jimmy Cubano – 5g Carbs
• #14 Bootlegger Club – 5g Carbs
• #16 Club Lulu – 5g Carbs
• #17 Ultimate Porker – 6g Carbs

Side Option: Jumbo Kosher Dill Pickle – 3g Carbs

My Favorite JJ’s Unwich: #12 Beach Club with No Avocado, & Extra Cucumber & Tomato

Dairy Queen

If you think that DQ is mostly fried food and sugary ice cream – well, you’re right. BUT, DQ does have a few decent low carb options:

• Rotisserie-style Chicken Bites Salad Bowl – 6 net carbs (without dressing)
• Rotisserie-style Chicken Bites – Regular or Large – 1 carb without dressing or dip, & without a side item

Side Option:

• Side Salad – 3 net carbs (without dressing)

Dressings and Dips:

• House Made Hidden Valley Ranch Dipping Sauce Cup – 3g carbs
• Kraft Fat Free Italian Dressing – 4g carbs
• Marzetti Dijon Honey Mustard – 7g carbs
• Marzetti Light Italian Dressing – 2g carbs
• Wild Buffalo Dipping Sauce Cup – 1g carbs
• Zesty Queso Dipping Sauce – 3g carbs

Sonic Drive-In

Sonic is a magical place filled with all kinds of temptation, and when I’m dining keto I typically avoid this place like the plague. HOWEVER, there are a few ways to eat here low carb if you’re in a pinch:

Breakfast

• Sausage, Bacon, or Steak Breakfast Burrito: No Tortilla
  • Pro Tip: If you like their SuperSonic Burrito, you can order that without tater tots and no tortilla
    • Note: If you’re ordering outside of the basic burritos, make sure it doesn’t come with tater tots or special sauces added
• Any of the Breakfast Toasters or sandwiches (Bacon, Sausage, Ham): No Bun, Texas Toast, or other bread

Lunch / Dinner

• SuperSonic Double Cheeseburger: No bun, with mayo & mustard on the side & your choice of toppings (pickle, onion, lettuce, & tomato)
• Hot Dog or Footlong Hot Dog: No bun (plain)
  • If you want to do add-ons (i.e., onions or mustard) that’s fine, just be sure they’re low carb friendly add-ons

Sauces / Condiments (per packet)

• Ranch – 1g carbs
• Salsa – 0g carbs
• Light Mayo – 1g net carb
• Mustard – 0g carbs

Really Dirty Keto Options:

• 6 Piece Boneless Buffalo Wings (15 net carbs)
• Crispy Chicken Tenders – 3 piece (14 net carbs)

Sadly, there are no sides that I’ve seen at Sonic that are low carb friendly – they’re ALL fried. Sonic used to have side salads & full-size salads back in the day, but unfortunately they took them off the menu awhile ago.

***PLEASE bring back salads, Sonic! They were SO GOOD!***

Slim Chickens

Slim Chickens is one of my FAVE places to eat when I want something quick and am eating low carb! They don’t have a ton of options, but what they do have, I can definitely work with:

Lunch / Dinner

• Any of the Grilled Tender meals (tenders only – 0g carbs)
  • Substitute a side salad (NO CROUTONS) for the fries.
• Slim Salad with Grilled Tenders – NO Croutons or Fried Onions
  • Slim Chickens’ nutrition guide shows 19 net carbs, but that does include the croutons & fried onions. It does not include the dressing.
• Grilled Tender & Wings Meals
  • Substitute a side salad instead of fries)
  • These are the wing options that are low carb – you can get your wings plain, or shaken in any of these flavors:
    • 0 Carbs per wing: Plain Wing
    • 1 Carb per wing: Buffalo, Hot, Inferno Wing, Garlic Parmesan Wing, Cayenne Ranch Dry Rub Wing, Lemon Pepper Dry Rub

Sides

• Side Salad: No croutons
  • 4 net carbs per the nutrition guide (without dressing) – however, w/o the croutons, it’s less carby
  • Dressings listed below

Sauces & Salad Dressings (per sauce cup):

• Buffalo – 0 carbs
• Ranch – 1 carb
• Cayenne Ranch – 1 carb
• Blue Cheese – 2 carbs
• Lite Italian – 3 carbs
• Hot – 5 net carbs
• Inferno – 3 net carbs
• Garlic Parmesan – 3 carbs

Hardees

Hardees was one of my favorite go-to fast food places when I was a kid, and through high school – it was only a couple blocks from my grandma’s house, so convenience was key. It’s changed a lot over the years, but I still have a place in my heart for it – & rightfully so. Check out the first Breakfast option below!

Breakfast

• Low Carb Breakfast Bowl – 0g Carbs! (Yes, you read that right)
• Sausage or Bacon Egg and Cheese Biscuit: No Biscuit

Lunch & Dinner

I have good news for you, pal: Hardees will lettuce wrap any of their sandwiches if you ask them to!

For all of the following, just order it: No Bun, Low Carb Lettuce Wrapped, No Ketchup (not all of these come with it)

• Big Cheeseburger
• Original Angus Burger
• Bacon & Cheese Angus Burger
• Frisco Angus Burger
• Monster Angus Burger
• Double Cheeseburger
• Small Hamburger or Cheeseburger
• Charbroiled Chicken Club Sandwich
• I’m not sure what goes in the “Special Sauce” that comes on the Famous Star with Cheese or the Super Star with Cheese, so order those at your own risk

Sides

Hardees used to have a side salad available, but they’ve gotten rid of it in the past couple of years – unfortunately they have no carb friendly sides at this time 😕

My Favorite Thing to Order: The Charbroiled Chicken Club Sandwich, No Bun & Low Carb Lettuce Wrapped

Dirty Keto Option: 3 Piece Hand Breaded Chicken Tenders – 11 net carbs (without sauce)

McDonalds

I’m probably going to catch some flack for this BUT – I usually avoid eating McDonalds when I’m trying to eat keto. There are many reasons for this – but the main ones are:

1. If I order something with no bun somewhere else, I feel like I’m getting MUCH more (quality AND quantity) and
2. …THOSE FRIES THOUGH. The struggle to avoid them is REAL.

That being said, if you’re REALLY fiending for some MacDons, here’s how to keep it keto:

Breakfast

• Any of the Sausage, Bacon, or Egg McMuffins / Biscuits: No Bread / Biscuit
• Sausage Burrito: No Tortilla

Lunch and Dinner

All 4 options below can be ordered like this: No Bun, No Ketchup (it comes with mustard & ketchup – ask for mayo if you’d like it added)

• Quarter Pounder with Cheese
• Double Quarter Pounder with Cheese
• Quarter Pounder with Cheese Deluxe
• Quarter Pounder with Cheese Bacon

NOTE: You can order other burgers, such as the McDouble or a Big Mac, with no bun, no ketchup, etc. However, you get a lot less burger – and the quality of the burger patties for those types of burgers is less than desirable without all the bun and sauce action.

Sides

Sorry, but the only other side other than fries here are apple slices (4 carbs)

BONUS TIPS:

Craving a Big Mac? Order this:

• Quarter or Double Quarter Pounder with Cheese: No Bun – Plain with Pickles, Finely Chopped Onion, Lettuce, and Mac Sauce.

Mac Sauce is surprisingly not the worst condiment out there for keto, FYI. It comes in at 2 carbs & 1 gram of sugar per serving – so, not strict keto, but a good option if you’re going dirty keto.

Wendy’s

I don’t think I tried Wendy’s until I was in college (small town problems) – but I’ve been a mega fan for over a solid decade now. Their burger patties are up there in my favorites for keto fast food options – they can really hold their own as a quality burger.

Breakfast

• Sausage or Bacon, Egg, & Swiss Croissant: No Croissant
• Sausage or Bacon, Egg, & Cheese Biscuit: No Biscuit

Lunch and Dinner

Burgers

• Dave’s Single, Double, or Triple Cheeseburger: No Bun, No Ketchup
• Baconator or Son of a Baconator: No Bun, No Ketchup
• Bacon Double Stack: No Bun, No Ketchup
• Jr. Bacon Cheeseburger: No Bun
• Jr. Hamburger, Jr. Cheeseburger Deluxe, Jr. Cheeseburger, or Double Stack: all No Bun, No Ketchup

Salads

• Parmesan Caesar Salad – 2g net carbs (without dressing)
• Southwest Avocado Salad – 6g net carbs (without dressing)

Sides

The only side that isn’t a form of potato, a carby chili, or something else fried are the Apple Bites, which are 7 net carbs & 6 grams of sugar.

Dressings / Sauces

Note: I don’t have the lowdown on the carbs / sugars on these dressings & sauces, but these are generally a safe bet at most places.

• Buttermilk Ranch Sauce
• Caesar dressing
• Ranch dressing
• Southwest Ranch dressing

Taco Bell

I generally don’t go to TBell when I’m on keto because I have zero self control around a Beef Supreme Chalupa…but if I find myself in the glory that is the Taco Bell drive thru, this is what I usually order from Taco Bell on keto:

Breakfast

• Cheesy Toasted Breakfast Burrito: No Tortilla

Lunch and Dinner

• Chicken Power Menu Bowl: No Beans, No Rice
• Steak Power Menu Bowl: No Beans, No Rice
• Nachos Bell Grande: No Chips, No Beans – Either eat it with a fork / spork, or grab some pork rinds from the gas station for a crunchy lunch or dinner!
• Chicken Chipotle Melt: No Tortilla
• Hard or Softshell Tacos: No Shell / Tortilla

Sauces / Add Ons

All have 3 net carbs or less per serving unless indicated:

• Guacamole
• Sour Cream
• Mild Sauce
• Hot Sauce
• Fire Sauce
• Diablo Sauce
• Red Enchilada Sauce
• Spicy Ranch
• Chipotle Sauce
• Avocado Ranch
• Nacho Cheese Sauce
  • 4g Carbs per serving

Craving a Mexican Pizza? Try my copycat Taco Bell Mexican Pizza Recipe!

Burger King

BK was one of my basic food groups growing up, so there’s no way I could make a list without it! It’s another fast food chain without much more than burgers to offer for keto options, but Burger King still deserves a spot on this Keto and Fast Food list.

Lunch and Dinner

The following burgers can be ordered: No Bun and No Ketchup, with or without cheese

• Whopper
• Double Whopper
• Triple Whopper
• Bacon King
• Impossible Whopper
• Whopper Jr.
• Single Quarter Pound King
• Cheeseburger or Double Cheeseburger
• Bacon Cheeseburger or Bacon Double Cheeseburger
• Texas Double Whopper

Additional option:

• Big King, or Classic Melt: No Bun
  • Note: The Stacker Sauce that comes on it is about 3g carbs per serving

Sides

There are no low carb sides offered at Burger King, currently.

Keto and Fast Food: Things to Remember

• Always order with No Bread – this includes buns, tortillas, biscuits, croissants, and also no croutons
• Be careful with sauces – typically salsas and hot sauces are safe / okay, as well as most ranch dressings. Anything sweet (like honey mustards, BBQ sauces, etc.) you’ll want to avoid
• Avoid Ketchup – Yes, it’s tasty. But it’s a sugar trap
• Avoid Beans
• Avoid chips
• Meat, cheese, and low carb veggies are your friend
• Salads are good…but be mindful of the toppings & dressings
• If it’s fried – don’t buy (sorry)
• Beverages: choose water, unsweetened tea, or diet soda (though diet soda is not a recommendation – it’s terrible for you…but hey, I get it)

Did I miss your favorite fast food place?

This list is just fairly common ones I’m familiar with. If you’ve got others you’d like me to add to the Keto and Fast Food list, drop them in the comments below, or visit my Contact Me page!

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References – Nutrition and Menu Information