11 Keto-Friendly Fast Food Places & What to Order

To stay on track with their diet, many keto-ers rely on homemade meals. The reason being that convenience food companies, restaurants, and especially fast-food chains, rarely cater to keto.

But what if you accidentally wind up at a fast food place? Does this mean you’ll have to order sparkling water while your tablemates are enjoying a double burger with fries?

No, not at all! There are so many keto fast food options to choose from. Many of the most popular chains offer some of the best low-carb fast food with the help of order customizing.

So, at what fast food places can I eat on keto?

Below are 11 examples along with their menu options.

The world’s largest fast food-place is hard to avoid: you can find one on every corner of every city. Here are McDonald’s options to keep carbs low.

• Quarter Pounder with Cheese: Order without the bun and ketchup and you’ll reduce the carbs.

Nutrition: 310 calories | 22g fat | 4g carbs | 24g protein

• Bacon Ranch Grilled Chicken Salad: Ask for extra ranch dressing and you’re good to go.

Nutrition: 440 calories | 25g fat | 16g carbs | 40g protein

• Bacon, Egg & Cheese Bagel: Ever wondered “what fast food breakfast is Keto friendly?” Classic bacon and eggs, always! But do hold the bagel.

Nutrition: 300 calories | 23g fat | 6g carbs | 17g protein

• Caffè Americano: Be it small, medium, or large, all have 0 carbs.

Nutrition: 0 calories | 0g fat | 0g carbs | 0g protein

Kentucky Fried Chicken is best known for, well, fried chicken. So, is KFC Keto-friendly? Only if you order grilled chicken, one low-carb side dish, and a sugar-free drink.

• Kentucky Grilled Chicken: Marinated and seasoned chicken grilled to perfection. The nutrition breakdown is for one drumstick.

Nutrition: 90 calories | 4g fat | 0g carbs | 11g protein

• Green beans: A great low-carb veggie to go with your choice of chicken.

Nutrition: 25 calories | 0g fat | 4g carbs | 1g protein

• Colonel’s Unsweetened Tea: A healthy beverage loaded with antioxidants and free of pesky carbs.

Nutrition: 0 calories | 0g fat | 0g carbs | 0g protein

• Diet Soda: Choose between Diet Dr. Pepper, Diet Mist Twist, or Diet Pepsi.

Nutrition: 0 calories | 0g fat | 0g carbs | 0g protein

Fans of Mexican food can order low-carb at Taco Bell through lots of customizing. From an egg-based taco to burrito bowls, here are the options.

• Naked Egg Taco: Fried egg instead of a regular taco shell. Skip the potatoes, add protein (chicken or steak), and go for a high-fat dressing like guac and pico de gallo.

Nutrition: 310 calories | 21g fat | 13g carbs | 14g protein

• Grande Scrambler Burrito: Hold the tortilla and potatoes. What you’re left with is a bowl of eggs, bacon, cheddar, pico de gallo, sour cream, and cheese sauce.

Nutrition: 260 calories | 20g fat | 7g carbs | 13g protein

• Power Menu Bowl: Order without the beans and rice. Go for grilled chicken or a different protein and add a fat-rich sauce like avocado ranch dressing.

Nutrition: 250 calories | 15g fat | 7g carbs (net) | 21g protein

• Diet Pepsi: Sweetened with non-nutritive sweeteners, diet soft drinks are ok on keto.

Nutrition: 0 calories | 0g fat | 0g carbs | 0g protein

Lauded as one of the best fast food places when it comes to quality and customer service, you’re safe ordering low-carb fast food options at Chick Fil A.

• Grilled nuggets: Have 4-12 of marinated, grilled nuggets as a protein-rich main. The breakdown is for 12 nuggets.

Nutrition: 200 calories | 4.5g fat | 2g carbs | 38g protein

• Hash Brown Scramble Bowl: Order without the hash browns and with a grilled filet.

Nutrition: 310 calories | 20g fat | 3g carbs (net) | 28g protein

• Side salad: Mixed greens, Monterey Jack and Cheddar cheeses, and grape tomatoes. All served with Charred Tomato, Crispy Red Bell Peppers and dressing of your choice.

Nutrition: 160 calories | 10g fat | 10g carbs (net) | 6g protein

• Kale Crunch Side: Made with leafy greens and topped with roasted almonds – all keto-friendly superfoods.

Nutrition: 120 calories | 9g fat | 8g carbs | 3g protein

• Coffee or Unsweetened Iced Tea: Both zero-carb options to consider.

Nutrition: 0 calories | 0g fat | 0g carbs | 0g protein

Panera is approachable when it comes to customizing orders. Panera options include salads (without croutons) and bunless sandwiches.

• Regular Greek Salad: No need to customize as it’s perfect as is made with mixed greens, red onion, peppers, olives, and feta.

Nutrition: 380 calories | 36g fat | 5g carbs | 7g protein

• Chicken Cobb Salad: A satisfying meal with lots of protein, fat, and fiber. Order without tomatoes and ask for extra avocado.

Nutrition: 600 calories | 40g fat | 12g carbs (net) | 43g protein

• Unsweetened tea, coffee (unsweetened and with almond milk): Optionally, order flavored water.

Nutrition: 0 calories | 0g fat | 0g carbs | 0g protein

A recent poll found that Wendy’s is America’s favorite fast food place. If you too are a fan, here’s how to keep it low carb.

• Baconator: A double Baconator without the bun is the best thing to order at Wendy’s. But feel free to check out other burgers.

Nutrition: 760 calories | 60g fat | 2g carbs (net) | 53g protein

• Southwest Avocado Chicken Salad: Made with a lettuce blend, grilled chicken, diced tomatoes, pepper jack cheese, smoked bacon, and creamy avocado.

Nutrition: 600 calories | 60g fat | 10g carbs (net) | 43g protein

• Parmesan Caesar Chicken Salad: Romaine lettuce, grilled chicken, Italian cheeses, Parmesan crisps, Caesar dressing – all at 5 g net carbs.

Nutrition: 560 calories | 36g fat | 5g carbs (net) | 51g protein

• Minute Maid Lite Lemonade: Just 1 g of carbs in a glass.

Nutrition: 5 calories | 0g fat | 1g carbs | 0g protein

Last year, Chipotle was one of the first fast-food chains to add a keto-friendly item to their menu – the Keto Salad Bowl. But there are other things to order there.

• Keto Salad Bowl: Ingredients include romaine lettuce, carnitas, red salsa, shredded cheese, and guacamole.

Nutrition: 590 calories | 42g fat | 7g carbs (net) | 32g protein

• Burrito Bowl: Customize a Burrito Bowl to include meat (or sofritas), guac, shredded, cheese, romaine lettuce, and chili salsa.

Nutrition: 450 calories | 33g fat | 6g carbs (net) | 18.5g protein

• Salad: Or, you can also customize Chipotle’s salad bowl to your liking. Below are the macros for a salad with chicken, guac, cheese, and queso.

Nutrition: 565 calories | 41.5g fat | 7.5g carbs (net) | 31g protein

• Unsweetened Iced Tea: Or you could order bottled water instead of tea.

Nutrition: 0 calories | 0g fat | 0g carbs | 0g protein

When ordering at Subway, stick with the salads, but you can order other items without the buns as well.

• Tuna Chopped Salad: This is as healthy as it is satisfying made with flaked tuna, mayo, lettuce, and veggies.

Nutrition: 310 calories | 24g fat | 7g carbs (net) | 15g protein

• Chicken and Bacon Ranch: Marinated chicken on a bed of lettuce topped with Monterey cheddar cheese, bacon, and a dressing of your liking.

Nutrition: 310 calories | 24g fat | 7g carbs (net) | 15g protein

• Italian BMT: The salad version of their popular sub made with greens, Genoa salami, pepperoni, and Black Forest ham.

Nutrition: 240 calories | 15g fat | 9g carbs (net) | 14g protein

No need to go without Starbucks from now on; there are ways to sidestep the sugar and carbs.

• Unsweetened Iced Coffee (Grande): Add coconut milk and two pumps of sugar-free vanilla syrup and ask the server to blend it into a faux frappuccino.

Nutrition: 25 calories | 1.5g fat | 2g carbs | 0g protein

• Teavana Shaken Iced Black Tea Unsweetened, Venti: When in doubt, sugar-free iced tea is the way to go.

Nutrition: 0 calories | 0g fat | 0g carbs | 0g protein

• Steamed Almond Milk: A simple beverage that’s comforting and low carb.

Nutrition: 50 calories | 3.5g fat | 4g carbs | 1g protein

• Sous Vide Egg Bites, Bacon & Gruyere: Grab a couple of these egg bites and you’ll have a protein snack to keep you full.

Nutrition: 310 calories | 22g fat | 9g carbs | 1g protein

The same low-carb ordering rules apply to Five Guys as with other burger joints: pick a protein, add low-carb toppings, and hold the bun.

• Cheeseburger: Kraft American cheese melted between two patties. Skip the bun, though, and ask for a lettuce wrap.

Nutrition: 482 calories | 35g fat | 0g carbs | 40g protein

• Bacon Cheeseburger: For more keto nutrition, choose this classic wrapped in lettuce and with a low-carb topping like mayo, grilled mushrooms, and mustard (optional).

Nutrition: 660 calories | 53g fat | 0g carbs | 44g protein

• Bacon Dog: Without the bun, of course, and with a topping you like to make it more nutritious.

Nutrition: 320 calories | 27g fat | 2g carbs | 15g protein

• Bottled Water or Unsweetened Iced Tea: Avoid the milkshakes and stick to these zero-sugar options.

Nutrition: 0 calories | 0g fat | 0g carbs | 0g protein

Another hamburger joint where you can order a burger without the bun. The choices are seemingly endless, but here are some of the best keto fast food ideas.

• Bacon King Jr: When you remove the bun and skip the sauce, it turns into the best keto fast food.

Nutrition: 440 calories | 37g fat | 1g carbs | 25g protein

• Double Whopper: But if you’re in for a challenge, try a bunless version of this burger.

Nutrition: 880 calories | 71g fat | 2g carbs | 60g protein

• Ham, Egg & Cheese Biscuit: Of course, skip the biscuit and this makes a good breakfast option. But you may need to double your order.

Nutrition: 130 calories | 10g fat | 1g carbs | 8g protein

• Grilled Chicken Club Salad: Ask for a salad without the croutons.

Nutrition: 490 calories | 12g fat | 8g carbs (net) | 35g protein

• Diet Coke, Cafe Coffee, and Water: Two refreshing and one energizing, zero-carb options available.

Nutrition: 0 calories | 0g fat | 0g carbs | 0g protein

Most fast food places will let you customize orders, so make good use of that by ordering without the bun, rice, beans, breading, and other carby ingredients. Ask for extra guac or ranch dressing and have diet soda, dark coffee, or tea if you want something to drink.

Options described in this article are just a fraction of what you could order at some of your favorite fast food places. But if you’re new to keto eating, these examples can help you stay low-carb while eating out.