Unlock the Best Keto Dining Secrets at Chili's: Your Ultimate Low-Carb Guide!

Navigating a restaurant menu can be stressful when trying to follow a strict diet, especially the ketogenic diet. The popular Tex-Mex restaurant Chili’s can be found all across the United States. If you’re following the keto diet, you may not be sure what to order there. Several meals at Chili’s can be modified to be keto-friendly. This comprehensive guide provides a detailed look at how to navigate the Chili's menu while maintaining a ketogenic lifestyle, offering tips on what to order, what to avoid, and how to customize your meal for optimal results.

Understanding the Keto Diet

On the keto diet, most people aim to eat about 25 grams of net carbs - total carbs minus fiber - per day. The key to staying in ketosis is to keep your net carbs low. This involves consuming a diet high in fats, moderate in protein, and very low in carbohydrates to shift the body's primary energy source from glucose to ketones.

General Tips for Eating Keto at Chili's

Eating keto at Chili's is simpler than you think! Several meals at Chili’s can be modified to be keto-friendly. Here are a few pointers to help you make your meal as keto-friendly as possible:

Choose simple meat entrées: To make eating keto at Chili’s more doable, choose a basic entrée with nothing added, such as steak, grilled salmon, or a bunless burger.
Add keto-friendly sides: Choose low carb sides like asparagus or steamed broccoli to keep the carb count low.
Avoid hidden carbs: Some Chili’s items are full of hidden carbs, such as the chicken wings in any flavor (except Buffalo). Likewise, the ribs are slathered in sugary BBQ sauce, and the coleslaw is also high in carbs (2).
Select low carb dressings: Ordering salad? Stick to keto-friendly salad dressings like Ancho Chile Ranch, Avocado Ranch, Bleu Cheese, Caesar, Ranch, and Santa Fe. Always ask for sauces on the side to control portions.
Plan ahead: Glance at the menu and nutrition information ahead of time to better plan out a keto-friendly meal that you’ll enjoy.
Skip the rice and the beans: Many of the main dishes at this place come with a side of Mexican rice or beans, which are very high in carb content.
The most efficient path to a low-carb meal is to remove anything resembling bread.

Keto-Friendly Appetizers at Chili's

Starting with appetizers, Chili's offers a few options that can be modified to fit a ketogenic diet.

Bone-in Buffalo Wings: The Bone-in Wings from Chili’s make an excellent keto option that’s loaded with fat and protein. It’s easy to split this order in two or share it with a friend. To keep these wings keto, choose only Buffalo sauce or skip the sauce entirely since all of the other sauces are high in carbs. Here’s the nutrient info for one order of Bone-in Wings with Buffalo Sauce (2): Calories: 890; Fat: 65 grams; Protein: 73 grams; Total carbs: 4 grams; Fiber: 1 gram; Net carbs: 3 grams.
Fresh Guacamole: Start your meal with fresh guacamole, but skip the chips and ask for celery sticks instead.
Bacon Ranch Cheddar Bites: Order these without the breading to keep them keto-compliant.

Keto-Friendly Entrées at Chili's

When it comes to main dishes, they offer three different protein options: chicken, beef, and seafood-based meals. This variety alone makes it an appealing dining choice for anyone on a keto diet.

Burgers

Chili's Big Mouth Burgers are famous for their hearty portions and bold flavors. Burgers are always a safe bet on the ketogenic diet. Just remove the bun and order with no sauce. Here are a few keto-friendly burger options:

Big Mouth Mushroom Swiss Burger, no bun: Chili’s offers several burgers, many of which are keto-friendly if you leave off the bun. The Mushroom Swiss Burger is a great keto choice. It’s topped with sautéed onions, mushrooms, Swiss cheese, lettuce, tomato, and garlic aioli. Here’s the nutrition info for a bunless Big Mouth Mushroom Swiss Burger (2): Calories: 760; Fat: 62 grams; Protein: 45 grams; Total carbs: 7 grams; Fiber: 2 grams; Net carbs: 5 grams.
Classic Big Mouth Burger: When you order it without the bun and fries, you’ll get a classic combination of beef patty, pickles, lettuce, tomato, red onion, mustard, and cheddar cheese.
Avocado Burger: Without the bun, you’ll end up with a beef patty complemented by a delicious mixture of avocado, pepper Jack cheese, red onion, jalapeños, cilantro, and spicy Santa Fe sauce.
Bacon Ranch Burger: As its name suggests, this is a simple burger layered with slices of bacon, cheddar cheese, pickles, red onion, lettuce, tomato, and mayo. If you would like to beef it up, Chili’s offers the option to add an extra beef patty.
Low-carb toppings for keto-friendly burgers at Chili’s: A juicy, flavorful patty satisfies your burger cravings without the bun; creamy and rich avocado slices add a delightful texture and healthy fats to your meal; it's crispy, smoky, and downright delicious; earthy and savory, sautéed mushrooms are a fantastic low-carb side that enhances any dish.

Steaks

In my opinion, there’s no keto-friendly option more delicious than steak. Here are some steak options:

Classic Sirloin: Chili’s offers two sizes of its Classic Sirloin for large and small appetites. Keep it keto by choosing low carb sides like steamed broccoli or a side salad without croutons. Another simple meal consisting of seasoned steak topped with garlic butter. Ask your server for no potatoes and enjoy a seasoned sirloin topped with garlic butter and steamed broccoli. It comes in two sizes - you can order the 6 oz. or the 10 oz. The nutrient info for the 6-ounce Classic Sirloin is as follows (2): Calories: 260; Fat: 13 grams; Protein: 34 grams; Total carbs: 1 gram; Fiber: 0 grams; Net carbs: 1 gram.
Classic Ribeye: If you’re extra hungry, choose the larger Classic Ribeye steak, which packs a whopping 67 grams of protein. This steak is completely free of carbs, too, so you can add a few low carb vegetable sides without worrying about your carb count. Here’s the nutrient info for the Classic Ribeye (2): Calories: 630; Fat: 40 grams; Protein: 67 grams; Total carbs: 0 grams; Fiber: 0 grams; Net carbs: 0 grams.
Surf & Turf Ribeye: If you’re craving seafood, this delicious combination of marbled steak and a dozen shrimp served in garlic butter packs enough protein to meet your daily needs.
Sirloin with Grilled Avocado: This is one of our favorite keto diet options at Chili’s! It’s seasoned and topped with spicy citrus-chile sauce, grilled avocado slices, cilantro, pico and asparagus on the side. Comes in the 6 oz. or 10 oz.
Sirloin with Avocado: This sirloin with avocado is a juicy 6 oz. steak topped with creamy avocado slices.

Fajitas

Fajitas: Chili’s Fajitas are made with peppers, onions, and your choice of shrimp, chicken, or steak. They’re served with sour cream, pico de gallo, salsa, and shredded cheese. If you ask for no tortillas and skip the sides, the Fajitas are a great low carb entrée. Additionally, it’s more keto-friendly if you split it into two meals. You can mix and match them and order two different protein sources or a combination of all three. To make it keto, order it without the tortillas or high-carb sides like rice or beans. The nutrient info for Shrimp Fajitas with no tortillas, rice, or beans is below (2): Calories: 510; Fat: 34 grams; Protein: 29 grams; Total carbs: 28 grams; Fiber: 4 grams; Net carbs: 24 grams.

Chicken and Seafood

Ancho Salmon: The Ancho Salmon entrée is one of Chili’s “Guiltless Grill” options, all of which have fewer than 650 calories. It usually comes with broccoli and Mexican rice. To make it keto-friendly, just ask for no Mexican rice. This seared Atlantic salmon comes with cilantro and cilantro pesto, served with a side of Mexican rice and steamed broccoli. See the nutrient info for Ancho Salmon without Mexican rice below (2): Calories: 460; Fat: 25 grams; Protein: 45 grams; Total carbs: 15 grams; Fiber: 4 grams; Net carbs: 11 grams.

Smokehouse Combos

Smokehouse Combo: With a Chili's smokehouse combo, you get the choice of two types of smoked meats with every order. Chili’s also offers Smokehouse Combo’s, where you can pick two or three meats and choose sides. It’s a great option to have when you’re on the keto diet. You can combine two or three different meats with this meal and choose two side dishes. Opt for the Jalapeno-Cheddar Smoked Sausage and the Ribs House BBQ. Note: our macros include BBQ sauce, since Chili’s nutrition guide doesn’t separate meals by ingredients.

Keto-Friendly Salads at Chili's

What’s better than rounding up your meal by adding a portion of vitamin-packed greens enriched in flavor by delicious dressings?

Santa Fe Chicken Salad, no tortilla strips: This salad features grilled chicken, pico de gallo, avocado, cilantro, tortilla strips, and ranch dressing over a bed of lettuce. Without the tortilla strips, it contains only low carb, keto-friendly ingredients. Here’s the nutrient info for the Santa Fe Chicken Salad, though keep in mind that this includes the tortilla strips (2): Calories: 630; Fat: 44 grams; Protein: 36 grams; Total carbs: 27 grams; Fiber: 7 grams; Net carbs: 20 grams. Nutrition information for the tortilla strips isn’t available, so we can’t calculate the exact carb count. However, removing the tortilla strips should significantly reduce the carb count.
Southwest Caesar Salad, no tortilla strips: The Southwest Caesar Salad comes with grilled chicken or shrimp, plus queso fresco, tortilla strips, tomatoes, and Caesar dressing over lettuce. Without the tortilla strips, it’s very keto-friendly - and if you have the carbs to spare you can even have the salad with the tortilla strips. Find the nutrient info for the Southwest Chicken Caesar Salad below, though bear in mind that this includes the tortilla strips (since the nutrition info for the tortilla strips isn’t available) (2): Calories: 630; Fat: 44 grams; Protein: 39 grams; Total carbs: 21 grams; Fiber: 5 grams; Net carbs: 16 grams.
Side Caesar Salad with no croutons: Here you’ll simply get romaine, Parmesan and Caesar dressing. Some locations have their special low carb option, so pick that if available since it has no croutons. The Side Caesar Salad is made with romaine lettuce, Parmesan cheese, Caesar dressing, and croutons. Without the croutons, it’s an ideal keto-friendly side. Here’s the nutrition info for the Side Caesar Salad, though this includes the croutons. Removing them will reduce the carb count further (2): Calories: 160; Fat: 14 grams; Protein: 3 grams; Total carbs: 7 grams; Fiber: 1 gram; Net carbs: 6 grams.
Side House Salad: Ask for no croutons and pick a low carb dressing like blue cheese. It has tomatoes, red onions, cucumbers and shredded cheese. The Side House Salad comes with tomatoes, onion, cucumber, cheese, croutons, and your choice of dressing. To keep it keto-friendly, skip the croutons - and if you want to lower the carb count even further, ask for no tomato or onion. Here’s the nutrient info for a Side House Salad with Avocado Ranch Dressing, though bear in mind that this includes the croutons. Removing them, as well as the tomatoes and onions, will further lower the carb count (2): Calories: 200; Fat: 18 grams; Protein: 7 grams; Total carbs: 18 grams; Fiber: 3 grams; Net carbs: 15 grams. When you order it without the garlic croutons, you’ll get a colorful mix of tomatoes, cucumbers, red onions, and shredded cheese.

Keto-Friendly Sides at Chili's

Asparagus: Asparagus is one of the best keto-friendly sides at Chili’s, as it has just 2 grams of net carbs per serving. Here’s the nutrition info for Chili’s Asparagus (2): Calories: 35; Fat: 1 grams; Protein: 3 grams; Total carbs: 5 grams; Fiber: 3 grams; Net carbs: 2 grams. It is a simple yet satisfying side that brings a fresh, green crunch to your meal.
Steamed Broccoli: Chili’s Steamed Broccoli is a great keto-friendly side because it only contains 4 grams of net carbs per serving. Find the nutrient info for Steamed Broccoli below (2): Calories: 40; Fat: 0 grams; Protein: 3 grams; Total carbs: 8 grams; Fiber: 4 grams; Net carbs: 4 grams.
Sautéed Mushrooms: Earthy and savory, sautéed mushrooms are a fantastic low-carb side that enhances any dish. This versatile side dish goes wonderfully with Chili's keto options, like Garlic Parmesan sauce-drizzled shrimp, or Santa Fe Sauce-topped grilled salmon.

Keto-Friendly Sauces and Dressings at Chili's

Luckily, Chili’s menu comes with many keto-approved options for sauces and salad dressings that can make any meal extra enjoyable. Choose these low-carb sauce and dressing options:

Ranch Dressing
Blue Cheese Dressing
Garlic Butter
Plain Buffalo Sauce
Ancho Chile Ranch
Avocado Ranch
Caesar
Santa Fe

Drinks

No meal would be complete without a nice drink you can pair it up with.

Read also: Easy Low-Carb Cheese Crackers

It is a light, refreshing drink that’s low in carbs and flavorful.

Items to Avoid

When perusing the Chili's menu, I recommend you avoid these items at all costs!

Sugary drinks are a no-go on the ketogenic diet.
Chili's tortilla chips are definitely not keto-approved. One order includes 105g net carbs; this is way over the recommended daily carb intake on a keto diet.

Frequently Asked Questions

Here are a few answers to the most frequently asked questions about eating keto at Chili's.

Are Chili's boneless wings keto? The Chili's boneless wings are a total tease! Their sauce options are all high in sugars and, therefore, high in carbs. Instead, try their bone-in buffalo wings for a keto option.
Is Chili's Margarita Grilled Chicken keto-friendly? Though this dish is technically on the "Guiltless Grill" section of the menu, that doesn't mean that it is suitable for a keto diet. Because this dish is served with high-carb foods like black beans, rice, and tortilla strips, it contains 58g net carbs. Instead, I'd recommend the chicken fajitas with a couple of low-carb side dishes.
Is Chili's salsa keto-friendly? Chili's salsa contains just 5g net carbs and can easily fit into your daily carb count. It makes a great addition to low-carb fajitas, along with avocado slices and sour cream.

Keto Recipes to Make at Home

If reading all about eating keto at Chili's has you craving casual, American fare, here are some low-carb recipes you can make at home!

Try our Keto Chicken Fajitas recipe, packed with juicy chicken, crunchy bell peppers, and caramelized onions, all cooked in one pan for easy meal prep.
These keto nachos are the perfect solution for satisfying your cravings while sticking to your health goals.

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