McAlister’s Deli offers multiple keto-friendly options including salads, soups, and bunless sandwiches. Being a Deli, they have all kinds of high-fat, low-carb meats and cheeses that you can combine any way you want.
We all associate McAlister’s Deli with rich, juicy (and carb-heavy) sandwiches! But did you know how easy it is to score a perfectly low-carb meal here?
My go-to method is to pick a basic salad (Caesar salad) and load it up with beef, bacon, ham, pastrami, or just about anything I feel like.
Or you can also order a sandwich in a bowl (bunless) and customize it the way you like!
They have over 40 different toppings and add-ons that you can choose from. So technically, there are an endless number of combinations available!
McAlister’s Deli also has a smart nutrition calculator on their website, which lets you add or remove any ingredient. But we have made the job easier for you!
Keep reading to know the best keto options and strategies available at this restaurant.
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Soups
1. Broccoli Cheddar (Cup)
What’s inside: Cheddar and Monterrey Jack Cheese mixed with chunks of Broccoli in a creamy base made from chicken broth.
Modification: Ditch the Saltine crackers
Nutrition (after modification): 240 Calories, 17g Fat, 13g Total carbs, 2g Fiber, 4g Sugar, 9g Protein, 11g Net carbs
2. Fire Roasted Vegetable (Cup)
What’s inside: A mixture of fresh veggies filled with minerals and vitamins
Nutrition: 60 Calories, 0g Fat, 11g Total carbs, 2g Fiber, 4g Sugar, 4g Protein, 9g Net carbs
3. Soup Garnishes
Feel free to customize your soups with the following garnishes. The net carbs are given for the ‘cup’ serving size.
- Applewood smoked bacon: 0g
- Blue corn tortilla chips: 4g
- Cheddar jack: 0g
- Crispy onion: 3g
- Croutons: 3g
- Green onions: 0g
- Jalapenos: 0g
- Parmesans: 0g
- Sour cream: 0g
Fresh Salads
4. Garden Salad
What’s inside: Cheddar-jack, tomato, cucumber, and croutons on mixed greens
Modification: Skip the croutons
Nutrition (after modification): 270 Calories, 18g Fat, 12g Total carbs, 3g Fiber, 6g Sugar, 17g Protein, 9g Net carbs
5. Caesar Salad
What’s inside: Parmesan, croutons, and Caesar dressing served on a bed of romaine lettuce.
Modification: Skip the croutons
Nutrition (after modification): 640 Calories, 61g Fat, 12g Total carbs, 5g Fiber, 3g Sugar, 12g protein, 7g Net carbs
6. Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad
What’s inside: Parmesan, croutons, and Caesar dressing on romaine lettuce topped with Grilled Chicken
Modification: Ditch those croutons
Nutrition (after modification): 790 Calories, 63g Fat, 15g total carbs, 5g Fiber, 4g Sugar, 42g Protein, 10g net carbs
7. Salad Dressings
You can further customize your salads with these dressings. The net carbs below are for a 2-oz serving of each.
- Butter Milk Ranch: 2g
- Caesar Dressings: 2g
- Green Goddess Dressings: 4g
- Olive Oil & Balsamic Vinaigrette: 6g
Sandwiches (Without Bread)
As you already know, NO sandwich is keto-friendly since they all come with bread, bun, or baguette.
So you’ll have to request a ‘bunless’ sandwich where they give you all the ingredients in a bowl.
Or you may also opt for a lettuce wrap (we’ve found most restaurants to happily entertain that request)
There are 16 bunless sandwiches available that range from 2g-11g of net carbs.
At the bottom of this section, you’ll find the full list of meat, cheese, veggies, and other toppings that you can use to easily customize any sandwich/salad.
Note: In the case of a lettuce wrap, consider an additional 1g of net carb when doing your calculations.
8. McAlister’s Club Sandwich (Bunless)
What’s inside: Smoked turkey, Black Forest ham, bacon, sharp cheddar, Swiss, spring mix, tomato, mayo, and McAlister’s Honey Mustard
Nutrition: 410 Calories, 29g Fat, 7g Total carbs, 0.5g Fiber, 4g Sugar, 32g Protein, 6.5g Net carbs
9. Grilled Chicken Club (Bunless)
What’s inside: Grilled Chicken Breast, sharp cheddar, Swiss, spring mix, tomato, mayo, and McAlister’s Honey Mustard™
Nutrition: 440 Calories, 28g Fat, 6g Total carbs, 0.5g Fiber, 3g Sugar, 43g Protein, 5g Net carbs
10. Black Angus Club (Bunless)
What’s inside: Black Angus roast beef, bacon, sharp cheddar, Swiss, red onion, spring mix, tomato, horseradish sauce, and mayo
Nutrition: 470 Calories, 35g Fat, 6g Total carbs, 0.5g Fiber, 3g Sugar, 37g Protein, 5g Net carbs
11. Black Angus King Club (Bunless)
What’s inside: Black Angus roast beef, bacon, sharp cheddar, Swiss, red onion, spring mix, tomato, horseradish sauce, and mayo
Nutrition: 850 Calories, 58g Fat, 12g Total carbs, 1g Fiber, 5g Sugar, 74g Protein, 11g Net carbs
12. Ham & Cheese Melt Sandwich (Bunless)
What’s inside: Black Forest ham, Swiss, mayo, spicy brown mustard, and tomato
Nutrition: 360 Calories, 25g Fat, 9g Total carbs, 0g Fiber, 3g Sugar, 27g Protein, 9g Net carbs
13. Four Cheese Melt (Bunless)
What’s inside: Provolone, Swiss, American, Parmesan, and tomato
Nutrition: 450 Calories, 35g Fat, 7g Total carbs, 0g Fiber, 3g Sugars, 29g Protein, 7g Net carbs
14. Grilled Chicken Sandwich (Bunless)
What’s inside: Grilled chicken with spring mix, tomato, Swiss and McAlister’s Honey Mustard™
Nutrition: 340 Calories, 16g Fat, 10g Total carbs, 1g Fiber, 7g Sugar, 39g Protein, 9g Net carbs
15. French Dip (Bunless)
What’s inside: Black Angus roast beef and melted Swiss with au jus
Nutrition: 440 Calories, 27g Fat, 3g Total carbs, 0g Fiber, 0g Sugar, 48g Protein, 3g Net carbs
16. The Italian (Bunless)
What’s inside: Black Forest ham, salami, provolone, house-roasted multicolored peppers, spring mix, tomato, red onions, black olives, olive oil & balsamic vinaigrette, and spicy brown mustard
Nutrition: 570 Calories, 39g Fat, 12g Total carbs, 1g Fiber, 6g Sugar, 38g Protein, 11g Net carbs
17. Memphian (Bunless)
What’s inside: Smoked turkey, Black Forest ham, Black Angus roast beef, provolone, spring mix, tomato, mayo, and spicy brown mustard
Nutrition: 430 Calories, 27g Fat, 9g Total carbs, 0.5g Fiber, 3g Sugar, 39g Protein, 8g Net carbs
(Related: Is Bologna Keto?)
18. The New Yorker (Bunless)
What’s inside: Corned beef, pastrami, Swiss, and spicy brown mustard on marbled rye
Nutrition: 500 Calories, 27g Fat, 8g Total carbs, 0g Fiber, 2g Sugar, 56g Protein, 8g Net carbs
19. Smoky Pepper Jack Turkey (Bunless)
What’s inside: Smoked turkey, bacon, pepper jack, and McAlister’s Honey Mustard™ on toasted ciabatta
Nutrition: 330 Calories, 20g Fat, 2g Total carbs, 0g Fiber, 2g Sugars, 33g Protein, 2g Net carbs
20. Spicy Turkey Melt (Bunless)
What’s inside: Smoked turkey, bacon, pepper jack, avocado, chipotle ranch, spring mix and tomato on toasted baguette.
Nutrition: 580 Calories, 41g Fat, 14g Total carbs, 5g Fiber, 6g Sugar, 35g protein, 9g Net carbs
21. The Veggie (Bunless)
What’s inside: Spinach, tomato, cucumber, red onion, house-roasted multicolored peppers, avocado, herb mayo, salt and pepper on 9-grain
Nutrition: 340 Calories, 31g Fat, 14g Total carbs, 5g Fiber, 6g Sugar, 3g Protein, 9g Net carbs
22. Garden Fresh Turkey Sandwich (Bunless)
What’s inside: Smoked turkey, avocado, spinach, tomato, Swiss and olive oil & balsamic vinaigrette on 9-Grain
Nutrition: 380 Calories, 24g Fat, 12g Total carbs, 4g Fiber 6g Sugr, 28g Protein, 8g Net carbs
23. Grilled Chicken Caesar Wrap (Bunless)
What’s inside: Grilled chicken, Romaine, Parmesan and Caesar dressing in a wheat wrap
Nutrition: 530 Calories, 41g Fat, 6g Total fat, 0.5g Fiber, 2g Sugar, 34g Protein, 5g Net carbs
24. BLT + Avocado (Bunless)
What’s inside: Applewood smoked bacon, spring mix, tomato, avocado, and herb mayo
Nutrition: 680 Calories, 57g Fat, 11g Total carbs, 5g Fiber, 4g Sugar, 27g Protein, 6g Net carbs
25. Add-on Meat, Toppings, & Condiments For Your Meal
This is where the magic comes in at McAlister’s Deli!
You can choose any combination of meat, cheese, condiments, and toppings depending on your carb allowance for the day.
Cheeses:
- American – 4g
- Cheddar – 2g
- Parmesan – 1g
- Pepper Jack – 0g
- Provolone – 0g
- Swiss – 0g
Condiments:
- Au Jus – 0g
- Buttermilk Ranch – 2g
- Caesar Dressing – 2g
- Chipotle Ranch – 4g
- Herb Mayo – <1
- Horseradish Dijon – 6g
- Mayo, Regular – <1
- Olive Oil – 0g
- Olive oil & Balsamic Vinaigrette – 6g
- Poblano Mayo – <1
- Spicy Brown Mustard – 3g
Sandwich Meats:
- Applewood Smoked Bacon – 0g
- Black Angus roast beef – 2g
- Black forest ham – 4g
- Corned beef – 2g
- Grilled Chicken Breast – 3g
- Pastrami – 2g
- Salami – 0g
- Smoked Turkey – 2g
Sandwich Toppings:
- Avocado – 1g
- Black olives – 0g
- Black pepper – <1g
- Caramelized Onions – 2g
- Crispy onion – 3g
- Cucumber – 1g
- Green bell peppers – 1g
- Green onions – 0g
- Jalapenos – <1g
- Romaine – 0g
- Salad mix – 1g
- Salt – 0g
- Sauerkraut – 0g
- Sliced cucumber – 1g
- Sliced red onions – 1g
- Sliced tomato – 2g
- Spinach – 0.5g
- Spring max – 0g
26. Sides
- Pickle spear – 0g
- Streamed broccoli – 3g
- Tomato and cucumber salad – 6g
Beverages
- Coffee – 0g
- Coffee, Decaffeinated – 0g
- Coke Zero – 0g
- Diet Coke – 0g
- Unsweet Tea – 0g
Keto Ordering Tips for McAlister’s Deli
1. Customize your order:
Many menu items at McAlister’s Deli can be customized to make them more keto-friendly.
For example, you can ask to hold the bread on a sandwich or swap it for a lettuce wrap or ask for extra meat or cheese to increase the fat content of your meal.
2. Make use of 0g and 1g carb items:
Out of the 40+ toppings, cheese, and add-ons, there are a handful of ingredients that you can add for 1g or less. For example, provolone cheese, au jus, salami, etc.
Since keto only allows 20-25g net carbs per day, these can be your savior on days when you’ve already maxed out your quota.
3. Order off the menu:
McAlister’s Deli has a wide variety of menu items, so don’t be afraid to ask for something that is not listed on the ‘official’ menu.
We are living in a day and age where every individual has their own dietary preferences, and restaurants are mostly happy to entertain these requests.
So go ahead and order that grilled chicken breast with some mayo without any side dish!
4. Take Advantage of the Online Nutrition Checker Tool:
In this article, we tried our best to provide you with all the possible keto meals available at McAlister’s Deli.
If you still want to experiment further, the restaurant has a pretty convenient ‘Nutrition Calculator’ on its official website.
You can add or remove any ingredient in a dish and monitor its exact nutritional value on the screen.