How to Eat Keto at Panera Bread: 12 Low-Carb Meals to Treat Yourself To

July 17, 2021 at 10:00 AM·7 min read

You used to make a beeline to Panera Bread at lunchtime for the broccoli cheddar mac and cheese bread bowl. Now that you’re on the keto diet, your order will need some major adjustments. Certain produce items (like bean and corn salsa) and condiments (like barbecue sauce) pack a carb-loaded punch since they contain starches and sugars that translate to higher carbs. But the biggest issue will be the bread—whether in sandwich, bowl or crouton form—since it’s too high in carbs to keep you in ketosis. While the chain has a great nutrition calculator on its website, it doesn’t allow you to remove bread from sandwiches, so you may have to do a bit of guesswork to determine the net carbs of your adjusted meal. (Note: The nutrition info that follows each menu item below doesn’t account for any modifications.) Nevertheless, it’s totally possible to eat keto at Panera Bread with a few helpful tweaks. Here are 12 menu items to put on your to-devour list.

Breakfast

1. Chipotle Chicken, Scrambled Egg & Avocado Wrap

Nutrition information: 470 calories, 27g fat, 32g carbs, 29g protein, 4g sugar, 4g fiber

Make it keto: Remove the whole-grain wrap

This mix of smoked pulled chicken, scrambled egg, smoked Gouda, chipotle aioli, sweet Peppadew peppers, avocado and cilantro will help you kick the day off with energy and a full belly. You can even add bacon for extra protein and fat.

2. Greek Yogurt with Mixed Berries Parfait

Nutrition information: 240 calories, 8g fat, 27g carbs, 15g protein, 17g sugar, 2g fiber

Make it keto: Ask for the granola on the side and no honey

You may have thought the steel-cut oatmeal with strawberries and pecans was a better option for keto eaters, but the sugary-sweet cinnamon crunch topping ups the carbs considerably. (And it might taste a tad bland without it.) Greek yogurt topped with whole-grain oat maple butter pecan granola and fruit offers lean protein, nutrients and energy, plus probiotics. Asking for the carby granola on the side may help you moderate how much of it you actually eat, as opposed to mixing it all into the yogurt from the start. Add extra pecans for a boost in protein and healthy fat too.

Soups and Salads

3. Homestyle Chicken Noodle Soup

Nutrition information: 100 calories, 1g fat, 13g carbs, 9g protein, 4g sugar, 0g fiber

Make it keto: No modifications necessary

It doesn’t get leaner than this classic soup, made with tender white meat chicken, chicken bone broth, egg noodles, carrots, celery and herbs. Even with the pasta in the mix, this soup is keto-friendly. Just be sure to skip the French baguette side in favor of potato chips (which are lower in carbs than the apple option, BTW) or tomato basil cucumber salad so the carbs stay low.

4. Caesar Salad with Chicken

Nutrition information: 440 calories, 27g fat, 21g carbs, 32g protein, 3g sugar, 4g fiber

Make it keto: Remove the croutons

The classic combo of romaine lettuce, grated parmesan and creamy Caesar dressing is proof that simplicity can be delicious. Add chicken to the mix and it’s even more satiating. Even if you were to leave the black pepper focaccia croutons on the salad, it isn’t too carby that it’ll kick you out of ketosis (there are 17 net carbs when you subtract the fiber), as long as the rest of your meals that day are high in protein and fat and low in carbs. But feel free to ask for them on the side and nosh on a few of them if you’d like.

5. Ten Vegetable Soup

Nutrition information: 100 calories, 2g fat, 15g carbs, 5g protein, 6g sugar, 4g fiber

Make it keto: No modifications necessary

It’s savory, spicy and nutritious, thanks to a mélange of veggies including bell peppers, tomatoes, onions, spinach, poblano peppers and dried Aleppo chile. The corn, chickpeas, brown rice and red fife (a type of wheat) account for most of the carbs, but there are only 9 net carbs total when you also take their fiber content into account. Chickpeas also offer protein and make the soup more filling, so you won’t miss your usual hunk of bread for dipping.

6. Greek Salad

Nutrition information: 390 calories, 35g fat, 16g carbs, 9g protein, 6g sugar, 7g fiber

Make it keto: No modifications necessary

Kalamata olives, feta cheese, pepperoncini, citrus-herb Greek dressing—yup, gang’s all here. Luckily, you don’t need to make a single change to this salad for it to fit into your meal plan. However, you can ask for light red onions and tomatoes to shave off a few extra carbs if you’d like. Or, add grilled chicken to make it even more satisfying. The salad bowl is your oyster.

7. Asian Sesame Salad with Chicken

Nutrition information: 410 calories, 21g fat, 28g carbs, 30g protein, 7g sugar, 6g fiber

Make it keto: Remove the wonton strips

All it takes to put this zingy salad in keto territory is nixing the carby wonton strips, since the rest is romaine lettuce, almonds, grilled chicken, cilantro and Asian sesame vinaigrette. The sesame seeds can stay too since they’re low in carbs and high in fat, making them a great crunchy addition for keto dieters.