40g+ Protein Meals Under 500 Calories at Restaurants

Name: HealthyEatsNearMe
Address: US
Price range: $$

The top match is Charred Chicken at Butcher & the Boar — 56g protein and 300 calories (Estimate). Next are Pacific Cod at Jake's Famous Crawfish (50g) and Steamed Fish with Thai Herbs at Fish Cheeks (52g).

Updated October 2026

The hardest macro combination at restaurants: 40g+ protein in under 500 calories. Most chain bowls clear 700+ calories before you've added a side, and most "lean" salads come in under 30g protein. This page ranks the meals in our database that hit both targets, up to two per restaurant, each one labeled as restaurant-published or menu-estimated data.

40g+ Protein Under 500 Calories: Full Ranking

25 meals ranked by protein per calorie, highest first.
Rank	Dish	Restaurant	Calories	Protein	Carbs	Fat	Protein / 100 cal	Source
1	Charred Chicken	Butcher & the Boar	300	56 g	2.0 g	7.0 g	18.7 g	Estimate
2	Pacific Cod	Jake's Famous Crawfish	310	50 g	2.0 g	10 g	16.1 g	Estimate
3	Steamed Fish with Thai Herbs	Fish Cheeks	330	52 g	6.0 g	10 g	15.8 g	Estimate
4	Grilled Chicken Breast Platter	Carrot Express	375	53 g	3.0 g	16 g	14.1 g	Published by Carrot Express
5	Grilled Salmon & Swai Combo	California Fish Grill	330	46 g	4.0 g	14 g	13.9 g	Published by California Fish Grill
6	Cilantro-Lime Marinated Chicken Skewers	Kid Cashew Wood Fire Grill	320	44 g	4.0 g	14 g	13.8 g	Estimate
7	Grilled Atlantic Salmon	California Fish Grill	300	41 g	5.0 g	14 g	13.7 g	Published by California Fish Grill
8	Beef Tenderloin Toro	Cafe Ba-Ba-Reeba!	325	44 g	1.0 g	16 g	13.5 g	Estimate
9	Blackened Mahi Mahi	Butcher & the Boar	372	48 g	6.0 g	15 g	12.9 g	Estimate
10	Mediterranean Sea Bass (Grilled)	Wood Ranch BBQ & Grill	430	55 g	9.0 g	20 g	12.8 g	Published by Wood Ranch BBQ & Grill
11	Greek Rotisserie Half Chicken	Ilios Crafted Greek	380	48 g	4.0 g	18 g	12.6 g	Estimate
12	Chicken Souvla Plate	Ilios Crafted Greek	350	44 g	6.0 g	16 g	12.6 g	Estimate
13	Mediterranean Sea Bass (Blackened)	Wood Ranch BBQ & Grill	440	55 g	10 g	20 g	12.5 g	Published by Wood Ranch BBQ & Grill
14	Double Chicken Street Corn Pollo Fit Bowl	El Pollo Loco	440	54 g	18 g	19 g	12.3 g	Published by El Pollo Loco
15	Pesto Chicken Breast Platter	Carrot Express	455	54 g	4.0 g	24 g	11.9 g	Published by Carrot Express
16	Alaskan Halibut	Jake's Famous Crawfish	390	46 g	1.0 g	22 g	11.8 g	Estimate
17	Double Chicken Avocado Pollo Fit Bowl	El Pollo Loco	500	58 g	14 g	25 g	11.6 g	Published by El Pollo Loco
18	Wood-Fired Chicken Breast	Timber Wood Fire Bistro	380	44 g	18 g	12 g	11.6 g	Estimate
19	Flat Cut Chicken Kabob Plate	Luna Grill	450	51 g	24 g	17 g	11.3 g	Published by Luna Grill
20	Chicken Kabob Plate	Luna Grill	430	48 g	24 g	16 g	11.2 g	Published by Luna Grill
21	Thai Coconut Salad	MODERN MARKET EATERY	358	40 g	27 g	9.0 g	11.2 g	Published by MODERN MARKET EATERY
22	Florida Black Grouper - Horseradish Crusted	Chops Lobster Bar	380	42 g	12 g	18 g	11.1 g	Estimate
23	Hanger Steak	Cafe Ba-Ba-Reeba!	429	47 g	4.0 g	24 g	11.0 g	Estimate
24	Rotisserie Chicken with Tzatziki	Kid Cashew Wood Fire Grill	420	46 g	8.0 g	20 g	11.0 g	Estimate
25	Pan-Seared Tuna	Northstar Cafe	495	54 g	14 g	27 g	10.9 g	Estimate

Includes single-serving restaurant meals of at least 300 calories whose stated calories match their protein, carb and fat grams within 25%. Sides, drinks, add-ons, kids’ meals and family-size or multi-serving items are excluded. The table lists 25 meals from 15 brands, at most 2 per brand, each labeled by source.

Why this filter combination matters

A 40g-protein-under-500-calorie meal has a protein-to-calorie ratio above 0.08 — the threshold for "macro-efficient" eating. Hitting this once per meal puts you on track for 120-150g protein/day in under 1500 calories from meals alone, leaving headroom for snacks and shakes.

Frequently asked questions

What's the #1 result for "40g+ Protein Under 500 Calories" right now?

The top match is Charred Chicken at Butcher & the Boar — 56g protein and 300 calories (Estimate). See the full ranked table above for the rest.

Which restaurants are on this list?

Butcher & the Boar (Charred Chicken, 56g protein), Jake's Famous Crawfish (Pacific Cod, 50g protein), Fish Cheeks (Steamed Fish with Thai Herbs, 52g protein), Carrot Express (Grilled Chicken Breast Platter, 53g protein), California Fish Grill (Grilled Salmon & Swai Combo, 46g protein) and Kid Cashew Wood Fire Grill (Cilantro-Lime Marinated Chicken Skewers, 44g protein), plus 9 more brands in the table. Each restaurant's best-ranked dish is shown, in table order.

Which meal on this list has the most protein?

Double Chicken Avocado Pollo Fit Bowl at El Pollo Loco: 58g protein in 500 calories, 11.6g protein per 100 calories (Published by El Pollo Loco).