Healthy Fast Food Guide | Potbelly | Detailed

Overview

Potbelly has a fantastic selection of sandwiches and salads that we can choose from. The protein, carbohydrate, and fat content are well-balanced. However, some options are better than others in categories like sodium, cholesterol, and saturated fat.

This is one of those cases where the sandwiches may be better than the salads.

Recommendations

Option #1 — Tuna Salad Original

1. Tuna — omega-3 fatty acids that reduce inflammation and improves heart health
2. Lettuce — rich in antioxidants, prevents bone loss and improves heart health
3. Tomato — improves heart health, fights cancer, and improves skin health
4. Onions — lots of nutrients, antioxidants, and improves heart health
5. Peppers — high in antioxidants, maintain eye health and reduces the risk of chronic illnesses
6. Multigrain Bread — higher in fiber, vitamins & minerals, and manganese; whole wheat is better bread, but multigrain is better than white bread
7. Skip the mayo, since the fat from the tuna is sufficient
8. Skip the cheese because of the high sodium and fat content

Option #2 — T-K-Y Skinny

1. Turkey — very little fat, so lean protein source. The downside is that this is likely deli meat, so higher in sodium than regular turkey
2. Lettuce — rich in antioxidants, prevents bone loss and improves heart health
3. Tomato — improves heart health, fights cancer, and improves skin health
4. Multigrain Bread — higher in fiber, vitamins & minerals, and manganese; whole wheat is better bread, but multigrain is better than white bread
5. Skip the cheese to reduce saturated fat and sodium intake

Option #3 — Grilled Chicken & Cheddar Flat

1. Grilled Chicken — this chicken is grilled instead of fried, which means you’ll have less intake of bad fats, avoid losing nutrients in the cooking process, and reduce butter intake
2. Lettuce — rich in antioxidants, prevents bone loss, and improves heart health
3. Tomato — improves heart health, fights cancer, and improves skin health
4. Mayonnaise — mayo seems to get a bad reputation, however, if you request a quarter or half the portion they typically put, you will significantly reduce the calories, which are coming from good fats (monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats); in moderation, there’s nothing wrong with a mayonnaise
5. Flatbread — not much nutritional value, but will help keep you full
6. Skip the cheddar cheese due to the high fat and sodium content

Option #4 — Powerhouse Salad

1. Grilled Chicken — this chicken is grilled instead of fried, which means you’ll have less intake of bad fats, avoid losing nutrients in the cooking process, and reduce butter intake
2. Avocado — 20 different vitamins and minerals, improves heart health, lowers cholesterol and triglyceride levels
3. Hummus — regulates blood sugar, lowers bad cholesterol, and reduced risk of diabetes
4. Egg — good protein source, but with the yolk, has more cholesterol so calibrate your intake accordingly (i.e. avoid cholesterol in other meals in the day to keep cholesterol levels in control)
5. Cucumbers — anti-inflammatory, keeps you hydrated and helps skin
6. Tomato — improves heart health, fights cancer, and improves skin health
7. Spinach — improving blood glucose levels, lowers risk of cancer, improved bone health
8. Ask for Potbelly vinaigrette on the side so you control how much is used (if any)

While we could choose to include the Farmhouse Salad as an alternative, it’s only recommended if you remove the blue cheese and bacon. At that point, it’s essentially a powerhouse salad without as much of the veggies, which isn’t a great alternative so it has been excluded.

More Useful Tools

Quick Guide — for when you’re on the go and/or need to know what the suggestions are without all the detail

Detailed Notes — consolidated notes for each fast-food establishment