Low-Calorie, High-Protein Options at LongHorn Steakhouse

LongHorn Steakhouse is a dangerous place to make “healthy choices,” because the menu is built around steak, potatoes, bread, butter, fried appetizers, and sauces that behave like they were raised by wolves in a dairy cave. You walk in thinking, “I’ll just get protein,” and then suddenly there’s honey wheat bread, a loaded baked potato, Parmesan crust, shrimp with garlic butter, and a dessert called Chocolate Stampede, because apparently dessert needed to sound like livestock fleeing a natural disaster.

But here’s the twist: LongHorn is actually one of the easier chain restaurants for low-calorie, high-protein ordering. Why? Because steak exists. Grilled chicken exists. Salmon exists. Shrimp exists. This is not one of those restaurants where “high protein” means three chickpeas and a quinoa rumor hiding under a pile of tortilla strips.

The trick is not finding protein. The trick is stopping the side dishes from mugging your calorie budget in the parking lot.

LongHorn’s official nutrition page links to its Nutrition & Allergen Guide, and the guide says nutrition values may vary because menu items are hand-crafted and recipes, ingredients, and kitchen procedures can change. So use these numbers as the official baseline, not as sacred steak scripture handed down on a sizzling platter.

For this guide, “low-calorie” means roughly 650 calories or less, and “high-protein” means around 30 grams of protein or more. This is a practical target, not a federal steak statute.

Best Low-Calorie, High-Protein LongHorn Steakhouse Orders

The strongest LongHorn orders are the ones that keep the main protein simple and choose sides like a person who understands that fries are not a personality.

Renegade Sirloin, 6 oz: 320 calories and 36 grams of protein. This is one of the best lean steak choices at LongHorn. It is simple, efficient, and not wearing a melted cheese hat like it’s trying to distract you from a crime.

Renegade Sirloin, 8 oz: 390 calories and 51 grams of protein. This is probably the best steak order if you want more protein while still keeping calories very reasonable. Add broccoli and asparagus, and you’re still around 610 calories with about 63 grams of protein. That is shockingly responsible behavior for a steakhouse.

Flo’s Filet, 6 oz: 330 calories and 37 grams of protein. This gives you filet tenderness without immediately entering “I need to lie down and reconsider butter” territory.

Flo’s Filet, 9 oz: 450 calories and 56 grams of protein. Higher protein, still very manageable, and fancy enough to make you feel like you made an adult decision instead of just ordering meat with confidence.

Lemon Garlic Chicken, 9 oz: 330 calories and 53 grams of protein. This may be the best non-steak option on the menu. It is lean, high-protein, and mercifully not fried into a crunchy chicken mattress.

Lemon Garlic Chicken, 12 oz: 420 calories and 70 grams of protein. This is a protein cannon disguised as chicken. Add broccoli and asparagus, and you land around 640 calories with about 82 grams of protein, which is the kind of macro math that makes gym people start blinking rapidly.

Blackened Chicken, 9 oz: 420 calories and 52 grams of protein. This is another excellent chicken choice if you want flavor without requiring a breading excavation team.

LongHorn Salmon, 7 oz: 300 calories and 33 grams of protein. A strong seafood pick, especially if you pair it with vegetables instead of rice and butter sauce, because apparently seafood must constantly defend itself from sidekick sabotage.

LongHorn Salmon, 10 oz: 430 calories and 47 grams of protein. More calories, more protein, still very reasonable if you keep the sides clean. Salmon remains one of the better options for people who want protein and don’t want steak breathing heavily across the plate.

Redrock Grilled Shrimp, 8 count: 160 calories and 30 grams of protein before add-ons. This is extremely efficient, but watch the rice and garlic butter, because those two show up separately and immediately start acting like calorie consultants.

Redrock Grilled Shrimp, 12 count: 240 calories and 46 grams of protein before add-ons. This is one of the leanest high-protein seafood choices if you skip the garlic butter or keep it on the side like the little buttery liability it is.

7-Pepper Sirloin Salad: 490 calories and 45 grams of protein. This is one of the best salad orders at LongHorn because it actually contains enough protein to matter, rather than being a bowl of leaves pretending to have a career.

Grilled Chicken & Strawberry Salad with Vinaigrette: 530 calories and 43 grams of protein. This is a solid salad choice if you want protein, fruit, and greens without accidentally ordering a fried chicken cheese raft.

Seasoned Steakhouse Wings: 460 calories and 53 grams of protein before blue cheese or buffalo sauce. As an appetizer, this is surprisingly protein-efficient. As a “light starter before steak,” it is how dinner quietly becomes a meat-based group project.

Renegade Sirloin Is the Best Lean Steak Choice

The Renegade Sirloin is the main character for low-calorie, high-protein steak ordering at LongHorn. The 6 oz portion gives you 320 calories and 36 grams of protein, while the 8 oz portion gives you 390 calories and 51 grams of protein. That is the rare restaurant steak that does not immediately force your calorie tracker to file a missing-person report.

The best build is simple: Renegade Sirloin with Fresh Steamed Broccoli and Fresh Steamed Asparagus. Broccoli is 90 calories and 4 grams of protein, while asparagus is 130 calories and 8 grams of protein. Add both to the 6 oz Renegade and you’re around 540 calories and 48 grams of protein. Add both to the 8 oz Renegade and you’re around 610 calories and 63 grams of protein. Steakhouse dinner, but without letting potatoes and cheese hijack the evening like starchy little pirates.

This is the order for people who want steak, not a steak-adjacent casserole festival. It tastes like dinner. It behaves like a plan. A miracle, frankly.

Flo’s Filet Is Fancy and Still Macro-Friendly

If the Renegade Sirloin is the practical choice, Flo’s Filet is the slightly fancier one that still knows how to behave in public. The 6 oz filet is 330 calories and 37 grams of protein, while the 9 oz filet is 450 calories and 56 grams of protein. That is excellent for a steakhouse entrée, especially compared with ribeye options that show up carrying a suitcase full of fat grams and emotional confidence.

A 6 oz Flo’s Filet with broccoli and asparagus lands around 550 calories and 49 grams of protein. A 9 oz Flo’s Filet with broccoli lands around 540 calories and 60 grams of protein, while adding asparagus instead puts it around 580 calories and 64 grams of protein. That is a very clean steakhouse order, assuming you don’t immediately slap on Parmesan crust and garlic butter like a person trying to turn dinner into a dairy monument.

The filet is a great choice when you want something tender and high-protein without eating a ribeye the size of a winter tire.

Lemon Garlic Chicken Is the Protein Monster Nobody Talks About

The Lemon Garlic Chicken is quietly one of the best low-calorie, high-protein options at LongHorn. The 9 oz version has 330 calories and 53 grams of protein, and the 12 oz version has 420 calories and 70 grams of protein. That is not chicken. That is a protein delivery system with grill marks.

The 9 oz Lemon Garlic Chicken with broccoli and asparagus comes to about 550 calories and 65 grams of protein. The 12 oz version with the same sides lands around 640 calories and 82 grams of protein. Eighty-two grams of protein at a steakhouse while still staying near 650 calories is ridiculous. That’s not dinner. That’s a protein seminar with silverware.

This is probably the best overall order for someone who cares more about protein than having steak. Is chicken less exciting than steak? Yes. Obviously. Chicken has the natural charisma of a beige office chair. But this chicken is doing the job so well it deserves a tiny LinkedIn endorsement.

Blackened Chicken Is Another Strong High-Protein Pick

The Blackened Chicken, 9 oz comes in at 420 calories and 52 grams of protein, making it another excellent low-calorie, high-protein choice. It has more flavor than plain grilled chicken and still keeps the meal from turning into fried poultry litigation.

Pair it with broccoli and asparagus, and you’re around 640 calories and 64 grams of protein. That is a full meal. A real meal. A meal that does not need fries leaning against it like two greasy bodyguards.

The main warning is sodium. LongHorn lists the 9 oz Blackened Chicken at 1,300 milligrams of sodium before sides, so if you’re watching salt intake, this is not exactly a gentle breeze through a cucumber field.

LongHorn Salmon Is a Clean Seafood Move

The LongHorn Salmon, 7 oz is 300 calories and 33 grams of protein, while the 10 oz portion is 430 calories and 47 grams of protein. Both are solid options if you want seafood that doesn’t arrive deep-fried, butter-bathed, or hiding under a cheese blanket like it’s ashamed of itself.

The 7 oz salmon with broccoli and asparagus comes to about 520 calories and 45 grams of protein. The 10 oz salmon with broccoli and asparagus lands right around 650 calories and 59 grams of protein. That is an excellent meal build, especially if you avoid rice and heavy sauces.

LongHorn lists rice separately at 230 calories and 3 grams of protein, which is fine if you want carbs, but not exactly a protein powerhouse. Rice is not the villain. It is just very committed to showing up in large numbers and making the plate heavier.

Redrock Grilled Shrimp Is Great If You Control the Extras

The Redrock Grilled Shrimp is wildly efficient by itself. The 8-count serving is 160 calories and 30 grams of protein, and the 12-count serving is 240 calories and 46 grams of protein. That is excellent. Shrimp understood the assignment and arrived early with a pencil.

The problem is what comes next. LongHorn lists rice at 230 calories and garlic butter at 230 calories as separate add-ons with the shrimp. So the shrimp itself is lean, but the full situation can change quickly if rice and butter barge in like two wedding crashers with cholesterol-themed business cards.

The lean order is Redrock Grilled Shrimp with broccoli and asparagus, and ask for garlic butter on the side or skip it. The 12-count shrimp with broccoli and asparagus is about 460 calories and 58 grams of protein before any butter nonsense. That is seafood behaving beautifully. Do not punish it by drowning it in a golden puddle.

Best LongHorn Salads for Low Calories and High Protein

The best salad is the 7-Pepper Sirloin Salad, which has 490 calories and 45 grams of protein. This is what salads should be: vegetables plus enough protein to make the meal count. Not a bowl of croutons, dressing, cheese, and one leaf having a nervous breakdown.

The Grilled Chicken & Strawberry Salad with Vinaigrette is also strong at 530 calories and 43 grams of protein. It has fruit, greens, chicken, and enough protein to keep you from wandering into the bread basket like a raccoon with a reservation.

The Farm Fresh Field Greens with Salmon is another good pick at 530 calories and 43 grams of protein. It’s slightly more seafood-forward and still stays in a reasonable calorie range.

The LongHorn Caesar Salad with Chicken is 670 calories and 46 grams of protein, so it barely misses the 650-calorie line. It is still not terrible, but Caesar dressing has once again arrived wearing a creamy trench coat and suspiciously large pockets.

Grill Master Combos Can Be Shockingly Useful

Some of the Grill Master Combos, where available, are excellent high-protein options if you control the sides. The Renegade Sirloin 6 oz with Redrock Grilled Shrimp is listed at 480 calories and 66 grams of protein before rice and garlic butter. Add broccoli, and you’re around 570 calories and 70 grams of protein. Add asparagus instead, and you’re around 610 calories and 74 grams of protein. That is absurdly good for a steakhouse combo.

The Flo’s Filet 6 oz with Lobster Tail is 420 calories and 51 grams of protein before butter sauce. Add broccoli and asparagus, and you’re around 640 calories and 63 grams of protein. The butter sauce adds 210 calories, because butter sauce is never here to make friends with your deficit.

The 9 oz BBQ Chicken with 8-count Redrock Grilled Shrimp is listed at 520 calories and 81 grams of protein, though it is also higher in sodium and sugar than the simpler chicken or steak options. Still, protein-wise, this thing is basically wearing a construction helmet and operating heavy machinery.

Best Sides at LongHorn for Low Calories and Protein

The best low-calorie sides are Fresh Steamed Broccoli and Fresh Steamed Asparagus. Broccoli is 90 calories and 4 grams of protein, while asparagus is 130 calories and 8 grams of protein. Asparagus being 8 grams of protein is honestly doing more than expected. Good for asparagus. It finally stopped just being expensive grass.

Fire-Grilled Corn on the Cob is 200 calories and 7 grams of protein, which is reasonable if you want something more satisfying than vegetables that taste like responsibility. Plain Sweet Potato is 240 calories and 5 grams of protein, and Plain Idaho Baked Potato is 290 calories and 8 grams of protein. These can fit, but they are carb sides first, protein sides second. Do not ask a potato to do steak’s job. It has enough going on.

The sides to watch are the obvious troublemakers. Seasoned French Fries are 500 calories and 6 grams of protein, which is basically a potato invoice with salt. Steakhouse Mac & Cheese is 610 calories and 26 grams of protein, which sounds protein-ish until you remember it is a side dish with the calorie count of an entrée and the emotional stability of melted cheese.

The honey wheat bread is also not invisible. A full loaf is 480 calories and 16 grams of protein, and adding butter is another 120 calories. Bread is wonderful. Bread is also very good at pretending it was “just a little piece” while quietly becoming half a meal.

Sauces, Dressings, and Toppings: The Tiny Calorie Goblins

Dressings and sauces are where people lose the plot. LongHorn lists Ranch at 230 calories for 1.5 oz and 460 calories for 3 oz, Honey Mustard at 240 calories for 1.5 oz and 480 calories for 3 oz, and White Balsamic Vinaigrette at 200 calories for 1.5 oz and 390 calories for 3 oz. That is not dressing. That is a side quest with oil.

The lighter dressing move is Raspberry Vinaigrette, listed at 60 calories for 1.5 oz and 120 calories for 3 oz. Still calories, but much less of a creamy ambush than ranch or honey mustard.

Steak toppings are also dangerous. The Parmesan Cheese Crust adds 390 calories and 17 grams of protein, which sounds tempting because protein is involved, but it also adds 30 grams of fat. Parmesan crust is delicious. It is also a cheese roof. You do not need to put a cheese roof on every protein like your sirloin is trying to survive winter.

Grilled mushrooms are 150 calories and 6 grams of protein, which is manageable, while grilled shrimp adds 80 calories and 15 grams of protein before rice or garlic butter. That shrimp add-on is a smart move. The garlic butter is where the shrimp starts hanging out with bad influences.

What to Avoid at LongHorn When Calories Matter

The Texas Tonion is 1,180 calories, and the dip adds another 500 calories. That means the onion plus dip can hit 1,680 calories, which is a bold thing to call an appetizer. That is not a starter. That is a fried agricultural emergency.

The Texas Brisket Nachos, where available, are 2,040 calories and 64 grams of protein. Yes, 64 grams of protein sounds impressive, but at 2,040 calories, that is not a high-protein strategy. That is a plate of nachos that somehow became a zoning issue.

The Wild West Shrimp is 970 calories and 39 grams of protein, before adding ranch. Shrimp is innocent until fried and surrounded by dipping sauce, at which point it becomes a tiny seafood criminal wearing breading.

The Outlaw Ribeye, 20 oz is 1,250 calories and 94 grams of protein, while The LongHorn, 22 oz is 1,280 calories and 150 grams of protein. These are obviously high-protein, but they are not low-calorie. Calling them low-calorie because they have protein is like calling a monster truck fuel-efficient because it has cupholders.

The Chocolate Stampede is 2,460 calories. That dessert does not stampede. It invades. It occupies territory. It establishes local government.

Drinks: Don’t Add Liquid Calories to Your Steakhouse Math

The easiest drink choices are water, coffee, unsweetened tea, Diet Coke, or Coke Zero Sugar, all listed at 0 calories. This is boring advice, but boring advice is often what keeps dinner from turning into a nutritional tire fire.

Sweet tea is 130 calories, Coke is 140 calories, Sprite is 140 calories, Strawberry Lemonade is 200 calories, and Raspberry Lemonade is 170 calories. None of these are the end of civilization, but if you’re already managing steak, sides, sauces, and bread, maybe don’t invite sugar water to sit down and start ordering appetizers.

Alcohol is another easy calorie creep. The Perfect LongPour Margarita is 410 calories, Mango LongPour is 630 calories, and regular beer or cocktails vary widely. Delicious? Sure. But if your drink has the calorie count of a side dish and no protein, it is not helping the mission. It is just wearing a lime wedge and laughing at you.

Easy Low-Calorie, High-Protein LongHorn Meal Ideas

Renegade Sirloin 6 oz + broccoli + asparagus: about 540 calories and 48 grams of protein. This is the clean steakhouse order. Not flashy. Not chaotic. Just steak and vegetables behaving like they were raised properly.

Renegade Sirloin 8 oz + broccoli + asparagus: about 610 calories and 63 grams of protein. Better if you want a bigger steak and more protein while still keeping the meal under control.

Lemon Garlic Chicken 9 oz + broccoli + asparagus: about 550 calories and 65 grams of protein. This might be the most efficient full meal on the menu. Chicken wins. Somewhere, a ribeye is furious.

Lemon Garlic Chicken 12 oz + broccoli + asparagus: about 640 calories and 82 grams of protein. This is the order for people who want high protein so badly they can hear dumbbells whispering.

LongHorn Salmon 7 oz + broccoli + asparagus: about 520 calories and 45 grams of protein. Lean, balanced, and much less dramatic than a loaded potato trying to become your whole personality.

Redrock Grilled Shrimp 12 count + broccoli + asparagus, no rice or garlic butter: about 460 calories and 58 grams of protein. Shockingly lean, provided the garlic butter stays in its little ramekin prison.

Flo’s Filet 9 oz + broccoli: about 540 calories and 60 grams of protein. Fancy, lean, and not buried under a cheese landslide. A rare steakhouse hat trick.

7-Pepper Sirloin Salad:490 calories and 45 grams of protein. The easiest one-order salad option if you don’t want to do steak-and-side arithmetic in public.

How to Order Low-Calorie, High-Protein at LongHorn Steakhouse

Start with a lean protein: Renegade Sirloin, Flo’s Filet, Lemon Garlic Chicken, Blackened Chicken, LongHorn Salmon, or Redrock Grilled Shrimp. Then choose broccoli, asparagus, corn, or a plain potato if you have room. Keep sauces and dressings on the side. Skip fries unless you specifically planned for them. Do not let Parmesan crust happen to you like weather.

The easiest steak order is 8 oz Renegade Sirloin with broccoli and asparagus. The easiest chicken order is 9 oz or 12 oz Lemon Garlic Chicken with broccoli and asparagus. The easiest seafood order is LongHorn Salmon with vegetables or Redrock Grilled Shrimp without rice and garlic butter. The easiest salad order is the 7-Pepper Sirloin Salad.

LongHorn can absolutely work for a low-calorie, high-protein meal. You just have to remember the hierarchy: steak is useful, chicken is suspiciously efficient, salmon is calm and competent, shrimp is great until butter shows up, asparagus is boring but loyal, fries are an ambush, mac and cheese is a side dish pretending to be a mortgage, and the Texas Tonion is a fried onion-shaped warning label.