Build your PDQ order and review the nutrition.
PDQ, short for People Dedicated to Quality, is a fast-casual spot built around hand-breaded chicken tenders, sandwiches, salads and shakes. It is a focused menu, which makes it easy to navigate: the chicken is the protein anchor, and the main decisions are grilled versus breaded, what you dip it in, and what you order alongside.
This calculator lays the menu out in numbers so you can see how each choice lands. It is here to inform your order rather than decide it, and it is no substitute for personalized advice. What it makes clear is how the preparation, the sauces and the sides shape the total at a chicken-focused spot like this.
The biggest lever at PDQ is whether your chicken is grilled or hand-breaded. Grilled tenders and grilled chicken are lean and protein-forward, while the hand-breaded versions, which are the signature, carry the extra calories that come with breading and frying. Both have their place; choosing grilled is simply the lighter route when you want it.
The dipping sauces are part of the fun, and they are also an easy place for calories to slip in unnoticed. The creamy, sweet sauces carry more than the vinegar- or mustard-based ones, and it is easy to go through several with a tender order. Choosing one or two and dipping rather than drowning keeps them in check.
A salad with grilled chicken and the dressing on the side is one of the better-balanced things on the menu. The sandwiches are generous, and a grilled chicken sandwich sits lighter than a breaded one. As always, the dressing and any creamy toppings are the levers that move a salad up or down.
At a chicken spot, grilled versus breaded is the whole decision, and the dipping sauces are the quiet extra most people forget to count.
The fresh-cut fries are a classic side, and sharing an order rather than getting one each keeps them as a side. The shakes are thick and rich, essentially a dessert, and they are among the highest-calorie items on the menu. Treating a shake as the treat of the visit, with an unsweetened drink alongside the meal, is the balanced approach.
| Lighter choice | Cal | Heavier choice | Cal |
|---|---|---|---|
| Honey BBQ | 80 | Chocolate Shake | 1220 |
| Grilled Chicken Tenders, 2 ct | 90 | Honey Butter Chicken Sandwich | 660 |
| Buffalo Bleu | 90 | Oreo Shake | 610 |
Nutrition values are compiled from official PDQ published nutrition information and reputable public nutrition databases, then normalized to a consistent per-item format. Figures vary with build, size and customization, so use this calculator as a close guide and confirm in-store details when you need exact numbers. Reviewed by Jennifer Zoned, PhD, Nutrition Researcher.
A grilled chicken salad with the dressing on the side, or grilled tenders with a modest side, are among the lighter, protein-forward choices. Keep the dipping sauces to one or two and skip the shake, and you have a balanced meal. The calculator shows the totals.
Yes. The hand-breaded tenders are the signature, but the breading and frying add meaningful calories. Grilled tenders keep the lean protein without that extra, which is why they are the lighter route when you want one.
More than people expect. The creamy, sweet sauces carry the most, and it is easy to go through several with a tender order. Choosing one or two and dipping rather than drowning keeps them from quietly doubling the extras.
Values are compiled from official PDQ nutrition information and public databases. Actual figures vary with preparation and customization, so use the calculator as a close guide and confirm in-store details when you need exact numbers.
