Cookout Coleslaw: Price, Calories & Homemade Taste

It might sound strange to write a whole guide about coleslaw, but this slaw isn’t just a side dish. It’s a topping, a tray essential, and at 100 calories and about $1.49, it’s the lightest thing on the Cook Out menu that actually tastes like something. This is the same homemade slaw that goes on Cookout Style burgers and the famous slaw dog. So is it worth ordering on its own? How does it compare to the fried sides? And what’s the smartest way to use it? Here’s the full story on it.

• Price & Calories
• What It Tastes Like (Honest Review)
• Slaw as a Topping: Cookout Style & Slaw Dog
• The Light Side Strategy
• Best Pairings
• FAQs

Cookout Coleslaw Price & Calories

It costs about $1.49, making it the cheapest side on the menu alongside the homemade chili. At 100 calories, it’s also the lightest side Cook Out sells, period. Nothing else on the side menu even comes close.

Put that in perspective: fries are 350 calories, hushpuppies are 300, onion rings are 130. Cookout coleslaw at 100 calories is less than a third of the fries. If you’re trying to keep a Cook Out run reasonable, swapping fries for slaw saves you 250 calories without giving up the feeling of a full meal. That’s a meaningful difference.

Prices vary slightly by location, but slaw is consistently the budget pick. It’s also one of the two side slots on the regular tray (~$7.69) and the Jr. Tray (~$6.49), where it costs you nothing extra to choose.

What It Tastes Like (Honest Review)

Here’s my honest take: it’s better than it has any right to be for fast food slaw. Most drive-thru coleslaw is an afterthought, watery, bland, clearly from a bag. This isn’t that.

The first thing you notice is the crunch. The cabbage is fresh and crisp, not soggy. The dressing is creamy with that classic sweet-tangy balance, more on the creamy Southern side than the vinegar side. It’s the kind of slaw that tastes homemade because, well, Cook Out calls it homemade, and it actually eats like it.

Is it the best coleslaw in North Carolina? No. Your grandmother’s recipe probably wins. But for a buck fifty at a drive-thru at midnight? It’s genuinely good, and it’s the rare fast food side that doesn’t make you feel worse after eating it. Cool, crunchy, refreshing. It does exactly what coleslaw is supposed to do. Simple, fresh, and easy to love. It’s the side I recommend most to first-timers.

One tip: eat it sooner rather than later. Like all slaw, it gets a little watery if it sits. If you’re doing drive-thru, it’s fine for the ride home. If you’re ordering delivery, it’s still good, just not at peak crunch.

Slaw as a Topping: Cookout Style & Slaw Dog

Here’s what makes it special: it’s not just a side. It’s a core building block of the Cook Out menu.

Order any burger Cookout Style (adds about $0.95-$0.99 and 130 calories) and you get homemade chili, coleslaw, mustard, and diced onion piled on top. The slaw is doing real work there. Its cool creaminess balances the warm chili, and the crunch contrasts with the soft burger. A Cookout Style Big Double without the slaw would be a lesser burger. The slaw makes it.

Then there’s the slaw dog (~$2.49, 310 calories), a Carolina institution. Grilled hot dog, cool creamy slaw on top. Hot and cold in one bite. If you’ve never had one, it sounds wrong and tastes right.

Here’s a move most people don’t know: you can ask for slaw on almost anything. Want slaw on your chicken sandwich? Ask. Want extra slaw on your Cookout Style burger? Ask. The crew is used to customization, and cookout coleslaw as an add-on topping is one of the best free-ish upgrades on the menu.

The Light Side Strategy

Let’s talk strategy, because this slaw is the key to building a smarter Cook Out tray.

The regular tray (~$7.69) comes with two sides. Most people pick fries plus something fried, and then wonder why they feel heavy. Try this instead: pick one fried side you love (hushpuppies, onion rings, whatever) and pair it with cookout coleslaw. You still get the crispy, indulgent thing, but the slaw adds freshness, crunch, and only 100 calories. The meal feels balanced instead of like a dare.

The math is compelling. Fries (350) + hushpuppies (300) = 650 calories of sides. Onion rings (130) + slaw (100) = 230 calories of sides. Same tray, same satisfaction level for most people, 420 fewer calories. That’s the difference between a reasonable dinner and a food coma.

My favorite balanced tray: BBQ char-grilled chicken entree (380 Cal) + hushpuppies + slaw + a large drink. You get smoke, crunch, creaminess, and freshness in one tray, and the whole thing stays remarkably reasonable.

Best Pairings

Cookout coleslaw plays well with almost everything, but it shines brightest next to rich, smoky, or spicy foods:

• With BBQ. The number one pairing. Vinegar-tangy Carolina pulled pork plus cool creamy slaw is a combination perfected over generations. Non-negotiable if you’re getting the BBQ plate.
• With spicy chicken. The Spicy Chicken (450 Cal) brings heat, and the slaw cools it down. Sweet relief in every bite.
• With hushpuppies. The classic tray duo. Warm crispy cornmeal meets cool crunchy slaw. Texture contrast at its finest.
• On the burger. Already covered, but worth repeating: Cookout Style exists because this slaw belongs on burgers.
• With a milkshake. Okay, not together in the same bite. But a light slaw side leaves you room for that milkshake you’ve been thinking about since you pulled into the parking lot.

Cookout Coleslaw FAQs

How much is cookout coleslaw?

About $1.49, tied with homemade chili as the cheapest side on the menu. It’s also included as a side option on the regular tray (~$7.69) and Jr. Tray (~$6.49). Prices vary slightly by location.

How many calories are in cookout coleslaw?

100 calories, making it the lightest side on the entire Cook Out menu. For comparison, fries are 350 and hushpuppies are 300.

Is cookout coleslaw really homemade?

Cook Out lists it as homemade coleslaw, and it eats like it: fresh crunchy cabbage, creamy sweet-tangy dressing, nothing like the watery bagged slaw at most fast food places.

What is Cookout Style on a burger?

Cookout Style adds homemade chili, coleslaw, mustard, and diced onion to any burger for about $0.95-$0.99 and 130 extra calories. The slaw is a key part of what makes it work.

Can I get extra cookout coleslaw on my order?

Yes. You can order it as a side, pick it as a tray side, or ask for it as a topping on burgers, dogs, and sandwiches. The crew handles customizations routinely.

Eat lighter without missing out. Start at the Cook Out menu guide homepage, find a location in Durham NC, Greensboro NC, or Nashville TN, and build your tray with the tray guide. Don’t miss the slaw dog or the BBQ plate, the two menu items where this slaw truly shines. Once you have tried cookout coleslaw, plain fast-food slaw will never satisfy you again.