This SF Healthy Food Guide walks you through the BEST spots in San Francisco for healthy meals during your trip in addition to some of our favorite spots to explore! This roundup includes a lot of acai, best spots for brunch, and savory options.
hi friends! I had an amazing trip to San Francisco for a week, and wanted to share a roundup of healthy eats & things to do in the city.
A little back story of the trip – I last minute booked a flight to SF when my sister in NYC called me on a Friday night announcing that she just received a job offer there. The timing could not have been more perfect as my boss was also heading out there the following week. I found really affordable flights through SKIPLAGGED – if you have never used this website before, it will change your life. I was seeing $800+ flights to SF from DC, and on Skiplagged I was able to book for ~$300.
SF Healthy Food Guide:
My sister and I are definitely health nuts, so I did a bunch of research before the trip on where to eat and what to do! Hope this helps when planning out your next trip to the city.
Breakfast/Brunch:
Bowl’d Acai
First stop was Bowl’d Acai! I’ve seen these massive smoothies all over my Instagram feed, and they definitely lived up to all of the hype. If you’re looking for a ‘gram worthy food shot, then this is your spot. I ordered the Original Gangster bowl which was blended acai, strawberry, and banana topped with homemade grain-free granola, strawberry chunks, banana coins, blueberries, coconut shavings, goji berries, & almond butter (swapped for the usual drizzled honey).
Paula ordered up the Green Goliath bowl which was blended acai, spinach, hemp protein, strawberry, & banana with the same toppings. One thing I really loved about this spot is that they make a point to not add sweeteners to the acai base which is definitely one of my biggest frustrations with “healthy” smoothie cafes that load them up with SO much sugar. They have a few trucks around the city so definitely check them out if you can!
Jane on Fillmore
Another spot we absolutely loved was Jane on Fillmore. Someone recommended this spot to us and SO happy we checked it out. It was the cutest little cafe, and service was reasonably quick considering how crowded it could get. The cafe is self-seating and when you wait in line leading up to ordering at the register. I always get a little order anxiety prior to hitting the register – anyone else relate?? Everything looked so delicious & I’m one of those people who loves to try a little bit of everything so zoning in on one menu item can be SO HARD for me!
I ultimately decided on the Savory Porridge Bowl & sooooo happy I did. It was unlike anything I have ever tried before which was part of the reason I decided on this. Although I do love to order the classic comfort foods, I like to branch out and order things I normally wouldn’t make at home when eating out. The Savory Porridge Bowl was a steel cut oats & quinoa base topped with marinated kale, kimchi, tamari almonds, seaweed, & a poached egg. Got this with a matcha latte on the side for the most perf breakfast combo.
Paula ordered the Warm Quinoa Bowl which I was excited about because that was the other menu item I really wanted to try! This was a mix of quinoa, roasted brussel sprouts, sweet potatoes, & kale. She also ordered scrambled eggs & an Americano on the side. If we ever go back I’m gonna have to try out the toasts as I was eyeing them at a few tables next to us – especially the Nutty Bird Bread!
Blue Bottle Coffee
Blue Bottle Coffee was another great breakfast spot that we loved. We went to the location on Mint Plaza because NOT all locations serve breakfast!! I was craving a classic and ordered the Avo Toast with Poached Egg (somewhat basic – sry not sry). Paula ordered the Fried Egg & Cauliflower Breakfast Plate. I ordered a green tea matcha on the side (not your typical matcha latte but I loved it) with a Chocolate Chip Tahini Cookie for dessert which was to dieeee for. Definitely inspired me to get creative with tahini in the kitchen!
Project Juice
Another acai spot I was SUPER excited to check out was Project Juice & it highly exceeded expectations. I ordered the Almond Butter Acai Bowl which was blended almond mylk, almond butter, unsweetened acai (always check your smoothie bars to make sure that they are not adding sugar)!, blueberry, & banana. This was topped off with coconut flakes, strawberries, hemp seeds, cacao nibs, cashews, & grain-free granola. I desperately wanted to try their nut butters but they sadly are not allowed on your carry-on and I was heading out soon! I will definitely have to return to try them out because they had some really cool flavor mixes!
Plow SF
Another spot on our brunch list was Plow SF, BUT there was >2 hr wait & we were WAY too hangry to eat here. Maybe one day we will a) get there early enough to not wait in a big line or b) have the stamina to wait through the ridiculous line outside. HOWEVER, i have heard some amazing things about this place & still on my bucket list to try! there has to be a line for a reason right??! Now I’ll just have to visit again to check this spot out!
Lunch/Dinner:
Souvla
We had to stop at Souvla our first night in the city as we heard nothing but amazing things. Everything was BOMB & highly exceeded our expectations.
Oren’s Hummus
Our first night we stopped at Oren’s Hummus which was a low-key, delish Mediterranean option for dinner! If you’re looking to get a shot “for the gram”, then this probs isn’t your spot…BUT the food was delish & we devoured every bite! We ordered the chicken skewers & beef kebab with sweet potato fries, carrots, falafel, & cauliflower florets on the side.
Taqueria el Buen Sabor
Another fun spot we checked out was Taqueria el Buen Sabor which was definitely a hole-in-the-wall find! Although this may not be the “healthiest” spot to check out, if you’re in the mood for some authentic MX food, then this is your spot! We got tacos and the infamous burritos and everything was super delish. In summary, this is a more fast-casual spot but we were so glad that we checked it out!
Radhaus & Delarosa at the Marina
Last but not least, head to Radhaus for some German Beer & a beautiful sunset view of the Marina. After a few drinks, you can walk over to Delarosa for dinner! This was an awesome Italian spot with some bomb honey burrata cheese & egg pizzas. In other words, it was a great mix of nice but not too fancy. This would be a fun place to get wine & pizza with some gals.
Things To Do:
Golden Gate Bridge
The most classic thing to do in SF is head over to Presidio to snap some pics of the Golden Gate Bridge. We then Ubered out there and then hiked about 5 miles from Presidio to Land’s End. The trails were fairly easy to follow, & the views were INCREDIBLE.
Farmer’s Market
Go to the Farmer’s Market at Ferry’s Plaza – there are a bunch of shops open to try out different foods with lots of samples – my fave 🙂
Painted Ladies
Check out the Painted Ladies for your iconic SF shot
Dolores Park
Walk around Dolores Park for a beautiful sunset view of the city.
Shopping
Do some boutique shopping – our favorite spot was Siren!
Make sure to check out other city guides:
- ATX Healthy Food Guide
- The Ultimate Arlington, VA Food Guide
- Utah Park City Food Guide – 10 Best Restaurants to Try
- 3 Day Guide to Denver – Girls Weekend
& that’s a wrap! I ended up taking a red-eye back home which I would like to avoid at all costs in the future – more on that later…. but hope you found this SF Food Guide helpful! Would love to hear any of your favorite SF eats or spots to see in the comments below!
xx,
