The Best Vegan and Vegan-friendly Restaurants in SF this Spring

Updated 07/2-18: San Francisco may be just a bridge away from gorgeous organic farms, yet healthy vegan fare is not nearly as easy to find as it should be. In researching the new, 2nd edition San Francisco VitalGuide, we've eaten through the city's best vegan sushi, egg-free frittatas and every plant-based bite in between. The following are our picks for must-eat vegan and gluten-free friendly breakfasts, lunches and dinners in San Francisco pulled right from the first edition of the new SF guide.

The Plant
3352 Steiner St; Pier 3 The Embarcadero #108, 101 California St
$$$
Om
Try the basil pesto tofu scramble, Sambazon bowl (acai berries blended frozen mango and strawberries, topped with banana and granola), or any of their smoothies, juices and great coffees. The Embarcadero location is on the water with bay views. The Marina location is right off of Chestnut Street, the area's main shopping thoroughfare.

Nourish
189 6th Ave
$$
Vg
Bright, sweet and just off the beaten path enough to be truly locals-only, Nourish Café is a perfect healthy brunch hideaway. The coconut flour and quinoa waffles taste a million times more decadent than they are, and the banh mi salad will fill you up for a day’s worth of urban adventures.

Out the Door
2232 Bush St
$$
Om
Chef Charles Phan's more relaxed spin on his popular restaurant Slanted Door's is in an off-the-beaten-path location in the Fillmore neighborhood. The menu offers plenty of yuba-filled noodle dishes and veggie sides. What OTD is missing in waterfront views it makes up for in its feel like a local vibe.

Bouli Bar
1 Ferry Building
$$
Om
No tofu or tempeh here, but the delicious seasonal vegetables and perfect Mediterranean platter make for a satisfying light lunch. Bouli's hidden location inside the Ferry Building, flattering lighting, and lovely wine list make it a go-todaytime date spot.

Greens
Fort Mason, A
$$$
Vg
For special occasion lunches with a view, book a table at this first wave vegan restaurant in Fort Mason. Dishes such as lentil, tamarind and coconut milk soup are infused with ethnic flavors. Greens has prime real estate for watching the sun set over the Golden Gate Bridge.

Café St Jorge
3438 Mission St
$
Vg
At the edge of the Mission and Bernal Heights, Cafe St Jorge is an adorable, Brooklyn-y hipster haunt for recharging over pastries, Stumptown coffee, and a perfectly sized quinoa salads. Plus, there's free wifi.

Shizen
370 14th St
$$
Vg
Just order all the rolls w(ith a side of their famous ramen). If you must choose, the spicy tofuna is a good, simple start to a meal at the Mission's prettiest izakaya spot.

Gracias Madre
2211 Mission
$$
Vg
The original Gracias Madre has fewer whispy celebs and oversized shades than the LA location, but the lack of glitz is made up for with a prime Mission location. Don't miss the pumpkin and cashew cheese quesadillas and avocado ceviche.

Burma Love
211 Valencia St
$$
Om
The tea salad is the star at Burma Superstar, but a number of veg curry entrees are available at this local favorite, no-reservations Burmese eatery. Be prepared to wait outside, or check out sister restaurant Burma Love in the Mission for potentially less of a wait and newer digs.

Citizen Fox
2293 Mission
$$
Vg

Dec, 2017 update: Citizen Fox is now closed. The Mission’s newest  pub is the spot for hearty kale salads and chicken fried tempeh. Add protein to any of the salads for a filling meal of greens, or dig into entrees like the chicken fried tempeh with horseradish mashed potatoes for a plant-based spin on traditional pub fare.

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For more of the best vegan-friendly spotsSF, be sure to grab our San Francisco VitalGuide, 2nd edition: 

All the healthy bites plus everything else vegan-friendly (but not crunchy) in the Bay.

Oh, hi! Share your deets and we'll keep you posted on the healthy, veg-friendly news you need to know in SF + LA! 

Neighborhood Guide to Inner Richmond, according to the ladies of Nourish Cafe

Some of San Francisco's most charming indie destinations (The Tidy Shoppe,  Burma Superstar, Park Life, Green Apple Books) are cropping up in the Inner Richmond neighborhood. Seemingly a little further flung if you're used to getting your indie fix in the always buzzy Mission or grittier Tenderloin, it's really just four miles from the heart of the Mission. Not all that far outside of rush hour-hours!

Nourish Cafe is the Inner Richmond's cutest, most vibrant healthy destination for weekday lunch and weekend brunch. One of its two co-owners, Sarah Bacon, also operates the Inner Richmond neighborhood's go-to blog, Richmond District Blog. 

Sarah and co-owner/chef Brighton Miller shared their favorite activities in and around the Inner Richmond, greater SF and a few healthy tips for hitting the road.

How did Nourish come to be?

Brighton: I’d  done the Holistic Nutrition and Culinary Arts program at Bauman college in Berkeley and was traveling to LA and NY exploring all of the healthy, raw and vegan options out there. I realized we should have it here in SF! A lot of people think that SF is super hippy dippy and full of healthy options but there aren’t as many as you might think. In the Richmond area, before we opened Nourish, you really had to drive all the way into the Marina for a decent salad.  

Sarah: I agree. I’m also a native San Franciscan and operate a blog on the Richmond area. I was eager to open something in the neighborhood that is good for the community, so we kept our eyes open and we were lucky enough to find a space about six blocks from where we both live.

Who are your favorite local producers - juice, desserts, superfoods?

Brighton: We make a lot in-house, but I also love curating great products from local producers. For instance, we get our almond milk from a great local company called Three Trees. We currently make our own cashew cheese, but we are going to be switching to the wonderful Kite Hill. I try to find products that are clean and healthy, and that I eat myself.

We have a local sprout provider called Grateful Greens based in Los Gatos who provides all of our sprouts. We're also sourcing a sprouted drink from Living Apothecary, and we get our hummus from Love & Hummus. We source our bread and sauerkraut from a couple of Marin producers Josey Baker Bread and Wild West Ferments. We a great, simple coffee that we source from these women in Berkeley who operate a roastery called Ruby Roast. We wanted to find something so simple and amazing that we wouldn’t need to do any labor intensive coffee drinks or espressos.

You have the coolest set up in the Richmond. What are your favorite healthy haunts in the area?

S: The Richmond is an amazing neighborhood for recreation, you can walk a few blocks and find ‘real’ outdoors. I'm a block away from Presidio and four from Golden Gate Park. Both areas are great for urban hiking or working out. As far as healthy haunts go, we've only been open a year and so far it's still just us!

B: We definitely partake in some of the local foot massage places. I feel like our neighborhood from Geary from Clement street has lots of these. They’re especially great after working on our feet all day, every day. U2 Beauty Health Spa is the one we go to, you'll know it by the big foot sign outside! There are also a few Thai massage and Chinese medicine places on Clement that bring people from all over the city, like acupuncturist Johnson You. I highly recommend him. We are outdoors people, so while we do have the JCC gym, the neighborhood lends itself to running outdoors. Baker Beach and the sand ladder over there are both perfect for a sunny weekend.

S: Land's End is one of my favorite spots to run! Nourish is so close to the Presidio and De Young, it's really common for people to come and grab lunch and go on a hike or head to the museum.

Do you have any favorite fitness studios in your hood?

S: I actually put on a 5k run called Jog in the Fog, this year will be our fourth year. It starts in Mt. Lake Park and goes all the way out to Lands End. Other than that, I love Batteries to Bluffs, Baker Beach and the sand ladders there which are a great workout. Lands End is always challenging!

What are your favorite restaurants to visit when you're not at Nourish?

S: We do seek out other plant-based places like The Plant, and sometimes we cross the bridge to Marin to go to The Plant over there. I love salads at Blue Barn. Cha-Ya on Mission makes some great vegan sushi. We go to Angelina's in the neighborhood for breakfast when we can and check out new places as they open.

B: I love Cha-Ya, their food is so clean and beautiful. Gracias Madre is wonderful, too, we eat there regularly. Or we Postmates it if we can’t get to the Mission.

What's your favorite places for a healthy drink?

B: I'm addicted to our coffee, but when I can escape the city I like to go to Shed in Healdsburg for their fermentation bar. You can get kombuchas or shrub, and because you can’t get it in the city it’s such a treat.

What is your favorite food city? Favorite restaurant to visit anywhere?

B: I love Moon Juice, I think Amanda Bacon's products are amazing. When I'm in LA I go to Plant Food and Wine, Matthew Kenney's new place. Cafe Gratitude in Venice is wonderful. There is a vegan cheese shop called Vromage just off of Sunset, which has fabulous cheese. The Gracias Madre in Los Angeles is also really wonderful, and even this old school-seeming Italian restaurant called Craig’s has a vegan meat bolognese sauce. People are really into 'what’s next' in LA, which makes it really fun to eat down there.

What do you pack to eat when you're traveling?

B: I'm always looking for a clean acai bowl, something light that will give me energy but not weigh me down. As soon as I’m off the plane, I like to hydrate with a green juice. SFO is a great airport for healthy options!

Hotel dining, yes or no?

B: Where I stay in LA, every place has a house green juice. I was just at Four Seasons and they had a wonderful grain bowl and they offer almond milk as a substitute. In the past I would have said no, but I think that hotels are starting to cater to healthier people.

Any particular habits or tips for eating healthfully on the road?

B: I have the advantage of most people and I work at Nourish and I can grab one of our protein balls or granola bars and stick it in my purse. If I'm running across the city I'll grab a chia pudding or smoothie. We went to Mendocino last weekend and we grabbed a couple of chia puddings and granola bar so we didn't have to stop, other than at Shed of course! I like using ours because I'm a real freak about ingredients. At Nourish I know that everything I leave with is going to be clean.

Have you visited Nourish or disocovered any other healthy finds around the Inner Richmond? Share in the comments!