San Francisco's Best Vegan Restaurants - Updated Fall, 2017

@GreensRestaurant

Healthy vegan restaurants are not nearly as easy to find in San Francisco as one might think. And easy vegan brunch in SF? Forget about it! Living the SF VitalGuide every day means wading through paleo lunch spots and surprise shutterings (RIP Seed + Salt) to stay on top of the yummiest vegan sushi, biggest acai bowls and most decadent vegan bbq. The following are our fall 2017 picks for must-eat vegan and vegan-friendly breakfasts, lunches and dinners in San Francisco. Let us know what you think!

@theplantcafeorganic

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 and 1030 Hyde St
$$
Vg
Bright, sweet and with recently added Nob Hill digs, 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 (with 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. It's impossible to order 'wrong' from the last page's specialty rolls.

@GraciasMadreSF

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 Love, but a number of curry and noodle entrees are available at this local favorite, no-reservations Burmese eatery. Wait it out at the eatery's busy bar, where drinks are made with local spirits and coconut water right from the nut.

For a full list of our up-to-date vegan favorites in the Bay Area, get your San Francisco VitalGuide here. 

Parsley Health's $1800 Functional Medicine Membership is SO Worth it!

Parsley Health celebrates its first year of functional medicine in the Bay Area with an educational fete.

Parsley Health SF, the only functional medicine clinic whose offices are located within WeWork, is turning one on December 5. If you're in the Bay Area, everyone's invited to pop by that day to listen to founder Dr. Robin Berzin talk microbiomes (gut bacteria) and biohacking (DIY 'hacks' to optimize your health) while they sip on a bulletproof matcha latte. But what is Parsley? When I heard that the super-buzzy New York-based organization, a pioneering mind-body medical practice, had quietly opened a San Francisco outpost soon after its LA location, I signed right up for a full new-patient intake. As a person who works in the wellness industry, I regularly meditate, run and spend more time than normal in Bay Area boutique-fitness studios. But I haven't had an old-fashioned check up since SoulCycle hit the West Coast (ahem, 2013).

Ahead of my visit, I filled out a mountain of new patient paperwork on personal and family health, using a digital-patient portal. During our hourlong-plus visit, Dr. Tiffany Lester reviewed my medical history (and my family's) in detail, not leaving any mind-body stone unturned, before she performed a basic physical exam. After my visit, she recommended some baseline testing (blood panels, cortisol screening) to get a data-based overview of my health.

Parsley acts as a primary-care office, and you can talk to your doctor in person or online regarding everything from testing questions to prescription refills. On average, traditional doctors' offices write a prescription for 70 percent of visits, while Parsley's doctors only write an Rx 10 percent of the time. Their goal is to treat patients holistically for total mind-body health through regular doctor's visits, dietary recommendations, vitamin supplementation and a robust health-coaching system. Rather than writing prescriptions, Parsley physicians might write a recommendation for a meditation class or acupuncturist, therapist or fitness classes.

This holistic approach to health is available exclusively to Parsley members who fork out $1600 to $1800 per year for membership. Included is an initial 75-minute visit with a doctor like the one I had, followed by biomarker testing that could include in-home tests and blood work to asses a baseline for health, and then a second 60-minute doctor visit and three additional 30-minute visits to assess progress. In practice that lengthy first session felt like a huge departure from my previous annual check-ups. The average traditional doctor spends around 15 minutes with patients, while the average Parsley visit is 50 minutes - they have time to dig into everything. After that biomarker testing, members receive five health coaching sessions over 12 months, in-person or digitally, with a staffer trained in functional nutrition to create a game plan to put into practice what the doctor recommended. Together between the Parsley team, members receive a seven-part health plan to optimize health at every level - diagnostic testing, mental health, fitness, nutrition, coaching, supplementation and coaching support. Beyond the office, members can access Parsley Perks in the patient portal that include discounts on all supplements and protein powders they sell, as well as access to wellness partners including free Headspace and Thrive Market memberships.

Just last month they launched a Parsley Assessment for commitment phobes that, for $500, packs in what would cost around $2,500 at a traditional clinic: a 75-minute intake, biomarker blood tests, a seven-part map to health, a 45-minute meeting with a health coach and access to the members-only perks program. And for those who can't get enough functional medicine support, Parsley has also launched a Premium Membership that includes additional visits with the doctor and nutrition coach, as well as 'priority visits and messaging'.

If you, like me, haven't been to the doctor in ages because you hate waiting rooms and someone throwing prescriptions at you in between the five other patients they need to see in the next ten minutes, Parsley's whole person approach might be for you. // 8am and 5pm, Dec 5th, RSVP for Parsley events at eventbrite.com, parsleyhealth.com

A Fall SF Fitness Challenge, Yoga at the Aquarium and our Other Favorite Ways to Get Fit this Week

The only wellness news you need in the Bay Area this week:

MNT 10 Challenge, started Nov 6 through 19

SoMa's prettiest fitness location, MNTSTUDIO, is hosting its annual MNT10 fall challenge starting this week. This Pilates and barre challenge asks that participants complete 10 classes in 14 days, with sweet swag for the 10 high achievers who take the most classes including gear from Outdoor Voices and ToeSox, as well as local beauty goodies from local brand Whyld and more. Those who accept the challenge receive 20% off of 10-pack class packs and retail throughout its duration. To bring the challenge into your kitchen, an add-on cleanse with MNT's in-house nutritionist is available for an extra $50. // Nov 6-19, 766 Brannan St. (SoMa), mntstudio.co/mnt10

SoulCycle's New Ride

It's hard to believe, but after ten years of sweaty-spiritual empire-building, SoulCycle is upgrading their bikes for a second time. Most notable is that they are going from the signature SoulCycle yellow to a sleek black. Noticeable only when you ride are changes to the ride itself: a new magnetic resistance gear for a smoother and more consistent ride and a sleek aluminum frame and more customizable settings throughout. NorCal is the first region to get the new bikes on the west coast, and you can take one for a spin starting November 7 at the Castro studio and November 9 at Soma. // soul-cycle.com

Holistic Health Fair at The Center, SF

If you're in the market for a holistic healing modality but don't know your reiki from rolfing, this Saturday's Holistic Health Fair is a one-stop shop to explore all of the wellness things. Local vendors will offer mini-sessions of everything from bodywork, massage, acupuncture, reiki, coaching, tarot, sound healing, aromatherapy and more. The Center will be pouring tea and serving healthy bites all day long. A sound healing concert will wrap the afternoon. // 548 Fillmore St. (Lower Haight), Snag early bird tickets (starting at $25) on eventbrite.com.

Yoga at the Aquarium

This Thursday, Cal Academy of Sciences is teaming up with Yoga Tree, Outdoor Yoga and Motiv to offer a night of aquarium-side, silent-disco yoga. Have your pick of aquatic scenery: either roll out your mat around the Philippine Coral Reef or the jellyfish-filled Water Planet. Class will be accompanied by a DJ set by DJ Avani. If you're up for a surf and turf yoga experience, Yoga Tree's Dianna Oppenheim is leading a savannah-side yoga session in the African hall. Post-yoga activities include mind and body talks, meditations led by WITHIN, cocktails and a peek at Motiv's new ring tracker. // $12 for members; $15 for non-members, 55 Music Concourse Drive, (Golden Gate Park), calacademy.org

Credo Beauty Panel

Fillmore's natural beauty mecca Credo Beauty is hosting a wellness panel on healthy skin this weekend hosted by Angela Tafoya of Lonny and featuring healthy living experts Josh Rosenbrook and Molly Alliman. Listen closely for tips on how the panelists and moderator Angela maintain their ridiculously glowing skin the natural way. // Nov 10, 2136 Fillmore St. (Pacific Heights), credobeauty.com