Whether you’re in to fashion, green juice or cocktails, New York City is an epicentre of cool, in whatever form coolness takes for you. If you know anything about me, you’ll know that delicious, healthy food is very high up on my priorities list. So, on a recent holiday week in NYC (staying in Soho), I made it my mission to try as many fit tasty eats as I could.
If you’re keen on discovering a healthier side to the big apple, you are going to love this list of foodie finds. All places mentioned have gluten-free options!
Daytime
Two Hands Café: a gorgeously decorated café with a bit of an Aussie feel (I spied Matcha Maiden on the shelf!). I had the Harvest Plate + a green juice, the boy a BLAT + watermelon juice. My harvest plate was packed full of veggie goodness, including roast pumpkin which I adore, and the green juice was pure veggies and super low sugar.
Egg Shop NYC: the concept - eggs served on sandwiches, or in bowls (called Cruisers). So delicious we ate there twice. The cruisers are pure healthy goodness in a bowl; I had The Spandex (miso infused quinoa, greens, avo, pickled carrot). There are some seriously deluxe sanger options (hello fried chicken!) but you can still make a nutritious choice like I did with The Reformer (feta, spinach, tomato, avo). Also, the GF english muffin I got my sandwich on was absolutely tops.
The Butcher’s Daughter: this healthy café has a very vegan-friendly menu including lots of purely plant-based options like acai protein smoothies, smashed avocado toast and rice flour pancakes. I had an avocado + egg sandwich on soft GF bread with cashew cheese, kale and a tasty salty-sweet tomato jam, which was super filling.
Jack’s Wife Freda: a gorgeous cafe that serves great coffee and a Mediterranean-inspired menu. All of the breakfast and lunch options sounded so incredible, but we went with a green shakshuka + challah bread and I had the breakfast bowl (quinoa, kale, spaghetti squash, tomato, poached eggs). The brekky bowl was a generous portion and I loved the herby spaghetti squash on the base.
Sweetgreen: so…I ate sweetgreen THREE times. It’s a funky chain of salad bars dotted throughout NYC where you make your own or choose from a range of made-to-order salads or grain bowls. Their Kale Caesar is amazing, as were the Avo-Cobbler and the Guac & Greens salads. And did I mention they have kombucha and completely sugar free iced tea. Love. The perfect lunch stop between sightseeing.
Snack time
Erin McKenna’s Bakery: this cute little bakery shop is tucked away on a relatively quiet street in the lower East of NYC. Gluten free vegans, you can go crazy here; there are so many amazing treats! Sure they’re not sugar-free, but hey you’re on holiday...We tried a samoa donut, a mini double chocolate brownie and a huge chocolate chip cookie, and all were delicious.
Night-time
ABC Kitchen: this super trending restaurant prides itself on using organic ingredients that are locally-sourced as best possible, even sourcing some of its greens from the restaurant’s own rooftop garden. It’s a beautiful place to sit for dinner. The menu changes based on seasonal availability but expect to find light starters, fresh veggies and an array of main dishes and wholemeal pizzas. I had freshly grilled seafood and lots of broccoli.
BareBurger: if you’re going to go and eat a burger in NYC (which you totally should do), you should do it here. BareBurger is an amazing chain of restaurants built on local, organic produce and always using natural pasture-raised meat (and they've got vegetarian and vegan options, too). On each table there’s a huge list of the suppliers they get each of their ingredients from. Fitties, you can get sweet potato fries and have your burger patty wrapped in collard greens or served on a GF tapioca bun!
Rubirosa: okay, so this probably doesn’t really tick the box as an uber healthy eating spot, but it is one of the best places to enjoy a pizza in New York, and I think any NYC foodie list needs a pizza place! Rubirosa gets my vote for having incredibly delicious pizza AND for offering a separate gluten free menu, meaning you can safely choose from their appetizers, pastas and pizzas. The sausage + broccoli rabe pizza on gluten-free was divine.
And that’s a wrap! I’m kind of drooling just thinking about all of the amazing meals I had. Have you been to NYC recently or do you live there? What are your favourite healthy places to eat? Leave a comment below!