Orange County: Healthy Restaurant Guide
This is the ultimate guide to all-around healthy restaurants in Orange County! I will continually update this post as I find more places! This guide does not include restaurants that offer a select few options for gluten-free or vegan items–I will include those places in a different post.
Flower Child
1302 Bison Ave.
Newport Beach, CA 92660
I am so obsessed with Flower Child! It recently opened in Newport Beach, and I just love the countless healthy options here! I’d never heard of this place before, but they have locations in Texas, Arizona, Georgia, and more! So, it is a chain, but there’s nothing wrong with that when the food is healthy and tastes good! They have a beautiful outdoor patio, plenty of seating inside, the cutest decor and interior, refreshing drinks (get the strawberry lemonade!) and a grab-and-go and takeout station!
Their menu has dietary friendly labels: vegan, gluten-free, vegetarian, organic. You can choose from their bowls, salads, or build your own plate with a protein and two sides–there’s even a kids menu! My favorites are the strawberry fields salad with tofu (their tofu is really good here!), vietnamese crunch salad, and glow bowl (sweet potato noodles). The noodles are a bit on the crunchier side, and I was expecting more of a soft zoodle texture, but they were still good. Their gluten-free desserts are all delicious as well: lemon cake, brownie, cookie, and pudding! YES I have tried them all–I have a sweet tooth.
Everything here is made from scratch with fresh, local ingredients. What I love about Flower Child is that they can offer dietary-friendly options without sacrificing the flavor and taste! I just love the overall vibe of this restaurant.
Urban Plates
26661 Aliso Creek Rd
Aliso Viejo, CA 92656
I was so excited when Urban Plates opened in Aliso Viejo–it's a shorter drive for me than the location in Irvine. My family and I went for our Friday-night-out dinner. There was a line out the door and it was a little chilly, but it moved quickly. We were greeted upon entering through the door too!
I ordered the coconut green curry tofu with veggies and half brown/white rice. The line server was friendly and said they usually don't do half and half, but he let me order it that way. It was delicious! It got cold as I was eating it though, but still tasty! The portions are awesome- I got a lot of tofu cubes. I also shared sides of colorful carrots and roasted Brussels sprouts with my mom-those were yummy, and the seasoning was on point. My meal left me feeling so full (but the good, healthy kind of full, not the oh I just ate a huge burger and fries kind of full). I also tried the coconut almond chocolate cookie.
They get their food from organic vendors and there are plenty of healthy options to choose from: salmon, chicken, tofu, salad, vegetables, and more. There have gluten free, dairy free, and vegetarian options too!
The prices are reasonable and the amount of food you get is worth the price.
Vibe Organic Kitchen and Juice
1000 Bristol St N
Newport Beach, CA 92660
Yay more healthy food! I picked up lunch after a hair cut in the same plaza. This place is a newer addition to the plaza. I had a tough time choosing what to order because everything sounded so delicious! I ended up ordering the Roots bowl. It is flavorful and I totally recommend it; it has avocado, squash, beets, carrots, black beans, and greens/rice/quinoa topped with a chipotle-aioli kind of sauce. I chose half greens half quinoa (gotta keep down the carbs, am I right?). The portions are perfect for the price, and it leaves you full-the clean, satisfied full. I also recommend the Morning Buzz smoothie-it has cold-brew coffee, almond milk, maca, and bananas and tastes like a dessert (without the guilt!). I couldn't finish half of it though, even though my mom drank the other half.
Inside is a modern, orange vibe, and the interior design is inviting. It is expensive though. Smoothies are about $9 which is the same as getting one of their lunch or breakfast items. There's also a case with kombucha, coconut yogurt, and other drinks.
This place is organic, plant-based, vegan, and gluten-free. No meat!
The staff is all friendly and a guy even came to take our order in the line with an iPad.
butterleaf
2222 Michelson Drive
Irvine, CA 92612
Located in the new TRADE Food Hall, butterleaf is a vegetarian vendor that serves burgers, sides (like avocado bombs) and bowls. I ordered their bowl and didn't know half the stuff that was in it until I received it. It was amazing-the best vegetarian meal I have ever had, and it filled me up too! I did half purple rice (it tastes like brown rice) and half quinoa, and it was topped with avocado, radish, beets, sautéed kale, cooked carrots, potatoes, mushrooms, and more! It was so big I couldn't finish it and had to take some home!
The service is friendly and quick, and the prices are great for the amount of food you receive.
The only downsides are: they do not take cash and do not have tap water-only water bottles.
If you haven't heard of TRADE food hall, it is a little food court right next to the Irvine Towers and a bunch of other business buildings. There are about 10 vendors and they are like individual booths, but in a wall. Anyways, the parking is HORRIFIC. Well, at least not for the business people who can just walk right across the street. I came at noon and it took me 30 minutes to park. First I drove into their parking and it was full, so then I circled around and drove to the back, but those were all business spots. So then I found another plaza with a ton of open parking and I parked there. As I was walking out, the sign said PRIVATE PROPERTY, so I hopped back in my car and drove over to IHOP to see if there were any parking spots over there, but it was customer parking only. Finally, I found visitor parking somewhere that was a free one hour. Phew! Lesson learned: do NOT come at noon.