After becoming absolutely addicted to acai bowls after my first semester at the University of San Diego, I was forced return home to St. Louis for winter break. After about one week of acai deprivation, I made it my mission to find somewhere I could get some before I went absolutely crazy.

 If you are unaware of what an acai bowl is, just like I was before college, lemme tell ya all about it. Just imagine a bowl of delicious cold fruity stuff with the consistency of ice cream, topped with more delicious fruit, granola and a bunch of other amazing yummy things like honey and/or almond/peanut butter.

And so my journey began...

My attempt at my own acai bowl

My mission first began with looking up where to buy acai to make a bowl myself. Some friends suggested I look at Costco and Whole Foods. Unfortunately, neither store had it, or even really knew what I was talking about. (Usually Costco has acai, not sure why the one near me didn't).

Thankfully, a small miracle happened. I checked Trader Joe's and sure enough, they had Acai Puree! Perfect for making your own acai bowl at home.

When you have puree, just add a little cranberry juice, fruit, sugar, or whatever you want really and blend it together to make an acai bowl. It's a little extra work, but it allows you to be creative and unique with your own mix-ins. 

All I needed after making the acai base was some honey, coconut flakes, bananas, and granola to top it all off! It was pretty good, but not nearly as good as the ones I had back in San Diego. But then again, I'm more of an expert at eating acai bowls instead of making them. 

Fortunately, I did some more digging and really put St. Louis to the test in order to find where I could purchase one from some professionals.

Jamba Juice  

pizza, beer, tea
Emily Rembecki

Jamba Juice always has my back. I had completely forgotten until halfway through break that in addition to smoothies and such, they also sell acai bowls. 

They don't have the most unique acai bowls, since it isn't really their specialty. But if you really are missing acai, there's always a Jamba Juice around. All acai bowls are good anyway!

milk, cream, chocolate
Emily Rembecki

I Love Juice Bar

I was eating breakfast at my house with the local news playing in the background when I head the magic words "acai bowl." They were highlighting an adorable little place in St. Louis called Juice Bar, which apparently had incredible acai bowls. Of course I had to try them myself.

crunch, spam
Emily Rembecki

This place definitely exceeded my expectations. This acai bowl was even better than a lot of the acai places in San Diego. Two things I noticed right away that made this bowl so unique and delicious was the homemade granola and yummy almond butter on top. SO. GOOD.

Emily Rembecki

I hope this article inspires you to experience the world's most beautiful creation: the acai bowl. Not many people in Missouri know of acai, and I strongly believe this needs to change. All you Midwesterners are really missing out. Go out and make it your mission to try these places or make your own!