Açaí bowls are a Southern California lifestyle staple, especially on USC’s campus. It’s almost impossible to go without seeing someone with an overflowing, exotic looking smoothie bowl. Because of their speed, healthiness, and cool-factor, açaí bowls make for the perfect lunch when you’re on the go to your next class. However, navigating all of the trendy juice bars and organic cafes on campus can be overwhelming, so that’s why I’ve done all the hard work for you. Here is the ranking of the best açaí bowls on USC’s campus based on the essentials: taste, toppings, volume, and price.
Popovich Cafe
Popovich Cafe is a hidden gem at USC, located next to Fertitta Hall in the Marshall Courtyard. The açaí blend is rich and sugary, almost to the point of dessert. It’s a slushy, ice-creamy texture topped with granola, cashews, chocolate, berries, bananas, coconut, or peanut butter. The açaí bowls are definitely worth a try, especially for business students, but probably not the absolute best on campus.
Amazebowls
I was #blessed and snagged my Amazebowl for free because they were sponsoring a yoga session at my dorm, but this sample size was just enough to taste the sweet açaí goodness. The blend is deliciously rich, and I topped mine with cacao nibs, granola, fruit, and seeds. Amazebowls makes for a great afternoon snack since it won’t fill you for long. Just be careful not too hit up this adorable food truck too often because unfortunately they do not take dining dollars.
Sunlife Organics
Sunlife is the trendy place to get your smoothie fix located in no other than USC’s new Village. The topping options at Sunlife are overwhelmingly endless, letting you load up your açaí bowl with everything from hemp seeds, nut butters, fruits, Young Thai coconut meat (uh?), bee pollen, nuts, dried fruit, and even more. You can even add coconut butter and different types of proteins to your açaí blend, ensuring that this giant bowl of health keeps you full for hours. Personally, I enjoyed my açaí bowl immensely, although I wish the blend wasn’t SO sweet. The customizability gives this smoothie spot a leg up in the competition, although you’ll certainly note the difference in your wallet.
#ProTip: Get the Trojan Bowl from Sunlife which is exclusive to the USC Village location for a bowl of peanut butter and banana amazingness. I personally think this beats all of the açaí bowls.
Nekter
Nekter is the OG campus juice bar, selling a wide range of juices, smoothies, and, of course, açaí bowls. The bowls here are enormous and loaded with a variety of toppings like granola, coconut, fresh fruit, chia seeds, peanut butter, and more. It even has the option to add spinach, kale, and three different types of protein powders, so you can make your book a substantial, wholesome meal. The actual açaí blend is the perfect texture–smooth, creamy, and not too sweet. Nekter’s açaí bowl tastes like you are actually nourishing your body, making it number one on my list.
Açaí bowls are clearly no stranger to USC’s campus. That being said, not all smoothie bowls are created equal, so choose your juice bar wisely! If you do have the time between classes to spare, try making your own.