St. Louis is known for its barbecue, gooey butter cake, extravagant donuts, toasted ravioli, and frozen custard— there's a good reason for that. But sometimes, the classic STL foods can be a little too much to eat every single time you want to go out. Below are some healthier and lighter alternatives in STL for breakfast, brunch, lunch, or dinner so that the next time your friends ask you to eat out, you can suggest something new, exciting, and guilt-free.
1. Lulu's Local Eatery
Lulu's Local Eatery is a 100% plant based restaurant located in Tower Grove. They focus on seasonal options in order to minimize food waste, and they encourage a sustainable lifestyle by giving you 15% off your order if you ride your bike to the restaurant. With everything under $10, there's no way to go wrong with Lulu's. Some highlights from their current fall and winter menu include their buffalo cauliflower bites and butternut squash enchiladas.
Location: 3201 South Grand Avenue, St. Louis, MO 63118
Hours: Monday - Saturday: 11:30 am - 9 pm
2. Lona's Lil Eats
Lona's Lil Eats serves fresh and inventive Asian food. They're best known for their giant rice paper wraps—think extra large summer roll—filled with fresh vegetables, a protein of choice, sauce, and rice. You can either make your own wrap, or choose one from the menu. Additionally, Lona's serves plates loaded up with protein and vegetables alongside rice or noodles, as well as large Asian-style salads. If that doesn't sound delicious enough, Lona's also has an extensive tea menu to choose from.
Location: 2199 California Ave, St. Louis, MO 63104
Hours: Tuesday - Sunday: 11 am - 9 pm
3. Revel Kitchen
Located in Brentwood (read: a perfect stop after a Target or Trader Joe's run), Revel Kitchen is a fast, but fresh food option. Revel allows you to choose from four different bases: salad, bowl, wrap, or egg, and customize it with Asian, Latin, Mediterranean, or Southern flavors. You then get to add your protein of choice. Their menu also includes a few sides for $4, which are sometimes big enough to be meals on their own, as well as cold pressed juices and freshly made smoothies.
Location: 8388 Musick Memorial Dr, Brentwood, MO 63144
Hours: Monday - Saturday: 8 am - 8 pm, Sunday: 8 am - 4 pm
4. Seedz Cafe
Seedz Cafe is a small restaurant in the Demun Neighborhood, about a 10-15 minute walk from the South 40. It's a 100% organic, plant-based cafe that offers juices, smoothies, and a constantly rotating food menu based on what's in season. Some of their best dishes are the Raw Pad Thai and the Seasonal Veggie Pizza. Seedz is also the perfect place to get some food before or after getting some studying done next door at Kaldi's.
Location: 6344 South Rosebury, Demun, MO 6310
Hours: Tuesday - Saturday: 11am - 8pm & Sunday: 11am - 4pm
5. Tree House STL
Tree House STL is a vegetarian and vegan restaurant that offers food for breakfast, brunch, lunch, and dinner. For breakfast and brunch they offer things like vegan multi-grain pancakes, egg or tofu scrambles, or biscuit and gravy plates. They also have fall inspired brunch salads with Brussels sprouts and candied maple walnuts. Their lunch menu includes salads, a raw noodle bowl, and an array of sandwiches to choose from, and their dinner menu adds in small appetizers and entrees such as vegan ravioli or bibimbap. Tree House sources as much of their food as possible locally, and everything is reasonably priced and delicious.
Location: 3177 South Grand Blvd., St. Louis, MO 63118
Hours: Tuesday - Sunday: 10 am - 3pm, 5 pm - 10 pm (Brunch on weekends only)
6. Whitebox Eatery
Whitebox Eatery serves an extensive breakfast, brunch, and lunch menu. They also source many of their ingredients locally, and everything is baked fresh daily in their kitchens. Their healthy breakfast and brunch options include oatmeal, house made granola, and yogurt bowls, as well as different inventive egg platter combinations. If anyone in your friend group wants something more extravagant, the menu includes some sweeter options, like cinnamon roll pancakes (you can try making them at home too) that sound amazing, albeit less healthy. Their lunch menu includes different sandwich, salad, and soup options, with the choice to order half and half of anything if you're as indecisive as I am.
Location: 176 Carondelet Plaza, Clayton, MO 63105
Hours: Monday - Friday: 7 am - 3 pm, Saturday & Sunday: 8 am - 2:30 pm
7. Crazy Bowls & Wraps
Located on Forsyth, and just a 10-15 minute walk from the South 40, Crazy Bowls & Wraps is a quick place to grab bowls, salads, or wraps (read: as the name implies). First, you choose a wrap, bowl, or salad and then pick a grain and protein. Crazy Bowls & Wraps even offers carrot and zucchini noodles as one of their bowl bases. Plus, they've recently been added to the list of off-campus stores that take Bear Bucks—that's a major win for WashU students.
Location: Although there are multiple STL locations, the closest to WashU is the Forsyth location at 7353 Forsyth, University City, MO 63105
Hours: Monday - Saturday: 10:30 am - 9 pm, Sunday: 11 am - 8 pm
8. Wicked Greenz
Wicked Greenz is a healthy fast food option that's relatively new in Clayton. According to the menu, their Greenz come "Bowled and Rolled." They have more than 10 different flavors and ingredient options to choose from, and recommendations for what add-on proteins and dressings go best with it. Wicked Greenz is the perfect stop for a quick, on-the-go wrap or salad that's healthy but still flavorful.
Location: 16 North Central Avenue, Clayton, MO 63105
Hours: Monday - Sunday: 10 am - 8 pm
9. PuraVegan
PuraVegan is connected to the PuraYoga Center, for a health-centered day of a work-out and healthy treat. PuraVegan is all about encouraging a healthier lifestyle, and their food uses low/no oils or salt, as well as all-natural sweeteners. Their menu includes a long list of juices, smoothies (they have a carrot cake smoothie that sounds amazing), and salads and bowls. Breakfast options like Cornbread Avocado Toast, Acai Bowls, and waffles, or bakery items such as cookies made with oat flour and coconut sugar sound like the perfect healthy snacks. They also take Bear Bucks, so there's no reason not to stop by.
Location: 307 Belt Ave, St. Louis, MO 63112
Hours: Monday 7am - 3pm, Tuesday - Friday: 7 am - 7 pm, Saturday: 9 am - 4 pm, Sunday: Closed
10. Kayak's
Everyone knows and loves the trusty Kayak's, but not everyone is aware that they have healthier options than pastries, toasted-cheese sandwiches, and coffee on their menu. My personal favorites are the Northwoods salad and their Avocado Toast. Every salad and wrap on their menu sounds delicious and the food is fresh and affordable. Being so close to campus, Kayak's is the perfect place to eat a healthy meal that will boost your focus during exam time.
Location: 270 N. Skinker Blvd, St. Louis, MO 63130
Hours: Monday - Sunday: 6:30 am - 10 p
Although St. Louis has it's fair share of deliciously indulgent foods, it clearly doesn't lack healthy options either, and the healthy options sound just as worthwhile and appetizing. So while I love St. Louis barbecue and fried chicken and waffles, these restaurants are definitely worth checking out, as the STL food scene has much more to offer.