Seven Places to Get a Healthy SXSW Lunch

We’ve almost made it to the end of SXSW and – let’s be real – the amount of tacos, queso, and alcohol consumed has us feeling like a dumpster fire. With a full weekend of music and parties ahead of us, we need some healthy food to keep us from looking like a Walking Dead extra.

Snap Kitchen

From breakfast to dessert, Snap Kitchen’s grab-and-go meals are perfect if you want to switch out kale and kombucha for booze and barbecue. If you have the time to heat it up, the lean protein-filled bison quinoa hash will give you energy for hours. Don’t worry, there are plenty of ready-to-eat options too. By the time you get to the front of the line, you’ll be ready for the long haul.

Blenders and Bowls

Here’s something that might make you feel better about partying. While you have been walking all over Downtown, you’ve been reaching well over 10,000 steps on your Fitbit. You deserve a treat. Blenders and Bowls serves up tasty smoothies and beautiful fruit bowls that will keep you feeling energized for the next 10,000. Our favorite is the O.G., a blend of açaí, strawberries, bananas, and apple juice topped with more fruit and hemp granola.

Vinaigrette

As the name implies, salad is at the heart of entrepreneur Erin Wade’s mini-restaurant group. Try one of the classics like a Caesar, Cobb, or chop or experiment with duck confit tossed with arugula in hibiscus vinaigrette or a bright blend of greens, carrots, cucumber, and pickled fennel in romesco. If you’re in need of something extra filling to absorb all that South By sludge, order a hot turkey sandwich with a side of vegan mushroom stew. (They have cocktails, too. We won’t say a word.)

Conscious Cravings

We know you haven’t been exactly making “conscious” decisions this SXSW. (We saw you at Lizzo and it was not cute.) It’s time to repent. Get right with hot wraps filled with choices like chickpeas, avocado, or seitan, or a quinoa salad dressed with sprightly chimichurri. This 100% plant-based spot is the smart alternative to everything you’ve blindly put in your mouth in the past few days. Now if it could only help you with those dance moves.

The Soup Peddler

Maybe you’re at the point in your SXSW marathon where you feel like complete garbage. Maybe you are tired of hearing people in line whisper, “Look at that hot mess.” We know, we’ve been there too, and we know there is a way to come off of that ledge. The Soup Peddler’s various locations offer soup and sandwiches just like the ones your mom would make when you were sick. Chicken soup without the lecture? Whowoulddathunk?

Slake Cafe

Some places fly under the radar while being in plain sight. Such is the case of Slake Cafe, which has been drawing lunch crowds for years with nary a mention in Austin’s hungry food press. We’re not going to lie, not everything is ultra-healthy here (a pulled pork sandwich with smoked gouda queso on a kolach bun probably won’t make the cover of Cooking Light), but there are plenty of lighter choices if it’s not your cheat day.

Wheatsville Food Co-op

If you think co-ops are the sole domain of hippies and health nuts, think again. Sure, there are plenty of folks in the aisles who are really into nutritional yeast, but Wheatsville is a co-op for our times. Make a quick salad at the bar or order one of the new sandwich options like a roasted vegetable goat cheese mix on rustic bread or a lighter turkey club on whole wheat. Or give into your comfort food cravings with the popcorn tofu po’boy. You have to be mindful of your emotional health too, after all.