By Expedia Team, on May 27, 2013

Finding Health and Wellness in the City of Angels

Los Angeles, the City of Angels, has recently been recognised as the Wellness Capital of the United States. As a matter of fact, 14 wellness centres are anticipated to operate in schools by 2014. This movement will promote good health and hopefully deepen the desire of locals to live a healthier lifestyle.

Los Angeles is one of America’s most popular cities to visit, for Kiwis it’s the main gateway into America. When you’re fresh from a long haul flight, you need a little tlc. Most of Expedia’s Kiwi travellers stop over for two to three days, we take the time out and head to Santa Monica, Beverely Hills and Hollywood. If you’re after ideas on where to stay, head to Expedia’s Los Angeles Holidays, and for tips on how to stay healthy and put wellness on your map, here’s a few of my favourite spots to visit.

Healthy Restaurants

One thing I find when travelling to the USA is that you need to know where to look for healthy food. It’s all too easy to be led astray on streets filled with restaurants and vendors offering fries, cheesy pizzas and supersized meals. The good thing about being in the Wellness Capital of the country is that there’s always options for nutritious and delicious meals.

If you’re in the city for a few days, make sure you visit Café Gratitude for their 100% organic vegan food and dose of gratitude. Café Gratitude is bustling with organic vitality and goodness, book into one of their workshops that help spread the word on sustainability and green living.

One of the common misconceptions about vegan and wholefood cuisine is that the menu options are limited. Fortunately, there are restaurants like Vegan Glory in LA that prove that wrong. Vegan Glory fuses Vegan ingredients and Thai dishes in a menu that’s full of flavour. The Flowering Tree in West Hollywood also has an extensive organic vegetarian and vegan menu.

If you want to go all out with a buffet lunch, Govinda’s Natural Foods serves a $7 vegan buffet. Finally, Real Food Daily is a vegan restaurant best enjoyed by Hollywood actresses like Kristen Bell, Ashley Greene, and Angela Bassett.