Watch CBS News

Bay Area's Best Salads

The salad shouldn't be relegated to boring, tasteless health food, nor should it be dismissed as a necessary starter to be tolerated before the real food arrives. The noble salad, unique, diverse and delicious, should be elevated to a stature all it's own. From hearty and complex to simple, light leaves, lettuce (Apologies. I had to.) offer our favorite salad spots around the Bay.

Hillstone Thai Steak Salad
www.hillstone.com

Thai Steak and Noodle Salad
Hillstone
1800 Montgomery Street
San Francisco, CA 94111
(415) 392-9280
Hillstone Embarcadero

The Thai Steak and Noodle Salad at Hillstone is our favorite salad in the City. A big plate is piled high (and we're talking high) with juicy chunks of marinated filet mignon, Asian noodles, avocado, peanuts, mango & herbs in Thai dressing. And then this masterpiece is presented to you, changing forever the way you think of salads. It's THAT good.

Chow
www.chowfoodbar.com

Cobb Salad
Chow
Four Bay Area Locations
Park Chow
Castro Chow
Lafayette Chow
Danville Chow

Chow's Cobb Salad can be ordered in three sizes, so right off the bat, Chow has won us over with their flexibility towards our varying appetites. Sometimes you want a snack. Sometimes you need a big, hearty salad. Get both with Chow's Cobb, a pre-dressed bowl of bold flavors. Chicken breast, bacon, blue cheese, avocado: it's everything you want in a Cobb. With four Bay Area location, including two in San Francisco, one in Danville and one in Layfayette, you won't have to go far for your Chow fix.

BayWolf
www.baywolf.com

Caesar Salad
Bay Wolf
3853 Piedmont Ave.
Oakland, CA
(510) 655-6004
Bay Wolf

Oakland's Bay Wolf is home to one of the Bay's best Caesar Salads. In fact, it's Chronicle Columnist Michael Bauer's favorite. Crisp whole leaves of romaine are delicately dressed in a traditional anchovy dressing. Simple, classic and somehow better than all the others, a Caesar at Bay Wolf is a must-order.

Plutos
www.plutosfreshfood.com

Build Your Own Salad
Pluto's
Several Bay Area Locations

Pluto's, with several Bay Area locations, has been a family pick-up favorite for years. While their grill is always fired up, the salad bar is the real hit. Fill out a quick form, picking a lettuce, dressing and toppings like grilled onions, roasted walnuts and perfect, juicy chicken, and then watch as your salad is expertly tossed into a bowl, packed and perfected and plopped in a take-out box. You can also eat in their bright, spacious and family-friendly restaurants, but there's something special about enjoying Pluto's in your own orbit.

Mixt Greens Salad Bar
www.mixtgreens.com

Financial District Salad Bar
Mixt Greens
Multiple San Francisco Locations

The hard-working suits packed into the FiDi swear by this chic and streamlined salad bar with three downtown locations. With built-it-yourself options, featuring toppings such as asparagus, macadamia nuts and pork loin, lettuce-lovers might become overwhelmed at the possibilities. Never fear! Pick from a collection of carefully designed salads, like the tempting Dagwood featuring roasted portabella mushrooms, roasted red peppers, roasted zucchini, caramelized onions, goat cheese, garlic croutons, balsamic reduction and lemon herb vinaigrette or the hearty Bachelor, with grilled prime flat iron, blue cheese, herb roasted potatoes, cherry tomatoes, balsamic vinaigrette, topped with caramelized onions.

Zuni
www.zunicafe.com

Side Salad
Zuni's Warm Bread Salad
1658 Market Street
San Francisco, CA
(415) 552-2522
Zuni

Diners are forced to order the $48 Roast Chicken for Two to get this work of salad wonder, but if your wallet can handle it, your taste buds will thank you. The chicken is legendary, a perfect, comforting version of the timeless classic. But the warm bread salad served along with the cbird, covered in the warm juices and satisfying essence of the most familiar yet extraordinary of flavors, is simply remarkable.

Beth Spotswood, CBS San Francisco

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.