Leilani Marie Labong Leilani Marie Labong | July 11, 2019 | Style & Beauty,
Good Eggs meal kits offer same-day service with no subscription required.
Best Home Cookin’: Good Eggs
You’ve got 99 problems, but dinner doesn’t have to be one of them. The healthy meal kits from the local grocery-delivery service Good Eggs reflect San Francisco’s virtuous food-sourcing standards and progressiveness (same-day service and no subscription required, unlike its competitors). Good Eggs meal kits give busy home cooks the opportunity to venture into more exotic home gastronomy: chicken tagine and chicken tikka masala can either come hot from your kitchen or arrive cold from Postmates. Scratch-made pho ga takes a fraction of the time that your grandmother’s chicken noodle soup recipe would need. The carnitas super burritos and a faux carnitas dish called maitake “carnitas” tacos with avocado crema provide an authentic street-stall flavor profile. 901 Rankin St.
Edgy looks from The Culture of Hair.
Best Tressed: The Culture of Hair
When Capriece Batchelor was growing up in Milwaukee in the ’90s—prime time for high-top fades—he couldn’t find a barber who could turn his curly African-German-Native American mop into any stylish coif, much less one that resembled the Fresh Prince of Bel Air’s sculptural ’fro. That’s when the seed was planted for The Culture of Hair, the Union Square salon that Batchelor, by now master stylist, opened in 2017. At The COH, people of all stripes and hair types are welcome—in fact, the diversity of the clientele is matched only by the Benetton-like faculty. Everything from platinum pixies to considered cornrows are expertly crafted in a beautiful space that features trendy terrazzo surfaces, sumptuous velvet seating, and plenty of natural sunglow. 305 Grant Ave.
Serenity at Onsen.
Best Soak: Onsen
In the tradition of Japan’s great public baths, Sunny Simmons and Caroline Smith’s unique Tenderloin spot, Onsen, provides a cozy hydrotherapy experience (bath, sauna, steam, cold “plunge”) in what was once an oil-stained auto garage—famously, the old grease pit was transformed into the spa’s 104-degree communal tub. Lately, the programming has expanded to include new early morning weekend soaks, short-film screenings in the bath on Wednesdays and a women’s-only silent steep on Thursdays. At the adjoining restaurant, chef George Meza serves elegant izakaya fare to famished bathers who seek nourishment from the grilled local-sardine skewers, mushroom dumplings in broth, and yuba (tofu skin) okonomiyaki. 466 Eddy St.
Best Strike-A-Pose: Yoga on the Labyrinth
For more than a decade, Yoga on the Labyrinth at Grace Cathedral has been one of the city’s favorite asana practices. In solidarity with the fiery tragedy at Notre Dame in Paris, its appeal is newly emboldened. Teacher Darren Main leads the Tuesday evening class inside the Nob Hill landmark (architecturally inspired by its centuries-old French-Gothic forebear) that connects the temple of the body with the larger temple of the cathedral. Case in point: A few moments before the clock strikes 7pm, the live music and vinyasa flow pause for a silent seated meditation. When the church bells gong, the vibration moves through the building and the body, sonically connecting the yogis with their exceptional yoga shala. Arrive a half-hour early to score coveted spots on the famous labyrinth. 1100 California St.
Best Liquid Assets: Happy Moose Juice
With juice concoctions named Golden State Blood Orange (blood oranges and honey tangerines) and Berry Bonds (strawberry, goji berry, turmeric, beet, apple, orange, cayenne, ginger), there’s no mistaking the hyperlocal origins of Happy Moose Juice. We love the Bayview-based mom-and-pop’s small-batch production and sustainability model in which organic, imperfect produce transforms into cold-pressed, nutrient-dense potions. Twist the cap on a bottle of Coco Honey Lovin’ for a tropical treat. The Kale Earnhardt is a great am energizer. Happy Moose Juice sources and presses all of the fresh fruit ingredients that are used in its herbal teas. “Food is medicine, and juices can be powerfully healing,” says Happy Moose co-founder Ryan Armistead. 1040 Revere Ave.
The Coast Ridge metabolism reboot.
Best Reset Button: The Coast Ridge
Basecamp for The Coast Ridge four-day metabolism reboot is a newly renovated space on a Stinson Beach hillside, with views of the ocean that go a long way toward your goal of optimal wellness. Co-founder and Luke Skywalker doppelganger Yarrow Schley created the four-day Reboot hiking and nutrition program after he was inspired by his time working internationally in permaculture and his years guiding at the famous Ashram in Santa Monica. Each metabolic-fire-stoking Coast Ridge session includes a daily rise-and-shine yoga class; a 10-mile hike on Mount Tam, the Marin Headlands or nearby Bay Area trails; an hourlong afternoon massage in the garden tent; and three tasty vegan squares a day—standout dishes include kelp noodles tossed in a light almond sauce and a hearty kale salad studded with roasted kabocha squash.
Nourishing beef broth from Belcampo
Best Everyday Elixir: Belcampo
By now the gospel of bone broth has been spread far and wide: Purported benefits of a daily cup include increased collagen, improved sleep and boosted immune function. Since it stands to reason that the better the bone broth, the more—cue pun—souped-up the perks, our favorite stock option comes from Bay Area-based Belcampo, whose 20-hour beef and poultry broths, sold in frozen quarts, are made with bones from free-range animals who graze on totally organic California land, high in micronutrients and minerals. Belcampo co-founder Anya Fernald drinks a ladle of collagen-laden beef broth daily as a nutritional supplement and saves the chicken broth for when she’s feeling run down. “I know that’s just aesthetic, but if it’s doing great things on the outside, it must be doing great things on the inside,” she says. 55 Webster St., Oakland
Eco Cannabis integrates social-equity programs into its business model.
Best Bud: Eco Cannabis
The new Uptown Oakland dispensary, Eco Cannabis, is pioneering a new standard for social equity in what was once a shadow industry. In a modern light-filled space, an all-Oaklander staff—50% of whom have been previously incarcerated—helps customers navigate the inventory, from the popular Red Congolese flower from Gold Seal in San Francisco to the hydroponically house-grown hybrid flower. Owner Kevin Ahaesy, who starts each day with a CBD tincture under the tongue to control inflammation, has also set aside 1,000 square feet of shop space for small cannabis businesses licensed under the city’s groundbreaking Equity Permit Program, designed to give Oakland residents who have been victimized by the war on drugs an opportunity to overcome their circumstances. 2435 Telegraph Ave., Oakland
Best Sweat Sesh: Barry’s Bootcamp
Don’t let the name fool you: Barry’s Bootcamp doesn’t involve drill sergeants forcefully taunting you while your deltoids are aflame in pushup purgatory. Instead, this style of HIIT training involves a nonstop rotation of strengthening floor exercises and inclined treadmill sprints packed into a sweaty 50-minute session, guided by inspiring trainers whose sole aim is to max out your body’s lactic-acid production—muscle soreness would be the telltale sign of their success. Finally, replenish all of those eradicated electrolytes at Fuel Bar with a Green Latifah smoothie before you make yourself publicly once again presentable with the luxe Oribe products in the locker room. Multiple locations
Best Skin Ever: Botnia
Master holistic esthetician and founder of Skin Remedy Spa in Presidio Heights, Justine Kahn, grows botanicals for her natural skincare line, Botnia, at her Sausalito microfarm, personally tending to such potent vegetation as lavender, calendula and geranium from seed to harvest. When it comes to the latter, only whole plants—stems, leaves and flowers—will do for maximum levels of natural vitamins and minerals that heal and nurture skin in a way that lab-synthesized compounds only strive to achieve. Kahn expertly co-formulated ingredient-driven recipes that deliver ultimate hydration, tone and clarity the way nature intended. Botnia’ s gentle blends include a soothing and balancing oil cleanser, and an anti-inflammatory, cell-regenerative replenishing oil). 3638 Sacramento St.
Originally published in the July issue of San Francisco
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