What are acai bowls and where can I try one?

Açaí bowls are my latest obsession although they can be tricky to track down in the UK so I thought I’d share everything you need to know about açaí bowls and where you can try one for yourself.

Açaí bowls have been billed as the perfect breakfast, delivering a nutritional powerhouse to start your day. The ones I’ve tried are indeed a meal in themselves and I’ve had one for lunch on many occasions. They are quite carb-heavy, unless you add some Greek yogurt or a decent spoonful of nut butter. But although the fruit can be quite sugary, if the rest of your diet is balanced then it shouldn’t do any harm. Some of the other toppings, like chia seeds, deliver plenty of goodness to balance out the fruit.

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How do you say ‘açaí ‘?

Firstly, let’s address how you actually pronounce açaí because when I first started ordering them on holiday the servers couldn’t understand what I was saying! I was saying ‘ack-eye-eeee’, but actually it’s a soft ‘c’ so the correct pronunciation is actually ‘ass-eye-eeee’.

What is açaí ?

Açaí berries are found in South America and are a so-called superfruit with plenty of health benefits. They are full of antioxidents, fibre, healthy fats and calcium. However, they spoil really quickly, within a day, so are best consumed as frozen puree, in a dried smoothie mix or added as powder to yogurts or cereals.

Therefore, you’re most likely to try açaí in an açaí bowl, or smoothie. I have used Rheal Superfoods’ berry mix before, which is ideal for making an homemade version. You can buy powdered acai from Brazil on Amazon and even frozen acai berries which I’m going to order to try at home.

What’s the difference between an açaí bowl and a smoothie bowl?

Although I became obsessed with finding ‘açaí bowls’ on holiday in the US this year, I soon realised when I got home that they are actually just a type of smoothie bowl, with açaí berries (or powder) in the base.

Smoothie bowls have a base made from a thick smoothie and are usually a thing of beauty, and places that serve them arrange the toppings to look really pretty and enticing.

A smoothie bowl usually contains some or all of the following:

• Smoothie base (a very thick version, almost like a sorbet)
• Fresh fruit (sliced thinly and arranged beautifully)
• Granola
• Nut butter
• Chia seeds (or other seeds)
• Goji berries
• Coconut flakes
• Greek yogurt

Design your own or from the menu?

Depending on the place you’re visiting, some açaí / smoothie bowls have a pre-designed list of ingredients, but in some dedicated smoothie bowl establishments you can build your own.

This is the kind of place I love, and I’ve visited some lovely eateries where the counter is an array of toppings that you can choose from, and often your only limitation is the size of the bowl rather than choosing a fixed number of ingredients.

To be honest, I’ve tried both styles and have loved all of them! If you choose one from the menu then it might make you try something you wouldn’t have chosen yourself. But either way, you’re guaranteed a beautiful bowl of pure nourishment!

Where can I try smoothie bowls?

I will share some of my favourites below, but if you don’t live anywhere near those cities then you can still try an açaí (or other smoothie) bowl.

The best thing to do is use Google and search for ‘smoothie bowls near me’ or ‘acai bowls near me’. Or ‘smoothie bowls in XXXX’ location. It’s not foolproof as it will only return results for places who actually list smoothie bowls in their Google listing. It’s better than nothing though, and you might be lucky to live close to a search result.

My second tip is to use social media; most towns and cities have community Facebook groups where you can ask for local tips. I’ve used this option in my own town and found a couple of places which aren’t listed in Google searches. I’ve also asked groups in towns I’m planning to visit, which taps into local knowledge which I wouldn’t have known myself. Not only will you get ideas of places which offer açaí bowls, people will also let you know what they think of them, which can help narrow it down if you have multiple options.

Finally, I am listing the places I’ve had the pleasure of trying açaí bowls below, and am happy to add other eateries to the list if you contact me. I want to spread the word about smoothie bowls and açaí bowls so do get in touch if you have any recommendations or photos.

Remember that if you want to travel to the US to try the acai bowls I recommend you will need to apply for an ESTA or a visa.

Acai bowls in Las Vegas – The Juice Standard

On our Easter trip to the US we started in Vegas and I found some really great healthy food places, including The Juice Standard in the Cosmopolitan hotel. I initially ordered an açaí smoothie but then noticed another customer’s version had a spoon in it so next time I ordered one of those – OMG it was delicious!

Sadly we were due to leave that day so that sparked my obsession so every place we visited after that meant a new smoothie bowl to try.

Acai bowls in Ocean Beach, California

It was in Ocean Beach where I stopped by a stall to buy my husband a coffee and noticed they sold acai bowls. I asked about them and I don’t think she actually understood me – possibly due to my British accent but also because I wasn’t saying it right! The really helpful server explained how to pronounce ‘acai’ – and I haven’t looked back twice – I think that was in Tiki Port. Tiki seem to be the place which brought acai bowls to Ocean Beach, which is a great place to stay, really chilled and with easy access to San Diego city and beyond. They get great reviews on Google but sadly we had to move on before I could try one myself.

On another trip I did managed to try a few here. The staff at Val’s Coffee Corner were lovely and I tried their standard acai bowl as well as their mermaid bowl.

I also tried an acai bowl at Newbreak Coffee & Cafe which I’d highly recommend. You can dine in here and they do lots of breakfast options if the rest of your party prefer egg-based dishes or pastries. They do the biggest croissants, for example, and it’s a really friendly place.

Acai bowls in Newport Beach

There are actually a few places in Newport Beach but as we were only there for a couple of hours on our California road trip I could only go to one, and it was Tru Bowl Superfood Bar. This was one of those takeaway places where it’s all laid out in front of you, but because it was my first ‘design your own’ experience I had to ask the guy in front of me in the queue what to go for.

I chose an açaí base with granola, some greek yogurt, chia pudding, pineapple, blueberries, walnuts and goji berries. Yum!

Açaí bowls in San Diego

As it turns out, Newport Beach may actually be the epicentre of the açaí bowl ‘fad’, at least it is according to this blogger who recommends many different places to try them in San Diego.

Açaí bowls in Belmont Shore

We stayed near Long Beach in Belmont Shore recently and I tried Natura Bowls first. It was delicious but, scarily, we had an earthquake tremor while I was there.

The next day I tried Pressed, a juicery which offers outstanding acai bowls. It was huge but so yummy, a meal in itself!

Açaí bowls in Santa Monica

Our final destination on this particular holiday was Santa Monica. Once again, Google was my friend and there were a few options here.

I’d always planned to hire bikes and ride along the boardwalk to Venice Beach, so Everbowl was the perfect place to stop en route for breakfast. Sitting on a beach with something as splendid as a smoothie bowl for company is just one of those lovely pleasures in life.

I stumbled upon another place unexpectedly, when visiting nearby Clover Park so that my son could play football, I found a Juice Crafters takeaway place. So when it was time for food, the boys had pizza and I got my fix of açaí in the form of a pretty smoothie bowl!

On another visit I tried Ubatuba which is half way between Santa Monica and Venice Beach. This place is a ‘pick n mix’ type of menu where you can choose your base and then as many toppings as will fit in your bowl! There are 4 sizes too, which is really handy.

Acai bowls at the Kind Cafe, Selsey

Once I returned home I wanted to continue the Californian vibe but wasn’t sure if açaí bowls were actually a thing in the UK. I asked in a local Facebook group and, sure enough, they do exist and I could get one in nearby Selsey. The Kind Cafe is just the loveliest place with a really chilled-out vibe, located within the Thrive Centre.

I’ve been back a few times, finding increasingly tenuous excuses to make the 30 minute drive over there. The granola and nut butter are homemade, and utterly delicious. I’ve only tried their Bali Bowl, but the others on the menu look equally scrummy.

Açaí bowls in Brighton

We go over to Brighton all the time, but mainly to have lunch in Iydea, our favourite place to eat over there, situated in the North Laine. But on one particularly indulgent visit I treated myself to a ‘dessert’ of a smoothie bowl in Wolfox which is very close to Komedia in Gardner Street.

Yet again, it was delicious, and I think that if it looks good then a smoothie bowl can’t fail to deliver on scrumptiousness.

Açaí bowls in Southsea

Although I haven’t been there (yet), Ono Bowls is top of my list as it’s fairly close to home and specialises in açaí bowls. The owners must be as obsessed as I am so I just need to find an excuse to pop over sometime.

Açaí bowls on the Isle of Wight

Next stop for me though is the Isle of Wight scooter rally and, yet again, Facebook has been super-helpful for finding some amazing places.

First, I tried Tradewinds Beach Cafe in Sandown which is accessible from the beach path and also from steps down from the car park next to Blueberry’s Cafe near Lake. I have to say they serve quite a minimal acai bowl with few embellishments and it was also at the top end of what I’ve paid elsewhere. It doesn’t look like the pretty ones on Facebook either, so maybe they were short of ingredients when I visited!

Fin’s Beach Cafe at Sandown

Next stop was Fin’s Beach Cafe for a leisurely Sunday breakfast and I have to say it was absolutely superb! It was packed with fruit, nut butter, scrummy granola and other bits on top. It’s also such a lovely location with plenty of outside seating overlooking Sandown beach. It really was the perfect start to the day and my husband also enjoyed his veggie breakfast with coffee.

I didn’t have time to try Comicoffee in West Cowes and Newport, or Caffe Isola which is also in Newport on this trip but will definitely swing by when I pop over again.

Tell me about your açaí obsessions!

If you love açaí bowls as much as me then do let me know where to get them – and I’ll create a list – no matter where you are in the world. Just contact me and I’ll do the rest!