This healthy Bay Area eatery is among the top on Yelp’s 100 best U.S. restaurants list
"The Good Salad" in Santa Clara, Calif. was listed among the top in Yelp's annual best 100 restaurants in the U.S. list. (The Good Salad)
SANTA CLARA, Calif. - A Bay Area eatery has received the distinction of being among the top recommended restaurants in the U.S.
Yelp has come out with its annual publication of Top 100 Places to Eat, and it placed "The Good Salad" in Santa Clara #8 on its list.
What we know:
The casual take-out eatery also has locations in Los Altos, Palo Alto, and Campbell.
The restaurant’s build-your-own salad model "is perfect for anyone looking to meet their health and nutrition needs without giving up on flavor," Yelp said.
There are more than 40 mix-ins, with its protein offerings and wide range of dressings, all made in-house. Toppings range from the traditional veggies to items like Medjool dates, edamame, and crispy fried onions.
"The Good Salad" founder Sanad Al Souz said the combinations are "virtually limitless."
The Good Salad was ranked #8 in Yelp's Top 100 Restaurants 2025 list. (The Good Salad)
"Besides quality and freshness, we’re really focused on hyper customization, allowing customers to make their salads the exact way they want," Al Souz told KTVU, adding, "People love that."
The former tech engineer said he launched this vision only a few years ago.
"It feels surreal, starting this concept from scratch almost 4 years ago, to cracking the top 10 nationwide," he said.
Yelp's top 100 list is based on the data generated from submissions placed by the site’s users.
What they're saying:
The list also includes reviews from Yelpers. One "The Good Salad" customer, Evelyn T., raved about the Blazing Chicken protein option and the wide variety of salad ingredients.
The user also noted the fast service, saying, "Would rather take this over any fancy-schmancy establishment."
Casual dining spots are popular
Yelp’s list also includes other California restaurants, many of them similarly in the casual dining category.
#6 in the rankings was Wally’s Cafe in Rocklin, Placer County.
Bay Area residents may know the Mediterranean Lebanese cafe’s original location in Emeryville, which has landed on previous Yelp Top 100 lists.
"Owner Walid "Wally" Matar "personally serves up home-cooked Middle Eastern dishes, making new and longtime fans feel welcome," Yelp said in its review.
The most popular dishes on Wally's menu are the chicken shawarma plate, gyros plate, and chicken pomegranate plate.
The owner’s son, Roni Matar, who helps with restaurant operations, shared with KTVU his father’s journey.
Walid Matar emigrated from Lebanon in the 1980s and moved to Europe to study to become a dentist. But living abroad made him miss the food from his home, which led him to discover his own passion to work in the kitchen.
After multiple restaurants in Paris and Bulgaria, he came to California in the early 2000s to live out his "American Dream."
"He wanted to share his Lebanese culture and what better way to do so than through food," the son said.
In 2007, Walid Matar ultimately opened the first Wally’s Café in Emeryville in the back of the Bank Club Café bar on San Pablo Avenue.
"The locals loved the idea of a hole in the wall cooking up traditional homemade Lebanese dishes and they started spreading the word on Yelp," Roni Matar shared. "Today, Wally’s Cafe is a 4-time Yelp Top 100 restaurant."
Wally's Cafe in Rocklin, California, was named #6 in Yelp's 100 Top Places to Eat 2025 list. (Wally's Cafe / Roni Matar)
Northern California favorites
Other Northern California eateries high on the 100 list included sandwich shop Guy’s For Lunch in Roseville in Placer County. It came in at #21.
And in Redwood City, Yelp listed another Mediterranean restaurant, Mazra, among the best, placing it as 29th best in the U.S.
Dig deeper:
"On a top 100 list that spans the globe, Middle Eastern cuisine is the food of the moment," Yelp said, noting #8 The Good Salad's founder Al Souz was born in Iraq. His menu reflects his heritage, featuring fusion specialties like Halal Cajun Chicken Breast.
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California was well represented in the top 100, with the #1 slot going to a Los Angeles favorite-- casual Mexican eatery, Holbox.
Almost half of the top 30 on the list are located in the Golden State.
Each year, Yelp releases its list of top 100 places to eat in the U.S. This is the crowdsourced review site's 11th year.
Here's a look at the top 10:
1. Holbox, Los Angeles
2. Twisted Gyros, Hillsboro, Oregon
3. De Babel, Scottsdale, Arizona
4. Phonomenal, National City (San Diego County)
5. Chellas Arepa Kitchen, Lancaster, Pennsylvania
6. Wally’s Cafe, Rocklin (Placer County)
7. Aroy Mak Thai Food, Seattle
8. The Good Salad, Santa Clara
9. Amy’s French Bakery & Bistro, Pompano Beach, Florida
10. Kaya, Orlando, Florida
Other top California restaurants
21. Guy’s For Lunch, Roseville (Placer County)
29. Mazra, Redwood City
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