Making your own meals may be the most-healthful way to eat, but churning out three nourishing meals day after day is not a realistic scenario for most time-strapped home cooks. Here are some of the restaurants that have broken through with a commitment to mindful ingredient sourcing and balanced menus, offering creative selections and welcoming atmospheres.

With locations in New York and the Washington, D.C. area., The Little Beet is a favorite for health-minded on-the-go diners. The gluten-free, largely paleo- and Whole30-friendly menu — with plenty of vegan options — includes globally influenced creations, like grilled avocado garnished with "super seeds," and sweet potato mac and cheese with brown rice pasta.

Chef collaborations and seasonal updates keep things current at Sweetgreen, the always-packed-at-lunchtime sustainable-salad empire founded in 2007 by then-Georgetown University students Nicolas Jammet, Jonathan Neman and Nathaniel Ru. Seasonal options round out a year-round menu of options like the Rad Thai, with organic arugula and mesclun, citrus shrimp and spicy cashew dressing, and the warm Harvest Bowl, packed with organic wild rice, roasted chicken and toasted almonds. Each of the Sweetgreen locations, in Washington, D.C., California, Chicago, Massachusetts, Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, and Virginia, are propelled by alliances with some 500 local farmers and growers.

First opened in 2005 as an elevated mom-and-pop alternative to classic New York-style delis, Freshii was a near-instant success. There are now several hundred locations around the globe, serving spicy lemongrass soup, teriyaki brown rice bowls, honey-Dijon dressed spinach salads, and even low-fat probiotic frozen yogurt crowned with walnut and mango. Come for breakfast ,when scrambled egg, aged cheddar, and black bean burritos await, or sign up for one of the 5-Day Cleanses fueled by juices like the beet-lemon-ginger-carrot Red Power.