You probably know that every healthy adult should consume three to five servings of vegetables and two to four servings of fruit each day. Many of us fall sadly short of that goal most days. Fresh vegetable and fruit juices are a quick and tasty way to get the nutrients we need in an easy-to-digest form. Recently I checked out several Chicago juice bars (we’ll look at the suburban options in another article), most of which are part of a health food store, health club, or restaurant. Many of the health food stores had a wide variety of green veggies, while the health clubs made sure there were plenty of sweet options as well.
In addition to juices, many bars also offer powdered "boosters" — a scoop of bee pollen, brewer’s yeast, soy protein, or several other additives for around a dollar extra. Most also offer fresh wheatgrass juice, which is said to fight bacteria, raise red blood cell counts, and cleanse the liver and other organs. All the wheatgrass I sampled was priced between one and two dollars for one ounce, and the freshest (and naturally sweetest) was at Water Tower Place’s Foodlife Juice Bar. Some bars will sweeten your wheatgrass for another dollar or so; Bonne Santé in Hyde Park offers a Wheatgrass Julep with pineapple and mint. Other bars will offer to dilute it for you. This, of course, increases the volume you have to drink, so it will take you more than a swallow to get it down. Personally, I suggest you stick with the shot, and have something fruity on hand for a chaser if necessary.
In fact, If your diet is primarily "traditional American" (high-fat, high-sugar) and you’ve never juiced before, you may want to ease in with a fruit blend — make sure it includes some apple — and milder-tasting veggies like carrots. Then gently work up to spinach, kale, and celery. Try more than one mix — with the selection of veggies and fruits out there, there’s bound to be a blend for everyone. I found variety and opportunities for creative combinations in some surprising places.
Loop
Brian’s Juice Bar and Deli, 80 E. Lake St., 312-332-3435. Brian’s brings juice to the lunching masses. The pace is fast, the service is good and there’s a small counter at which to sit or stand. Choose any three of the nineteen veggies and fruits available and create your own perfect blend ($3.25 for 16 oz.) to drink after a visit to the gym next door, or to add a tangy side-drink to your salad or sub sandwich. My carrot-tomato-spinach was fresh and sweet — don’t let the color fool you!
Foodlife Juice Bar, Water Tower Place Mezzanine Level, 800 N. Michigan Ave., 312-335-3663. Foodlife is part of a "food court" that’s crowded and a bit loud during the lunch hour, but the staff is hard at work to move you through the line quickly. Vegetable blends are between $3.00 and $4.00 and available in 12 or 16 oz. sizes, and smoothies are also under $4.00. Because of the high volume, everything is fresh and tasty, and this makes the wheatgrass juice come out the way it should — smooth and not the least bit bitter.
Kramer’s Health Food, 230 S. Wabash Ave., 312-922-0077. Kramers’ Juice bar is upstairs, above a store selling supplements, health products, and books. It’s no-nonsense, roomy, and quiet (and quiet is not easy to find in the South Loop), but it could use a new floor. They offer lunches, including vegetarian burritos and organic pasta, and a variety of vegetable, fruit, and booster drinks. A 16 oz. plain carrot juice is under $3.00; the price increases as you add other vegetables. Carrot, celery, parsley, beet, spinach, and ginger, as well as fresh wheatgrass, are available. I suggest including all or most of those veggies in your drink, as the carrot-celery blend was a bit bland.
It’s Natural, 324 N. Michigan Ave., 312-332-3435. It’s Natural, a health food and supplement store, has a friendly, welcoming juice bar curving around the back, with a couple of high tables. Blended juices with names like Slim Jim and Body Cleanser (most with at least four ingredients — some organic) cost between $3.00 and $5.00 — most around $4.00 for 16 oz. Boosters are $1.00, and the list of extras is more varied than most; it includes Kava Kava, Damiana, and Lecithin. Energy shakes, smoothies, sandwiches, and healthy snacks are tempting and plentiful. Staff is generous and helpful — taking the time to make your juice "just so."
Wishbone, 1001 W. Washington Blvd., 312-850-2663. For just $2.75, you can enjoy a full-size glass of carrot-apple-beet-ginger-celery, or any combination thereof, with your stick-to-the-ribs healthy southern homestyle meal. Plain orange or carrot juice is around $2.00. The dining area is roomy and bustling, and the menu contains vegetarian fare, along with Wishbone’s famous crab cakes. The juice had less of a kick than some, but it was smooth and honest and complemented the food well.
North
Cousins Restaurant, 5203 N. Clark St., 773-334-4553. Cousin’s, a cozy Mediterranean restaurant, boasts its organic juice bar in neon in the window. You may choose from beet-celery-ginger, mixed greens, apple, and carrot, for around $3.00-4.00, alone or with tasty dinners (the menu includes a good selection of vegetarian fare). The beet-celery-ginger didn’t do much for me — the ingredients seemed to mix together to give a bit of a bite. If you want your juice "to go," be sure you emphasize this upon ordering, as most patrons are there for dinner.
Energia Juice Bar at Cheetah Gym, 5248 N. Clark St., 773-728-7777. Cheetah Gym is easy to spot with its floor-to-ceiling windows and classy varnished-wood trim. Energia is sunny and comfy; in summer, you can sip your juice, smoothies, or protein drinks, along with made-to-order sandwiches, salads, and wraps, outside. In fact, I recommend that, unless you’re able to tune out the whirr-huff and thump of the treadmills behind you. Pure orange, apple, or carrot juice costs only $1.75 for 12 oz.; for blends, a 12 oz. drink costs around $2.00 and 16 oz. costs around $4.00. For veggie-lovers, the bar features the Botanical Garden, which blends tomato, celery, spinach, green pepper, cucumber, parsley, beet, lemon, and carrot. If you’re looking for more of a sweet-and-fruity, I highly recommend the Athlete: grape, pineapple, strawberry, carrot, and apple. This is a thicker juice, but it goes down easily. It’s a tasty treat without any sort of honey or sweetener.
Here’s Health, 22 W. Maple Ave., 312-397-1501. Here you can choose a carrot or celery base, and add three veggies (mostly green ones, but garlic and onion are included too). 12 oz. blends are under $3.00; 24 oz. are around $5.00. Fruit smoothies, sandwiches, soups, and baked goods are also available, and there are a few bar stools where you can unwind with your juice and one of the numerous healthy snacks they sell. Staff recommends the Green Giant — and if you like mixed greens — thick, dark, earthy, not-sweet greens — this is for you.
Jamba Juice, 2800 N. Clark St., 773-755-8472. Jamba Juice is a juice-and-smoothie chain that’s appeared in numerous places lately, including Whole Foods stores, usually near the salad bar. The free-standing Jambas have a crowd and a wait to rival any coffee bar, but the high volume makes the ingredients fresh and the prices slightly lower than most. The selection of pure juices is rather low: it’s mostly restricted to orange-carrot and orange-banana, or a shot of wheatgrass. At 16, 24, and 32 oz., the juice blends are all around $3.00-4.00. The carrot-orange is sweet and refreshing, but watch for orange seeds coming up fast through the wide-gauge straw.
Karyn’s Fresh Corner, 3351 Lincoln Ave., 773-281-7708. Karyn’s offers organic vegetable and fruit juices, along with herbal elixirs, fruit-nut smoothies, a raw bar, raw entrées and sushi rolls. You can enjoy them in the bright, roomy, comfy dining area, at tables or on velvety couches. Wheatgrass, fresh-cut or still-growing, is available for purchase, along with other healthy groceries. Juices are available in three sizes, priced from $2.50-$7.00, and the Summer Cooler hit the spot with its tangy-sweet blend of apple, lemon, and carrot.
Lifespring Health Foods and Juice Bar, 3178 N. Clark St., 773-327-1023. Lifespring, on Clark just south of Belmont (and also in Webster Place mall at Webster and Clybourn, 773-832-0000), packs an impressive number of supplements into a small space, and its juice bar at the back offers 9, 12, 16, and 32 oz. juice blends for around $2.00, $3.00, $4.00, and $5.00 respectively. Wheatgrass (fresh or frozen), energy drinks, and yogurt with honey are also available. The staff is polite and helpful, and the juice is smooth and low in pulp and froth. The carrot-celery-beet-ginger has a clean, straightforward vegetable taste.
Quad’s Gym and Juice Bar, 3727 N. Broadway Ave., 773-404-7867. Quad’s Juice Bar is completely separate from the gym. It’s part of the pro-shop, so you get that same athletic feel without the sweaty people walking by. They make yummy juice, with names like Energetic and Alert, and I would return for more despite the dark grey windowless walls. I especially enjoyed Vigorous, a carrot-apple-orange-celery-lemon blend, which was sweet, thick, and tangy. One size is available (16 oz.) for around $4.00.
Wishbone, 3300 N. Lincoln Ave., 773-549-2663. See Loop listing for Wishbone on Washington.
South
Bonne Santé Health Foods, 1512 E. 53rd St., 773-667-5700. Bonne Santé offers the unique extra service of bring-your-own-ingredients juicing for $1.50/liter. Their carrot-apple-beet was not as full bodied as others I tasted, and was lower on the apple, so less sweet. But if you bring your own ingredients, you can adjust the proportions. There’s no place to sit, but the service is good and you can choose your own combinations from carrot, celery, cabbage, cucumber, beet, apple, and spinach. Nine-ounce blends are under $3.00, 16 oz. are under $4.00, and 32 oz. are around $6.00.
Hy-Tek Nutrition, 3304 W. 87th St., 773-436-3000. Hy-tek Juice Bar on 87th, also part of a health food store, had friendly, knowledgeable staff and a large chain health club right next door. You can choose from a combination of carrot, apple, beet and/or celery for a reasonable $2.50, $3.50, and $4.50 for 16, 20, and 32 oz., respectively. There wasn’t much room to sit down, but the carrot-apple-beet blend was sweet, full, and smooth.
Southtown Health Foods, 2100 W. 95th St., 773-233-1856. While the prices were competitive (around $4.00 for a 16 oz. carrot or carrot-vegetable mix juice, around $2.00 for a 9 oz. blend), the selection and service here were wanting, as was the taste. I don’t recommend trying to park in the crowded lot; the stress it causes is decidedly unhealthful. If you can walk, bike, or bus there, though (and aren’t those options better for both yourself and the environment?), the store is a very worthwhile stop for supplements, books, and fresh organic items.
So...get creative. Find your favorite juice blend, make it a habit, and keep your eyes open for new juice bars. Sooner or later, there’s likely to be one just around the corner from you. Hey, coffee on every corner sounded strange once, too.