To balance out all the pork-belly, Frieze ice cream, chicken & waffles, and Bugatti lasagna I consume on a regular basis, I juice.  The crisp, earthy taste of carrot/spinach/ginger/lemon/kale serves its detoxing purpose to rejuvenate both my body and palate from the heavy diet associated with non-stop restaurant eating.  I usually visit Whole Foods for a kalecious smoothie, but they take 16 years to make one juice, and I rarely feel like shlepping to South Miami.  In the aestheically-driven city of Miami, we’re all so concerned with the shoes on our feet, makeup on our face, and highlights in our hair.  The nutrients and energy that our bodies need should be paramount.   Matthew Sherman is making sure of that.

Matthew Sherman, the man behind Jugofresh {photo courtesy of Miami.com}

The guys at Jugofresh are running a cult-esque juice bar that’s as busy on a Saturday afternoon as the nearby Starbucks. By the time I arrived at 2pm, they were nearly sold out of their entire inventory. People flocked to the counter, buying as many of whatever cold-pressed, unpasteurized juices they could get their hands on.  Even little kids, albeit likely oblivious of the health benefits, were ordering flax seed smoothies.  You’d think Jugofresh was selling water from the Fountain of Youth.  Really, though, they kind of are.

I sampled the animal energy ($4), skin glow ($4), saca lo todo ($8), and vamos green ($10).  Animal Energy (cocoa, green tea macha, guarana, mesquite, yacon, grey sea salt, and alkaline water) is Jugofresh’s substitution for coffee. The small, glass vile of brown liquid shared the distinctive coffee taste, probably from the mesquite, and had a similar pick-me-up effect, from the green tea and guarana.

The Skin Glow (rose water, cucumber, deer antler extract), although a bit too floral for something edible, was sweet and refreshing.  Not a clue what deer antler extract is, but maybe it makes skin glow with the same effect as Rudolph’s red nose?   Saca lo todo (lemon, lime, h20, ginger, cayenne, maple syrup) was essentially a spicy lemonade with a slightly laughable price tag.  The customers didn’t seem to notice, or care, as they bought out every bottle in stock.  The citrus was nicely balanced with the cayenne, but I’d stick to making this myself and purchasing the labor-intensive juices, like the Vamos Green (apple, cucumber, romaine, celery, kale, chard).  The juice was delicious.  Seriously people, these cold-pressed juices are tasty and good for you.  The physical health benefits are so worth the $10 price tag, and not having to prep 10 pounds of fruits/veggies and clean a juicer yourself is an added bonus.

In a town of bottle-popping, smoke-filled clubs, pork-heavy food trucks, and Cuban coffee stands (my fave, no complaints), Matthew and the Jugofresh team are a welcome, much-needed addition to Miami. My only qualm is that they need to add a Brickell location so I don’t have to drive to South Beach for my juice fix.  After yoga at Green Monkey, workout apparel shopping at Lululemon, or a night of binge eating at the Pubbelly trifecta (all located within the block), grab a Jugofresh juice to “restart”.  Your body will thank you later.

-Shari