Burlington may appear overcrowded with vast options for fast food and chain restaurants, leaving few quick, healthy options available to Elon University students and the community. But, obscured alongside Macho’s Pizza and NC Jelly Donuts lies a new way to detox.
In 2014, Blend Juice Boutique entered the Burlington area. While working in the business world, YC Broadie and her sisters, Crystal and Candra, made their own homemade juices and took them to work.
“One day, a young lady came to my cubicle and asked if I would make her some and she would pay me,” Broadie said. “And all of the sudden, it became a business within another business.”
The sisters began to take and deliver orders around the Greensboro and High Point area, and their business only grew from there.
When looking for a storefront to give her juice a home, Broadie loved the tone of Burlington.
“I felt like it was an overlooked town that had the resources to support a boutique like ours,” she said.
The word “boutique” is an interesting choice of word to describe a place that sells juice, usually referred to as a juice bar, but it fits the space — and the Broadie sisters — perfectly.
“I consider the Blend Juice Boutique to be the hidden gem of Burlington,” said senior Reed Haeckel. “Located in a standard shopping strip, I was so surprised by how bright, happy and upscale it looked inside. Their juices and smoothies are different than anything else you’d find in Burlington. They’re actually healthy without tons of added sugar and are nutritious without sacrificing amazing taste.”
The word “boutique” sets a certain tone for the whole experience of the Blend Juice Boutique — customers enter the space feeling a high-end vibe with products catered specifically to them.
The Blend Juice Boutique looks like a designer clothing store, but with bar stools instead of shelves and colorful juice instead of colorful clothing. According to Broadie, fashion has always been a big part of the lives of the sisters, and they wanted to incorporate that in their business venture.
The Blend Juice Boutique takes into consideration each individual and their needs with a specially researched juice cleanse. The Broadie sisters looked at the ingredients that other companies used in juice cleanses in order to create a whole program, while still adding their own twist to it.
The juice boutique also caters specifically to the vegan community. None of the juices or smoothies have any animal products, which benefits others with allergies.
“I’m not vegan, but I am severely allergic to dairy,” said junior Nelly Gargano. “I have a lot of trouble finding healthy food that’s safe for me to eat in Burlington, so I’m really excited about Blend.”
The Blend Juice Boutique really does offer something for everybody, even for those who don’t like the taste of fruit or vegetables in their drinks: There are Girl Scout Cookie-inspired drinks using carob, a naturally sweet bean with a similar taste to chocolate, instead of chocolate for a healthy twist.
A typical 12-ounce drink costs around $6, with a larger 16-ounce option for $7.50, or a smaller kiddie option.
The menu features cleverly named items such as “Good Morning, Sunshine,” filled with flavors of pineapple, orange, lemon and ginger. Another drink, called “The Earth Says Hello,” was named and had its ingredients chosen by Broadie’s three-year-old nephew. In this green juice, there are collard greens, romaine, parsley, celery, cucumbers, green grapes, apple, pineapple, lemon, ginger and jalapeno.
In addition to juices, there is an interesting smoothie section with options like the “Date Night” smoothie, which has dates, bananas, cinnamon, almond milk, vanilla bean, agave and Himalayan pink salt.
Blend Juice Boutique also offers seasonal juices and smoothies for limited runs in order to ensure that fruits and vegetables are at their best.
The Blend Juice Boutique is located at 3254 S. Church St. in Burlington and is open from 7 a.m to 6 p.m. on weekdays.