Happy Lemon Mango Yakult Smoothie with Boba: My favorite Taiwanese bubble tea chain made its way to Berkeley, located dangerously close to the Downtown Berkeley BART station. This weekend, they're celebrating their opening by offering a buy-one-get-one-free special, which has led to insane lines from Berkeley students. They even taped off a maze-like line on the floor to control the flow of eager lemon-drink enthusiasts. I ordered their mango yakult smoothie along with a lemon black tea (review forthcoming). Immediately upon receiv... (read more) 3.5/5.0
recommended drinks berkeley happylemon mango yakult smoothie boba 3.5
Nature’s Path Apple Pie Crunch granola bars: Crunchy healthful granola bar with a nice spiced apple flavor. Not very sweet, which I especially like. For a mid-day snack, this one is a budget-friendly keeper. 3.5/5.0
recommended granolabars naturespath apple pie crunch granola bars 3.5
Galvanina Blood orange, black carrot, and blueberry sparkling fruit beverage: Organic Italian soda that apparently is sold as Whole Foods branded Italian soda. I purchased this glass bottle from Molinari deli in North Beach, SF (which I also recommend, by the way). While I found it on the sweet side, the addition of carrot was unique and not at all overpowering. The berry, vegetable, and citrus combination is well balanced and worth a try. 3.5/5.0
recommended drinks sodas italian galvanina blood orange black carrot blueberry sparkling fruit beverage 3.5 organic
Dr. Pepper Diet soda: Like most kids, I enjoyed mixing sodas at the fountain Machine whenever my family went out for fast food. Dr. Pepper always reminds me of that, a well-proportioned combination of cola, root beer, and a little something extra (probably cloves and allspice, I'm guessing). Their diet soda is my go-to for vending machine options. 3.5/5.0
recommended drinks drpepper diet soda 3.5
Juice Bar Collective Peanut butter banana shake: Juice Bar Collective is probably my favorite food spot in The Gourmet Ghetto in Berkeley. It's a small worker-owned collective that offers a variety of veggie (and a few meat) entrees like polenta, lasagne, and bahn mi. This may be surprising given the name Juice Bar, but they also had some fantastic beverage options to accompany your meal. The peanut butter and banana shake I had with soy milk had just the right amount of peanut butter without affecting its smooth, creamy consistency. Much ... (read more) 3.5/5.0
recommended drinks shakes berkeley juicebarcollective peanut butter banana shake 3.5