Anyone who has ever been into juicing knows that it’s a deceptively simple process of staying on top of your health. What could be so complicated about throwing a bunch of vegetables and fruits into the juicer?
Many do not realize that it takes about four apples to make an 8-oz drink, or nine medium-sized carrots to make a cup of juice. Keeping up with the weekly expenses of buying organic fruits and vegetables is the easy part. The real challenge is cleaning that juicer.
A typical juicer has at least a dozen different parts that need to be washed regularly. Since you’ll need to drink the juice within 20 minutes for best results, prepping ingredients and washing the juicer will take up a chunk of your time every day.
That’s why Chateau 1771 Group executive chef and COO Vicky Pacheco eventually gave up on juicing, a lifestyle she pursued when she had a health crisis in 2008.
“I think that’s why juice bars are so popular right now. First, you cannot juice everything; you have leftovers that you throw away. Second, it’s so hard to wash the juicer,” Pacheco told Lifestyle.
Instead of adding a function room to Chateau 1771 at One Bonifacio High Street in Bonifacio Global City, Taguig, Pacheco said management decided to open Juicery by Chateau 1771 adjacent to the restaurant. Juicery offers gourmet juices, smoothies, shakes and light snacks.
As part of the Chateau 1771, Juicery boasts of the same commitment to quality. Its yogurt supplier, for instance, is Pinkie’s Farm, the single-origin dairy company located in Lipa, Batangas. Single origin means all products come from only one farm so they know what goes into their products. Everything is all-natural with no preservatives and additives, and produced only by grass-fed cows.
Sugar used is palm sugar sourced from Iligan. Palm sugar is natural sugar because it involves minimum processing contains no chemicals.
Real milk
“I don’t like adding powdered milk. Some put powdered milk because it’s cheap and it makes the drink creamy. But I only use real milk,” Pacheco said. “Fruits and vegetables are all natural and fresh. We do not use reinforcements like fruit juices.”
Juicery is a grab-and-go concept with seven juices and smoothies “with a purpose” to choose from.
Complementing flavors
As someone who has been working in the food industry for decades—Pacheco has been with Chateau 1771 for 31 years—she knows how a product’s taste is of utmost importance. The ingredients need to complement each other, taste-wise.
Kale, for instance, is paired with strawberries to counter its peculiar bitter flavor. Strawberry Kale smoothie is now one of Juicery’s bestsellers.
Juices are designed to address a specific need or want but anyone can have whatever pleases them. The Big Vibe with apples, beets, oranges and lemons is suitable for those who want to lose weight. It detoxifies the body and is also recommended for those with high cholesterol.
There’s a drink called Memories with ingredients to boost memory; Let It Flow, for the constipated; Strawberry Fields, for a kidney cleanse; On Your Feet, for weight loss, fatigue, and high blood pressure; Purify, for detox; and Jumpstart, for an energy boost.
“A single ingredient needs to have multiple uses, so nothing will spoil, and everything will move,” Pacheco said.
Romaine Caesar salad can be ordered with shredded chicken or quinoa. Pink Detox Salad is made of pomelo, kale, watermelon, walnuts, goat cheese and
yogurt-pomegranate dressing. Most salads are vegetarian and those that aren’t can be altered for vegetarians, such as Asian Steak Tips that can be served without beef.
Since kale is the “it” vegetable today, Juicery also offers Kale Caesar served either plain or with shredded chicken or quinoa. Pacheco said she learned a trick in Toronto that tames the bitter taste of kale and softens its tough leaves.
There are fruit cups and vegetarian soups to go. All products have options to go sugar-free.
Juicery by Chateau 1771: 2/F One Bonifacio High Street Mall, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig
