By Lindsay Murray
Baltimore Watchdog Staff Writer
In an age when some people are looking for healthy food choices, one local business is trying to capitalize on its all-veggie menu.
Voted “Baltimore’s Best Juice Bar” by Baltimore Magazine in 2017 and the Baltimore Sun’s People’s Choice “Best Juice Bar” and “Healthiest Eats” in 2019, Pure Raw Juice has been expanding throughout the region over the past few years.
“We’re blessed to have the best customers on the planet,” said Pure Raw Juice Marketing Manager Nicolo Massa. “They have shown us so much love and support over the past few years since we opened the first PRJ in Federal Hill. They are the reason for our success thus far.”
Pure Raw Juice was founded on Jan. 1, 2015. It has since expanded to five new locations around the Baltimore area, including one in Bel Air that opened on Oct. 24.
“There’s a lot of excitement about it but, man, there’s a lot of stressors and a lot of hard times,” said Pure Raw Juice General Manager Adam Armstrong. “I’ll tell you what, when you finally get ready to open up that door it’s awesome and it’s worth it all.”
PRJ has been growing and expanding its customer base for several years. The juice bar did not do any traditional advertising in the beginning when it first opened, relying on word of mouth.
“It’s crazy because I was there when there was 15 people a day coming in,” Armstrong said. “I got to witness it go from 15 to 30 to 50 to 80 to 100 to 200. Just to see that growth and how quick it happened was pretty awesome.”
PRJ now sees upwards of 400 customers a day depending on the time of year, location, and day of the week.
The juice bar’s first establishment is at 1401 Riverside Ave in Baltimore near Federal Hill The four other stores are located in Towson, Hampden, Locust Point and Bel Air.
The juice bar’s menu includes smoothies, acai bowls, coffee, lemonade, and juices. All products are plant-based and vegan and can range anywhere between $5 to $15.
Pure Raw Juice has built a strong audience on social media with over 12,700 followers on Instagram.
“Our mission on social media is to make healthy food look awesome – because when people get excited by a picture of an acai bowl or someone drinking juice – it creates an opportunity for that person to seek healthy options and potentially change their life,” Massa said.
First time customer’s Brian Melton and Starr Rasheed got drawn in by driving past PRJ as well as seeing them on social media. Rasheed said she specifically ordered the traditional acai bowl after seeing a photograph of the dish on social media.
“My friend got one of these and she posted a picture and she tagged it,” Rasheed said. “So, then I went onto the Instagram and I was like, ‘This looks good.’”
Massa said the company tries to respond to every single customer comment, DM, mention and review across their social platforms.
“This is a lot of work, but it’s worth it because we get to thank and appreciate everyone who fuels their healthy lifestyle with us,” Massa said. “We want all of our customers to feel appreciated.”
Massa said the acai bowl is the most popular dish. “They are beautiful, easy to get a great picture of and they make people want to eat healthy,” he said.
Customers like Kristin Malmquist agree. She said she comes to the Towson PRJ about once a week and almost always orders an acai bowl.
“We just love it,” Malmquist said of the juice bar. “The products are really fresh and healthy but it tastes really good.”
Some customers say they visit the juice bar every day.
“When I first started coming, I was coming here every day,” said Jason Bennett, a regular customer at the Towson location. “I literally came here every day for like three weeks and then now it’s kind of tailed back a little bit only because it’s out of the way.”
Not only do the customers love fueling up, but the employees say they enjoy their work environment and the people around them.
“I really like it, it’s really fun, everyone is really relaxed and we have a good time working together,” said Pure Raw Juice employee Avery Garvin.
Employee Natalie Sepulveda has also enjoyed her time so far at PRJ.
“I love it, it’s amazing. Everyone is super chill, super nice, easy to get along with,” Sepulveda said.
“It’s really an honor to work with this company and work with this crew,” Armstrong added. “It’s an honor to serve the greater Baltimore area community.”
One reason PRJ has been so successful, Massa said, is because there is a demand for healthier options in the Baltimore area.
“There is definitely a growing demand for healthy food in Baltimore,” Massa said. “I think that PRJ is contributing to the demand for healthy food in Baltimore by consistently serving delicious products, participating in as many local events as possible, and, as we grow, I believe we are showing other businesses that they can thrive by serving healthy, plant-based foods to Baltimore.”
Armstrong, who has lived in Baltimore for about 12 years, said he noticed that there hasn’t been a lot of healthy options with so many bars, pizza shops, and delis. PRJ has had a direct impact on the Baltimore area and is helping to increase consumer access to healthier food options, he said.
“I just think that we’ve helped take it to another level, especially for awareness of different nutritional items that can be plant-based and healthy for you,” Armstrong added.