A balanced blend of fruity fusion comes together in açaí bowls and smoothies served at juice bar Juugos located in the D J Plaza across from Mt. San Antonio College at 1321 N Grand Ave in Walnut. Juugos is new to the area and recently had its soft opening on Feb. 4.
The inside of the store is very minimalist and has a lot of comfortable seating options, but the main star of the show is their drinks and bowls. Allan Munoz, owner of Juugos and Walnut High School alumnus, opened the establishment with the intention of providing customers a place to hang out and enjoy refreshments. Munoz decided to start the Juugos business locally because in his experience growing up in Walnut, he would go to local restaurants to spend time with friends after school. He ultimately gained inspiration to give back to his community by creating a smoothie and juice bar where people are brought together through their products, similar to how other businesses did for him. Juugos prides itself on serving items with fresh fruit that is never frozen for the optimum taste.
Juugos offers a wide variety of different toppings, fruits, bases and drizzles for their bowls, allowing customers free unlimited add-ons. The customizable aspect of the bowls is enticing, as there are many options to choose from. If you are stuck on what to order, they also have pre-made classic açaí bowls such as The Juugos Bowl which contains an açaí and pitaya base and toppings such as granola, chia seeds, coconut flakes, almonds, peanut butter and topped with agave, or the Strawberry Nutella Bowl which has açaí base, granola, strawberries, banana, almonds and nutella.
Some of their unique house-made base flavors include ube mango, blue majik (a superfood derived from spirulina, a type of blue algae), cacao, matcha and coconut while they also serve simple flavors like açaí and pitaya (dragon fruit). They also offer many toppings with types of seeds, goji berries, dark chocolate chips, coconut flakes and oats. I ordered two items from Juugos, the Build Your Own açaí bowl priced at $10 for the 12 ounces and the 24 ounces Pineapple Express Smoothie for $8.
For my Build Your Own bowl, I ordered an açaí and coconut base with bananas, dark chocolate chips, chia pudding, overnight oats and chia seeds. The presentation of the açaí bowl was visually pleasing as it was meticulously arranged to showcase all of the toppings. The base is not too sweet and tastes fresh, but also is not too overpowering of the add-ons. There was a generous ratio of toppings to the mixture of açaí and coconut base. I had never added overnight oats to my bowl before, but it added an oatmeal taste and texture which balanced well with the fruity flavors of the base.
The Pineapple Express Smoothie is blended with mango, pineapple, agave and orange juice. The texture was more like a slushie and, in a way, the taste of the smoothie reminded me of dole whip. I really enjoyed how you could taste the hints of citrus along with the pineapple as the fruit was also very fresh. The smoothie was not too sweet and had a slight tartness that complemented the fruity flavor.
I definitely would love to come back to Juugos, as the staff is very welcoming and the overall atmosphere of the shop is very pleasant. In the future, I also want to try more of their premade bowls and experiment with more of the açaí bases such as blue majik or ube mango. Overall, I rate Juugos a 9/10. I really enjoyed my experience, and I was satisfied with the quality of their delicious bowls and smoothies. I would recommend coming to Juugos if you are looking for a spot to meet up with friends or if you are craving a healthier treat.
