Juice bar creating nutritious fast food

Describe your business.

Fruits & Roots offers raw cold-pressed juice, wellness shots, acai bowls, super-food smoothies, wellness bowls and wraps on the go. Our menu is organic and gluten free. Our packaging is eco-friendly and made from plants.

What inspired you to create Fruits & Roots? Why Las Vegas?

The concept sprouted in 2010 after I had hit a wall trying to find healthy food options that were fast and convenient. It began to take root over the next few years with a compilation of recipes and notes that I scribbled as I cooked for family and friends, and random visions of design. In 2012, I had premature twins and my hobby turned into a fervent passion. My twins were born at 27 weeks with life-threatening complications. I read every book on health I could get my hands on, looking to ensure I gave my babies every chance at a healthy life. Outside of love, it became obvious that a nutritious diet was the best thing I could do for my babies to overcome any issues they may have due to their prematurity. When they began pre-K and I couldn’t take them anywhere for a healthy snack, I decided to take the concept from notes to reality.

What is cold-pressed juice?

Cold-pressed juice is a process in which tons of pressure is applied to fresh fruits and veggies via a hydraulic press to extract their juice, without the application of nutrient-killing heat. You’re left with unprocessed, antioxidant-rich, liquid goodness that hits you on a cellular level.

What is your business philosophy?

We believe in the importance of fueling our bodies with real food, direct from Mother Nature. We make everything in house from scratch and without unnatural and unhealthy fillers. If it’s not nutritious, we won’t serve it. And contrary to some people’s opinion, healthy doesn’t have to be tasteless.

What is the hardest part about doing business in Las Vegas?

It can be frustrating at times to compete in a market with businesses that aren’t transparent about the products they serve. It is difficult to bite your tongue knowing what others market as healthy is far from it.

What is the best part about doing business here?

Las Vegans tend to support movements with passion. The food movement is just making way and the community is definitely embracing it. Being able to provide a nutritious option in fast food and seeing such a positive response is gratifying. We are opening our second location soon at Town Square and have no plans to stop there.

Tell us about sponsoring the CH Decker Elementary School garden.

We donate 100 percent of our gratuities to Green Our Planet. Nutrition and good health in children start when they are young. The Green Our Planet program not only teaches children how to grow their own, but also teaches the fundamentals of farmers markets and garden labor. The children actually eat the food they grow, thus broadening their palate. Green Our Planet’s mission and ours come together and form a great chemistry.