The anticipation has been near-unbearable for Chris Roberts, owner of The Juice Cellar, the new juice bar and vegan restaurant that opened Friday in downtown Bangor. He signed the lease on the space that would hold his animal product-free and gluten-free eatery way back in August and originally planned to open just before Thanksgiving.
The last weekend of January, after two months of delays due to unexpected difficulties with the extensive renovations on the long-vacant space adjacent to the Maine Discovery Museum, he was finally able to fire up his juicers and get to work.
“It has been quite a journey,” Roberts said. “Every day I’ve had people knocking on the door or asking me on the street, ‘When are you opening? I can’t wait!’ Well, I can’t wait either. I just want to start making food. That’s the fun part.”
Roberts, a Bangor native who opened his first Juice Cellar juice bar in downtown Belfast in 2013, has had his eye on the Bangor market since the beginning. While some might say a vegan eatery and juice bar might not work in Bangor — no meat? No cheese? No milk? What? — Roberts was unconvinced.
“Just in the past five years alone, the generalized knowledge about vegan diets and gluten-free diets has exploded,” Roberts said. “I’d be willing to bet there aren’t many people out there who don’t know at least someone who is avoiding gluten, or dairy, or doesn’t eat meat. It is not a fringe thing anymore.”
Roberts’ family has a long history in the Bangor area — in the early 20th century, they ran Economy’s Market on Central Street, a produce seller that boasted the slogan “A basket of fruit is a basket of health.” To commemorate that family legacy, Roberts commissioned Bangor artist Kat Johnson to paint a mural incorporating that phrase onto one of the walls of the space — the finished product is brightly colored and can be seen from the street.
The primary focus of The Juice Cellar will, of course, be juice and smoothies. Fresh pressed, made to order juices, with no added anything. Just straight fruits and vegetables, priced at $5 for 12 ounces or $6 for 16 ounces. A 12 ounce glass of Soul Shine, one of the most popular juices Roberts sells, contains a full pound of carrots, the juice of two oranges and two big jolts of cayenne pepper and ginger. You’re getting your money’s worth — as well as a huge dose of nutrition.
“It’s a very easy way to get a lot of good stuff and a jolt of energy,” Roberts said. “It’s a really easy way to treat yourself and feel better.”
Aside from juices, Roberts will also offer in the Bangor location a selection of vegan and gluten-free salads and snacks. The salads and grain bowls include things like Roots & Wild Rice Bowl, which mixes warm, soft-roasted sweet potatoes, celeriac, beets and red peppers with wild rice and toasted pumpkin seeds, tossed with kale and a maple mustard dressing. There’s also the Southern Hospitality, which mixes barbecued chickpeas and quinoa with avocado, tomato, sprouts and greens, topped with smoked paprika dressing, among many other dishes available.
In the cooler, those who shun animal products can buy Roberts’ house-made nut cheeses — yes, it’s cheese made from cashews, which makes a creamy and cheese-like texture that many prefer to soy-based cheeses. There’s also an array of artisanal sodas and beverages, and some nutritional supplements and vegan candies — and, to the delight of coffee fiends, there’s pour-over coffee made with beans from Lincolnville-based Green Tree Coffee & Tea.
The big thing Roberts has in the works will be a once-weekly prix-fixe three-course vegan dinner, probably on Friday nights, as well as a weekend brunch. He hopes to launch both sometime in the spring.
“We want to get the kinks out with the regular business first, of course, but eventually that’s the plan — vegan sit-down dining. There’s no place for that in the area,” Roberts said.
The Juice Cellar will be open from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., Mondays through Saturdays. For more information, visit thejuicecellar.com or like them on Facebook.
