Pressed Juicery’s “Freeze” is Revolutionizing Fro-Yo

Pressed Juicery is arguably the best juice bar in New York City, and not just because they were early adopters of the trend. The new innovations they’ve made using cold-pressed, non-GMO juices are changing the game of how it is consumed.

Take, for example, their colorful superfood lemonades and their “freeze” option– a signature method of making sorbet and “fro-yo” out of frozen juices and nut milks. By presenting culturally ‘sexy’ idea through the lens of superfoods, Pressed has made them more accessible.

The ingredients chosen for their superfood lemonades– a collaboration to honor Vogue‘s 125th Anniversary– were selected for antioxidant and skin hydrating properties. Their good-for-you Pink Lemonade, which features lemon, pitaya, rose water, goji berry, camu camu, captured Instagram’s heart alongside it’s, Pressed’s bright blue lemonade, which was colored with blue spirulina.

“Bold colors are really trending right now,” Hayden Slater, one of the brand’s co-founders, told us when the collaboration was still ongoing. Slater was quick to acknowledge the culturally salient aesthetics that made the colorful juices so appealing.

“I’ve never seen color like what was in our two lemonades that wasn’t artificial,” he said. “It was all about education– taking a lemonade and adding functional benefits to it, making it aspirational, functional, and fun.”

Even more innovative, however, is Pressed’s “Freeze” option, which does for juice and nutmilks what 16 Candles did for Fro-Yo.

Freeze is soft-serve made from 100% fruits, nuts, and vegetables (its non-dairy, gluten-free, and has no refined sugars). One can add toppings just like at an icecream bar, the likes of which include: blueberries, strawberries, shaved almonds, coconut, chia seeds, almond butter, cacao drizzle, honey, and other fruits, seeds, and nuts.

This particular innovation initially began with green juice, which remains their most popular option. “People just want the nutrition,” Slater adds. (At Pressed, drinks are formulated based on scientific research and an awareness of what superfoods people are looking for in juice at any given time– another aspect of their business model that sets Pressed apart from some industry peers.)

“Freeze took about 2 years to develop; some people interpret it as a soft serve— but its an alternative to fro-yo or ice-cream made from 100% produce; no binders or chemicals,” Slater points out. “It’s really our way of celebrating health and wellness, and also educating people. Education is not just what you read or having a conversation; its through trial.”

On a recent visit to the shop, an older man in a suit gets a freeze “sundae” to go. “People come in asking for 5 Size-2 vanillas that they keep in their freezer at home,” a cashier knowingly whispers.

Of course, for each boundary broken there must be an equal and opposite experiment. The brand’s “Heat” option rides the wave of interest in herbal tonics by introducing five plant-based lattes made without coffee.

The Turmeric Latte, Vanilla Almond Latte, Matcha Latte, Beetroot Latte, and Immunity Tonic (made with apple, ginger, lemon, and cayenne) reimagine morning drinks as vehicles for healing superfoods– a boon to those who loved the Unicorn Latte.

Bursting with the expected bright colors and nutrient profile to match, they are perfect fodder for Instagrammers: a quick hashtag search on Instagram reveals over 38,000 entries for #turmericlatte alone.

Pressed’s “Freeze” option does for juice and nutmilks what 16 Candles did for Fro-Yo.

Ultimately, however, the brand’s ethos of “Make it Delicious / Make it Nutritious / Make it Accessible / Make it Affordable / Make it for Everyone” boils down to humility and a willingness to experiment with the tropes that many people are conditioned to doubt or rolls their eyes at– until, that is, they try them.

As a result of this success, Pressed is currently working on expanding the Freeze and Heat options to all of their locations in various cities across the U.S.

“We didn’t invent juice,” Slater is quick to note.

“Juice has been around for thousands of years… but what we do is put a lot of heart and soul into creating something that’s for everyone– every shape, size, and color, whether they’re a kid, a woman, a man, or older– whether they’re ‘living the lifestyle’ or not doesn’t matter; they can walk into a store and find something for them.

That’s more important than anything else.”