The usual beach spot for my friends and I at the Jersey Shore is Belmar. This was established a long time ago in our high school days because it had a young blood vibe. But more importantly, it was the closest beach to us west Jersey kids that had real food and a boardwalk. Even though I am a Lavallette girl at heart, Belmar became an even hotter commodity this summer because of a discovery we (and a thousand other people) had made.
Since laying on the beach requires so much energy, we became parched and hungry under the hot, summer sun. Naturally we desired a cold, iced smoothie. Right off of 17th Avenue in Belmar, a young, fit, and energetic woman was serving smoothies from a small stand. We all put in our unique order, banana-strawberry-mango, banana-protein-peanut butter, and blueberry-coconut-orange. And all of it was yum! It wasn’t until the next day trip when we discovered that there was a much larger stand, actually a storefront on Ocean Avenue right between 8th and 9th that sold fruit cups named “Playa Bowls.” Even though we had seen pictures on Instagram, we had no idea what a Playa Bowl was but it seemed to be catching the wave of a new phenomenon. The pictures of Playa Bowls had a lot of color and there looked like there was chocolate and granola on the top so we were in.
Little did we know, it became the answer to all of our prayers. The base of most of Playa Bowls consists of acai and pitaya, superfruits native to Latin America. Pizza and fries are nice and all, but I really don’t want to be sitting on a beach stuffing my face with greasy food. Playa Bowls with its various toppings of fruit, granola, nuts, honey, coconut, peanut butter, protein, almond butter, and bee pollen, makes it a more economical, healthy, and diverse option. And what is even better about this fruit is that it is the labor of Rutgers Business School Alumni! According to an article published by the Rutgers Business School, a full-time MBA alumnus Desi Saran and Rutgers graduate, Robert Giuliani, along with the young, fit, energetic woman that had served me my smoothie, Abby Taylor, were the founders of Playa Bowls. As the winners of the Rutgers’s Business School’s annual business plan competition, they received $20,000! With this money they opened their new, more stable location and continued to operate their 17th Avenue stand and opened a new one in Manasquan! The power of American capitalism and entrepreneurialism at its best here people!
The storefront in Belmar is open all year so head down the shore to taste a little bit of summer and find out why you will fall in love with such a tasty treat:
1. Flexible with the season.
Playa Bowls isn’t limited to the summer months but has transformed its menu to every season! Whether it is a pumpkin spice bowl topped with apples and caramel in the Halloween spirit, a green bowl to meet those New Year’s resolutions, or hot and sweet oatmeal, the staff is whipping up new ideas for every season! Mint for the winter and dragonfruit for the summer, soups for January and iced coffee for July mornings.
2. Hip with the times.
Since it is a store run by our generation, Playa Bowls has easily taken to social media and created a massive following that continues to grow. Posting the original pictures of their fans on their Instagram page, the staff is creating a stronger relationship with their regular and new customers. They recently became very interactive with their followers by allowing them to place their order on the Playa Bowl’s website! Talk about genius.
3. Healthy.
What a bowl of health. Even the protein bowl with peanut butter on top is healthy and a highly more nutritional choice than nacho cheese fries. At least that is what I tell myself.
4. Doesn’t break the bank.
Let’s look at it this way: You are going to spend money whether or not you made a homemade lunch, so you might as well put that money into a great business. Bowls and smoothies vary from $7 to $9 dollars and act as one of your full meals…believe me, you are plenty full after eating one! $7-$9 is cheaper than any wrap, burger, or salad you can often get after you order drinks and pay a tip.
5. Playa is art.
Judging from their high-tech website and Instagram account, the folks at Playa are not only artsy and savvy online but also bring their creativity to life!
6. Playa workers are like busy bees.
Every time I walked into Playa Bowls this summer, which was a lot for a non-Belmar native, the staff was moving like lightning speed-chopping up fruit, pouring the smoothie into the bowls, dashing to the register, and fixing ingredients. The only time I have seen someone work harder is in a restaurant that had a waitress cover ten tables and three large parties. So Playa staff I admire your hard work inside the store while the Belmarians get their tans on.
7. Kept, crafted, and painted.
The inside of the store has the most intriguing photography of Chris Spiegal, owner of Blur Revision Media Design and sells hand-crafted ornaments from local artists. Along with the bowls of joy, the store gives off a fresh bohemian tang without taking away from the feel of the good ol' Jersey shore.
Remember #GoBowlsDeep!
For a more in depth experience of Playa Bowls, visit their website at http://www.playabowls.com/. Also follow them on Instagram @playabowls, https://www.instagram.com/playabowls/!
To read more about the Rutgers Business School article about Playa Bowls visit the address, http://www.business.rutgers.edu/news/business-plan-competition-winners-open-first-storefront-playa-bowls-flourishes-jersey-shore.
