There’s juice and then there’s California juice.  Nobody takes it to the level of art that they do here.  There are dozens of juice bars all over the city offering uber-healthy concoctions meant to boost your longevity, make you feel good about what you’re putting into your body, and delight the taste buds with combinations that are surprisingly good (though I’m still not sure about the charcoal lemonade).

 

Juice is not all that’s sold either – there are infusions, elixirs, and super-vitamin shots in faux syringes with names and packaging so effective that it’s difficult to believe that a two-inch bottle of something called “Germ Warfare” wouldn’t cure the worst cold in a matter of minutes.  Herewith are a few of the highlights, and some inspiration for whipping up one of these restoratives at home:

From Juice Served Here:

Charcoal Lemonade with activated charcoal, lemon, alkaline water, raw cane sugar, montmorillonite clay

Block-rockin’ Beets with beets, carrots, jalapeno, cilantro and tomatoes

The Pipe Cleaner with apple, lemon and ginger

From Erewhon:

Lavender lemonade and rose water

From Kreation:

Serenity, with turmeric, lemon, agave, ginger and cayenne

Emergency C Juicekriptions with grapefruit seed extract, camu camu, red pepper, orange, tangerine, strawberry and lemon

Skin elixir with aloe vera, cucumber, chia seeds, orange and lemon juice

From LA Juice:

Moon Smoothie with strawberry, blueberry, pineapple, beets, cabbage, almond milk and bee pollen