Greenhouse Juice

After some time, I’ve learned to appreciate this place a bit more. While I still think the points from my previous review are applicable, I find the value here much better than other juicing places. LIVE Food bar’s juices are sold in stores around the PATH for not much less than here, and they aren’t paying the cost of renting their own unit. On top of that, Greenhouse actually gives you a pretty good quality glass bottle, whereas LIVE’s are plastic. The glass bottle, if you were to get it yourself, would probably cost you a pretty dollar or two. There’s also another place in the path called Belmonte Raw and their juices are even pricier than Greenhouse’s.
So if cold-​pressed, organic juice is your thing, then Greenhouse is a good spot to pick it up at.

The good: The juice is tasty. I prefer it over what I endearingly call «mall juice». You know, the kind where they put oranges or other fruits plus protein into a machine and blend it? I like that stuff too, but cold-​press is much nicer. No pulp, just smooth, fresh fruits and veggies sometimes pleasantly spiked with a pinch of sea salt or spice like liquid cayenne or the gut-​warming ginger.
My favourites are:
— Wake Up, a zingy citrus with liquid cayenne. I like to pretend that the spicy feeling in my tummy is burning up the fat. Aw yiss, c’mon supermodel abs!
— Gold Rush, the best-​selling pineapple mix which tastes just like a «regular» juice which you’d actually drink purely for taste
The not-​so good: I don’t believe in the health miracles that some juicers do, so I drink this stuff just because I enjoy the taste and it’s nice to have a cold drink as a refresher.
Speaking of health, omigherd — the financial cost of being addicted to cigarettes would be cheaper than an addiction to this place. A small, 250ml glass of juice will set you back about $ 8, whereas a large 500ml costs $ 11.
If you bring back 10 bottles, you will receive one small bottle of juice for free. To be perfectly honest, it’s a rather high cost for very little return for the consumer: each bottle costs roughly $ 2 to purchase, and with each return the costs for Greenhouse diminishes. These puppies are heavy as heck though, and unless you’re essentially right in the same building, it’s a literal burden to carry. Your reward for your collection is a measly $ 8 bottle. Basically, as a customer you’re paying ~$ 90 for a return of an $ 8 juice.
If the returns system fell a bit more on the side of the consumer, I’d probably visit a bit more often. For now though, Greenhouse Juice is an occasional juicy treat for me.

I’m kind of torn about this place. I don’t love it, but I don’t hate it, and for some reason I just can’t stop coming back despite how incredibly draining it is for my wallet. Maybe it’s just the juice fad. I’ve been here a few times and made four purchases: 1) chia seed water, 2) east of eden (a green juice), 3) gold rush (pineapple juice based), and 4) pink milk (beets based). The chia seed water was refreshing, and I mostly decided to try it because it was supposed to be detoxifying. I didn’t really feel very different afterwards though, and really I think it’s just like glorified water which is like $ 5 (after tax) for a 250 mL bottle. East of Eden is one of their green juices, but probably the mildest/​most pleasant tasting, what with the fruits in it (apples and whatnot) — it tastes the least like drinking straight vegetables/​grass. It’s actually pretty decent, and I will say that it for sure aids your digestion lol. A 250 mL bottle is like $ 9. The gold rush juice is quite delicious and refreshing with the pineapple juice, lemon and cucumber, and has a bit of a kick with the ginger. It’s supposed to be restorative and good for digestion. The pink milk was probably the most interesting purchase — it’s pink because of the beets and you can definitely taste them, but the taste is tempered down/​sweetened by maple syrup and almond milk. Surprisingly delicious! This milk will set you back about $ 11 though, but is one of their most popular ones I think, I usually only find like one or two bottles in their fridge.
Things that I do really like about this place are: the friendly staff, who seem to know their stuff and can explain what each juice is supposed to do; the fact that they are environmentally conscious (for every 10 empty juice bottles you bring back you can get a free juice!); their process (cold pressed), which uses all natural and organic ingredients and also presses them in a certain way so that most of the nutrients aren’t lost (supposedly); and that you can sample pretty much any of the juices before you buy. I tried two of the other green juices (forget their names) as well as wake up (good for mornings because it has QUITE a kick to it with the cayenne pepper, but it was too much for me.)
In the end, would I recommend it? Well, it’s kind of a cool place to try out and maybe purchase an interesting/​exotic juice or two. The two I enjoyed the most were Gold Rush (really refreshing) and the Pink Milk (unique and also sweet and tasty.) That being said, it’s definitely a novelty/​luxury to me… with prices ranging from $ 5 – 12 for a 250 mL bottle, it basically ends up replacing a meal, price-​wise, and I do love my food… but for some inexplicable reason I just can’t stop myself from coming back to try more and more of their juices…

Greeenhouse recently opened its location in Commerce Court in Downtown Core. Is their juice raw? Is it organic? And is it cold-​pressed? Greenhouse would answer Yes, Yes and Yes! Combine that with their approach to sourcing from small local suppliers, and you have a recipe for a premium product for health-​conscious, price-​insensitive customers.
The juices, nut milks and waters are all equally good, and extremely expensive. Half a liter of the Rabbit, Run (carrot, ginger, apple) is almost $ 11. Similar sized almond milk is $ 15! My favorite is the Brazil nut milk, that has Brazil nuts (yes, those giant-​sized nuts that are the scourge of every packet of trail mix) and also a hint of vanilla bean and salt. Join their bottle return program and get a small drink free for every 10 bottles returned. And if you are in the mood for their cleanse, they have three kinds, each comprising eight drinks, totaling $ 69 – now that seems inexpensive compared to the individual drinks.
I will return to Greenhouse from time to time, especially when I am going through periods of penitence following pizza dinners and needless snacking. Which is almost every day that I am in Toronto.

Want FRESH juice where you can taste all the goodness? Greenhouse is place to go.
Greenhouse juice popped up not too long ago in the path, making it very accessible for a lot of the people working in the financial district.
The décor is fresh, unique and fun. It mimics the actual look of a green house with bright lights, wooden counters and very little furniture. The décor definitely showcases the variety of juices they have. They don’t even have a cash register. They use the iPad system to cash you out. All very clean and sleek.
The staff is very friendly and informative and definitely have knowledge on their product. I would definitely go at a less busy time because there is a sampling station where you can try any juice before you buy. When it gets busy, it’s hard to sample because there is only one person helping you.
The juice itself is pretty amazing. There are some that are tough to drink because they are from more peculiar ingredients but you can definitely taste the freshness as soon as you take the first sip. Everything here is cold pressed so all of the juicing retains the nutrients that blenders will lose.
The only thing that makes me second guess my purchase is definitely the price as it is very premium. Depending on which one you choose, the 250ml ranges from $ 5.00 to $ 7.00 and the one 500ml is about $ 10.00 to $ 13.00. Its definitely worth the splurge but not on a daily basis.
Great juice, cute packaging. Can’t go wrong!

Purchased two bottles:
Rabbit, run: Got to sample this one before purchasing. Has a very strong ginger flavour to it! Can’t really taste the apple & carrot flavour but the colour certainly shows that it’s part of the ingredients haha
Almond milk: I’ll buy this one again — I wasn’t expecting the texture to be that chunky but I like it nonetheless :)