Tina and Bill Johnson have been working hard getting 126 W. Bruce Street ready for the opening of Harrisonburg’s newest restaurant: Village Juice & Kitchen. Located in the previous home of Food.Bar.Food, the space is being transformed into a bright and open quick service eatery focusing on cold-pressed juices, grain bowls, salads, and more. Want a quick and healthy spot for lunch? Want to meet friends for a leisurely weekend brunch? VJK has got you covered. Tina and Bill were kind enough to show us around and give us a sneak peak of their space—opening November 8th!
Can you explain a little bit more about Village Juice & Kitchen?
Tina: Formed in 2014 by Co-Founder and Creative Director Lonnie Atkinson and her husband Nate, Village Juice initially began operations selling its cold-pressed juices out of a tent at the local farmers’ market. The community reaction to the juices was immediate and overwhelmingly positive. That demand led to an investment in a juice trailer to expand sales which later developed into their first bricks and mortar location in Winston-Salem, NC in 2016. As the interest in the company grew, so did the menu and now features a full menu of juices, almond milks, salads, grain bowls, gourmet open faced toasts, and raw vegan desserts. Village Juice and Kitchen food offerings are created with fresh, high quality ingredients and made to order. We offer a wide assortment of vegan, vegetarian, and gluten-free options with the ability to add various proteins to any item. Most everything on the menu is customizable with a variety of add-ons and the presentation of the food is always beautiful and photo worthy.
What will Village Juice & Kitchen bring to the Harrisonburg restaurant scene?
Village Juice and Kitchen is proud to be offering award-winning, high quality, innovative food and beverages. For our smoothies and juices, we offer real fruit, individually quick frozen (IQF), to ensure optimum nutrition, freshness, and flavor. We believe real food doesn’t contain ingredients, it is the ingredients. That’s why everything on our menu is pressed, squeezed, ground, pureed, mixed, chopped, and crafted in-house. Our fruits are not packed in sugar, nor prepared with processed sugar. Our smoothies are blended when ordered, not pre-blended, giving the customer a true smoothie, not an iced drink. Our Coconut Milk and Almond Milk are made in house and pressed daily-never from a carton or with added sugars. Our food products (Juices, Smoothies, Smoothie Bowls, Salads, Grain Bowls, Toasts, Breakfast Desserts, Raw Snacks) are also prepared with fresh ingredients when ordered to ensure quality and freshness.
In addition, Village Juice & Kitchen believe that our customers deserve unparalleled hospitality not just customer service. We strive to make the customer’s experience inviting so they want to return to eat, meet friends and/or work.
What’s your go-to item on the menu?
Our signature juices are phenomenal. However, if looking for a great breakfast option anytime of the day, our
“Quit Your Job” is a delicious breakfast burrito with a homemade mango salsa. The overnight oats and chia pudding is another amazing breakfast option. For lunch, the Avocado Chicken Bacon Wrap is one of our best sellers. We also have several signature bowls as well the “create your own” which is a popular favorite. In addition, we recommend the “Avo-Vegan Open-Faced Toast” topped with our locally grown Micro-Greens.
“We believe superfoods make you feel superhuman. And everyone deserves to feel that way. From the local farmers who grow our fruits and veggies to the people we serve everyday. It takes a village to raise a healthier, happier community. Welcome Harrisonburg to our Village.”
