Greenpoint welcomes another healthy option to the neighborhood. Baya Bar (687 Manhattan Ave.), a small chain focused on smoothies, juices, and Acai bowls, quietly opened this week to iron out the kinks before the grand opening tomorrow, March 12.
Brother and sister team James and Melissa Clark opened the Greenpoint outpost of Baya Bar after a financial struggle during the pandemic. James owns a wedding and event photography company, and Melissa worked for a luxury hotel chain, both industries that took a hit.
James told Greenpointers that his childhood best friend, Billy Loesch, started Baya Bar. “The brand is centered around community…all of the franchises are currently owned by family and friends,” said James.
“Our favorite thing in Greenpoint is the sense of community and how welcoming and accepting everyone is. Baya Bar prides itself on the same values,” continued James. “We want to be part of your family as Greenpoint has become our home.”
James and Melissa love Baya Bar because the brand is dedicated to using ingredients that are truly healthy. “Our goal is to emphasize a healthier life which we believe starts with eating wholesome healthy food,” explained James.
To achieve this goal, Baya Bar makes their acai, pitaya, and coconut bowls unsweetened, and the smoothies and juices use fresh produce, organic coconut milk, healthy fats and nutrient-rich ingredients, without adding syrups. Plus, a majority of Baya Bar’s offerings are vegan.
Baya Bar’s menu features an extensive variety of bowls, smoothies, juices, and toasts. There are five varieties of bowls blended with acai, five blended with pitaya, and five blended with coconut.
There are ten varieties of freshly-made juices including a Flu Fighter with carrot, beet, orange, lemon, ginger turmeric, and cayenne.
There are three different types of smoothies. The protein shake section includes The Brooklyn with banana, strawberry, honey, vanilla whey protein, fresh orange juice, and coconut milk. The Super Smoothie section includes a Greenpoint-influenced blend called McCarren Park with acai, blueberry, banana, peanut butter, cacao nibs, vanilla whey protein, and almond milk. The regular smoothie section includes classics like a Banana Strawberry with, you guessed it, banana, strawberry, almond milk and honey.
There are five toast flavors including the Fresco, which is avocado toast, a Nutella toast topped with strawberry and banana, and the PB toast with peanut butter, banana, blueberry, and honey.
Baya Bar is open everyday from 8 a.m. – 9 p.m. and offers pickup and delivery via GrubHub, Seamless, UberEats, and Doordash.