I was super excited for a health food smoothie bar to open in Georgetown! I mean, that's awesome…read more Just what we needed!! When I heard about the Wooden Straw and saw all my friends checking in on Facebook, talking about how wonderful this place was, I had high hopes.
Well. I walked in and noticed immediately that everything is Herbalife.
Here's the thing, as someone that has tried a variety of different health food shakes on the marketing and is actively reading labels & trying to eat healthy (mostly Paleo), I know that Herbalife is NOT one of the best ones out there. A quick look at the ingredients of the Formula 1 product (that they use for their shakes, I believe) shows a very little amount of actual nutrition or/and protein. Meh. There are also Herballife products all over the place.
SO. With that in mind, I decided to push aside my bias and try a shake anyway. I mean, it has to be healthier than a Big Mac, right? (It is. I'm not arguing that.)
For $6.50, you get three things: a shot of aloe, a cup of tea, and a shake! You have the option of the aloe being put in the tea, which is what I always do when I come here (yes, I've been here several times now). I usually opt for the Chai tea, but there is also green tea, raspberry tea, and another flavor available. The raspberry is good, too! I always get iced tea. I think hot tea is an option, but not entirely sure.
Now. The shakes. Oh, my goodness, the chalkboard wall just has wayyyy too many options! I didn't know what to get! There are mutiple different flavor formulas that can create even more flavored shakes! Some of these include vanilla, chocolate, cafe latte, dulce de leche, pina colada, orange, just to name a few. From these, you can have chocolate cake, coconut crush, and so forth. The list goes on and on.
After deliberating over what I felt like 'eating', I decided upon a lemon cake shake. They poured the powder in the water, added stuff, blended, and voila! Had a yummy-looking shake ready for me, nearly overflowing the clear, plastic cup. It tasted.... OK. Like a lemon cake. Ice cream. With lots of sugar. And some weird product after taste. Did not wow me. (Because of this, I gave them another try another day and tried a different drink which was a little bit better.) I have tried three different drinks from The Wooden Straw and am still not blown away
An another note --- the people who work there are very friendly and happy to see you. There is no issue with service whatsoever. There is always music playing, and I believe, WiFi available. There's a bar you can sit at to enjoy your drinks or a soft couch (near a little kid's play area) to sit and relax. I like what they did with the feel of the place.
Do I absolutely love Wooden Straw? Nope. I don't really like the Herballife products. But will I be back? Yes. Sometimes. Because..... these shakes may not be the healthiest, but they're definitely better than a Big Mac. And I do like trying different drink flavors. Cheers.
TIP: Check in on Facebook when you're there and you get 50 cents off your drink.