A Few Points About DTW Nutrition:
1. DTW Nutrition is an herbalife 'nutrition club', aka an herbalife smoothie/shake bar.
2. It is owned/franchised? by some truly passionate + awesome people
3. From what I can gather 85% of their drinks are plant-based (not certified vegan, but no direct animal products included), and 15% contain whey protein (The 24 Line menu section)
4. You purchase a shake and tea combo, one is not sold without the other - together the pair is $7 (unless you check in on social media, which gives you a $1 discount, or you opt for upgrading your tea to a 'cocktail' -adding a B vitamin supplement/energy concoction- which adds $2)
5. There is a fun/hyper energy to the place + all of the employees are very welcoming, upbeat, and helpful
6. The environment is somewhat industrial but really cute, the bar area is kind of tight, but theres a spacious seating area w/ a cute little lounge are.
A Point About Me:
1. I am plant-based (I avoid all animal products) + have quite few food allergies (namely tree nuts + shellfish)
My Experience:
I walked in the door and was immediately overwhelmed with what exactly I was supposed to be doing. I think that look of panic must have been pretty apparent because they knew right away that I was a newbie. I was handed a few sheets of paper, one to sign up for a 'membership' (it did not cost anything), the second to write down my order. I had a ton of options for shakes but landed on the chai latte as I am a HUGE chai fan. There was only one option for tea (written prominently on the ice bin) but I was told there is normally a few - so I wrote the tea option down. I was 'paying' with a free drink card I had received previously but there were a few options for payment, my guest chose card. They began creating my drink and reassured me that there was no milk or anything of the sort being added. The portions were generous and are supposed to be used as a meal replacement. The tea contained aloe juice which I am a big fan of as well. I was incredibly underwhelmed by my chai tea latte shake - it definitely tasted like coffee, with really no sense of the spicy chai flavor I am used to. It wasn't unbearable by any means but had a very unusual taste. You could also definitely taste the protein which wasn't super pleasant but not the end of the world. My guest wasn't a huge fan of her Sunset CLE shake either. The tea was fine tasting and was capped with the 'bubble tea lid' + filled with pellet ice which was fun. I did feel quite full after, and think it would've been a fairly decent deal for $7. The star of the show here is definitely the people, the employees are so kind and energetic and there's a great feel between customers. The overall idea of healthiness here is kind of lost on me - I would consider myself a intermediate health junkie with a HUGE focus on plant based whole foods - so I kind of felt lost on what the ingredients in the shake actually were. I asked a few times for clarification and watched as they made it, but it seemed like couple different powders and liquids that I didn't really recognize (all herbalife products).
All in all, I could see myself coming back if I was in a pinch or a friend wanted to try it out - but it definitely won't be my new go-to.
People + environment were 5/5.
Taste + products were 2.5-3/5. read more