On Sunday, Sept. 15, Mia Cane Juicery and Acai Bar opened to the Rockville community, featuring build-your-own acai bowls and a variety of cold-pressed sugarcane drinks on the menu. Sugarcane drinks are a common street delicacy in Vietnam and are typically drinken with calamansi, or tac, which is a citrus similar to a lime, with hints of tangerine, according to Jack Lu, the owner of Mia Cane.
“You see a lot of Korean culture and Chinese culture but I feel like Rockville is missing a good Vietnamese cultured place,” Lu said. “That’s why my partners and I decided to open something traditional, which was sugarcane drinks.”
In recent years, acai bowls have become a trendy food due to its health benefits. It is considered a “superfood” because it carries many antioxidants that benefit the brain, heart and overall health, while also containing many healthy fats and fibers that are beneficial for the body.
They also decided to add acai bowls to the menu because of its superfood qualities. Sugarcane is not often considered a superfood, but it is actually extremely hydrating, maintains a constant sugar flow without spiking sugar levels, and carries many of the same antioxidants that acai bowls have, as well as Vitamin C. Lu felt that acai bowls and sugarcane would go well together because the concepts blend nicely and they are both beneficial to overall health.
Many Richard Montgomery students have already paid a visit to this new restaurant, only a quick six minute walk from the school. It is located at the Ritchie Center, near other popular RM stops like IHOP and Japong Bakery. Aside from the short distance from the school, it is also a popular place to go because sugarcane drinks are such an unfamiliar food in Rockville, as noted by RMS Biology and IB Biology teacher at RM, Bessy Albaugh.
“A student brought a drink to me as a gift,” Ms. Albaugh said. “We had been talking about sugarcane and had never heard of it before so they brought it to me.”
Ms. Albaugh said that the drink, Wholly Lychee, which includes strawberry and lychee, was extremely delicious, rating it a nine out of 10. As it turns out, her opinion is shared with many others. Sophomore Anita Wei said that the flavor of her acai bowl at the restaurant was a 10 out of 10, and the restaurant has not received a single rating lower than five stars on Google Maps. Freshman Yanning Lin ordered a Mango Tango sugarcane drink from the restaurant and said that it was an 8.5 out of 10 because it tasted fresh.
Mia Cane’s acai bowls offer unlimited toppings for customers with no additional cost, along with a discount of $3 on a small acai bowl for any RMHS student.
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