On Sunday, Sept. 15th, Mia Cane Juicery and Açaí Bar opened to the Rockville community, featuring build-your-own açaí 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 Nhu, 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,” Nhu said. “That’s why my partners and I decided to open something traditional, which was sugarcane drinks.”
Nhu and his partners decided to add açaí bowls to the menu because of its superfood qualities. In recent years, açaí 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. Also, although sugarcane is not often considered a superfood, it is actually extremely hydrating, maintains a constant sugar flow without spiking sugar levels, and carries many of the same antioxidants that açaí bowls have, as well as Vitamin C. Nhu felt that açaí 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,” Albaugh said. “We had been talking about sugarcane and had never heard of it before so they brought it to me.” 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 açaí bowl at the restaurant was a 10 out of 10, and 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. Additionally, the restaurant has not received a single rating lower than five stars on Google Maps, with some saying this restaurant is a “must try” and the “best sugarcane” they have ever had.
Mia Cane’s açaí bowls offer unlimited toppings, including unique toppings like mochi balls, for customers with no additional cost, along with a discount of $3 on a small açaí bowl for any RMHS student. Along with this student discount, the interior of Mia Cane has many tables and chairs to seat multiple customers, as well as a sugarcane plant background to set the mood.
