Kure Superfood Cafe

Smoothies and cold-pressed juice run the counter

The blender does more work here than the espresso machine. Kure builds its counter on smoothies and juice, freshly made and cold-pressed, with coffee kept as a supporting order rather than the reason to stop. The smoothie list is named rather than numbered: Lush Life, Little Wing, Kid Kyoto, Extra Mile, Lady of the Day, Berried Alive, Queen Green and P.B. & Awesome. The house description of the food is whole, nutrient-rich ingredients and no junk, and the drinks are the clearest expression of it, built to do the work of a meal rather than to sit beside one. The stated reason the group exists is to make eating well easy on days that make it hard, which is a fair summary of what the counter sells. Food carries as much weight as the drinks: grain bowls anchor the menu, with small plates and vegetarian, vegan-friendly and gluten-free-friendly choices around them, which is what makes it a lunch stop and not only a juice bar. The format is counter service with seating and Wi-Fi, so it works for a collection on the way past or a sit-down half hour, and ordering ahead, takeout and delivery are all part of how the branch gets used. Gift cards, a rewards programme and shelf goods such as snack bars run quietly behind it.

Order a smoothie, then a grain bowl

Start with a smoothie, since that is where the identity is clearest and where the recipes have names: Lush Life, Queen Green, Berried Alive and P.B. & Awesome among them. A cold-pressed juice is the lighter version of the same idea, and a freshly made juice sits between the two. Then add a grain bowl if the visit is standing in for lunch, because the food side is what stops this being a drinks counter. Coffee is there if someone in the group wants it, but it is not the thing to judge the place on. A smoothie and a bowl is the order that shows the whole concept in one sitting.