Columbus, Ohio USA
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& Juice Company
Plant-based products rooted in earthy goodness

by Margaret Marten
July/August 2018 Issue

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Photos © Gus Brunsman III

Eliah Thomas-Stephenson

Cold-pressed juice is now available in Italian Village, thanks to Eliah Thomas-Stephenson. Her business, & Juice Co., which originated in Upper Arlington a few years ago, now includes locations in Clintonville and Italian Village. This venture is the latest effort along a path of wellness, community, and green living projects that have emerged over the course of her professional career. The impressive list includes a dozen years operating an organic farm and holistic retreat center, founding social enterprises to help underserved populations, developing recycling options, green models and training for a variety of agencies and non-profits.

Thomas-Stephenson’s passion for health, wellness, and community was instilled in her from a young age by her parents. Being true to their Middle Eastern heritage, her parents provided the family with a traditional wholesome, balanced diet of whole grains and fresh produce. Furthermore, they were community advocates and their Upper Arlington home radiated an atmosphere that was warm and welcoming. “We visited friends of my parents and friends of my parents would come from all parts of the city and outside of the city, and I think that they were very inclusive to everyone.”

In college and graduate school, Thomas-Stephenson pursued music, then fine arts and interior design but transitioned into non-profit work after graduation before eventually purchasing a farm where she remained for a dozen years running a retreat. As a child, when asked what she wanted to be when she grew up, Eliah would say a nomad or a hermit. Her childhood drawings of caves, mountains and trees reflected that ascetic spirit. Although she didn’t quite fulfill her dream of natural solitude, running a bed and breakfast retreat and organic farm after her family passed away did set her apart from the mainstream.

“I bought the farm after losing my entire family. In a matter of a few years they all died one way or another leaving me very young and alone,” she said. “So, in a way, I did become somewhat of a hermit on a mountain.”

She describes those years as cathartic, much like the path to physical wellness and wholeness that her juice products provide – a natural way to cleanse, nourish and ultimately to heal. “For me it’s one and the same: saving the planet, saving your life, understanding what you’re putting into your body.”

On her 50-acre farm she taught organic gardening, raw food preparation, sustainability, alternative dwelling, and pottery. Three yurts served as guest cottages, and the acreage maintained over 50 rescued animals, large and small. Her intimacy with organic growing practices, skill in implementing raw and vegan dietary menus, and natural curiosity clearly came into practice while developing formulas for & Juice Company’s cold pressed juices and grab-and-go items.

Shop talk

Alongside their juice, protein, and water lines, & Juice Co. offers raw vegan snacks, foods, smoothies, and smoothie bowls. While inspiration seems to be the common ingredient, the time of year and the season add variety to an ever-changing menu. A rainbow summer roll filled with Thai tofu, cucumber, blue majik, turmeric and beet rice noodles is a distinctive dining choice. Smoothie bowls with fresh fruit and other superfoods add to the mix. Ready-made snacks include raw organic kale chips that Thomas-Stephenson produced under the label U + Kale before launching & Juice Co. A vegan stand-in for Slim Jims and other clever substitutes for non-vegan fare like carrot bacon are fun and surprising. Wraps, salads, mini bagels, and sealed charcuterie snack trays add to a dizzying array of healthful, healing, and tantalizing treats.

“I’ve been on this journey looking for great [vegan] cheese,” confided Thomas-Stephenson. “When you’re making food for people to eat less meat and less dairy, cheese is what you get hit with every time.” Her recent discovery from Greece, Violife cheese, is now sold in the store, packaged or in her recipes, with over 16 varieties. “It’s unlike any other vegan cheese. It’s fabulous.”

The cold-pressed juice is a story unto itself, all handcrafted locally with carefully sourced ingredients in small batches. Descriptions online and free samples in-house are enough to help careful consumers begin their juice journey. The mission of & Juice Co. is to make healthy living effortless, efficient, and simple.

“Being healthy shouldn’t have to mean depriving yourself,” said Thomas-Stephenson. “You simply add in more of the good which naturally crowds out the not so good.” That’s the choice we make. Fortunately it’s not a difficult one once you become a juice junkie. “I think that everything I do I do by practice, personal practice. And when I say practice, I mean just actually doing it.”

Editor's Note: & Juice Co. closed at this location September 2019 but remains open at other locations outside the Short North

& Juice Co is located at 991 N. 4th Street and online at www.andjuiceco.com or by calling 614-401-5555 Ext. 3

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