Press Raw Food plans to open on Grant St.

By Sean Dwyer and Youleidy Vega
Bengal News West Reporters
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After months of planning, Press Raw Foods & Juice is almost ready to open its doors to health food lovers on Grant Street.  Since moving from Horsefeathers Market on Connecticut Street, owner Esther Pica is excited to officially put down her roots on the West Side. 

Once open, Press will provide all organic raw food and products, including ready to order juices and smoothies. In addition, Pica also anticipates doing home deliveries for people who are taking part in cleanses. 

“Great thing about this place is that we have retail space so we can sell the ingredients to people to go home and experiment,” said Pica.   “Because the only license we could get without having to change the use of the building is food retail, everything is packaged to go.” 

Pica has called Buffalo home since 2011.  However, she freely admits the choice to make the move from New York City to open a juice bar occurred entirely by accident.  

Pica, on her transition from New York City to Buffalo: 

“The market in New York was oversaturated with juice bars, so I was looking for a college town with a warm climate,” said Pica.  “I started looking for a house based on zip codes.   But I had mistakenly transposed two of the numbers.  So, when I thought I was looking at a house in Georgia, in actuality, I was looking at houses in Buffalo.” 

Due to the cheap prices, Pica decided to buy a house in Buffalo originally as an investment.  Later, she started doing research and was encouraged by businesses like Prish Moran’s Sweetness_7 to look into opening her juice bar nearby. 

Sara Ali, is a SUNY Buffalo State  student who has written for Human Athletics  about the benefits juicing can have on the body and understands the important role a juice bar can have on the health of community. 

“Fresh juice is loaded with nutrients, vitamins and minerals,” Ali said.  “You can satisfy your body’s need for the essentials with (a) day of juicing.”

According to Ali, juicing can play an important role in the body’s ability to heal itself and is a key part of the Gerson method, which is a natural treatment that requires the intake of large quantities of raw juice. 

“By juicing fruits and vegetables, you remove the insoluble fiber which the digestive enzymes are locked away in,” said Ali.  “Juicing allows you to access those enzymes you normally cannot by eating the produce.”

Beyond providing products that are good for the body, Pica’s new building, located at 197 Grant St., also strives to be good for the environment. 

“This building is a green renovation,” said Pica. “It’s got geothermal heat and there are sun panels on the roof. We are marketing everything in as green of a way as possible.”

Pica boasts that all plastic products she uses are cornstarch based and biodegradable and has a goal to create as little waste as possible. 

“All the produce that we have is going to be merchandised,” said Pica. “With there being a lot of young families in the neighborhood, they won’t have to go all the way to Elmwood to get an organic banana.” 

Abaca Press, which is located at 9 Lafayette Ave., is owned and operated by Peter Sowiski. He agrees that providing families in the nearby area with more options, beyond shops on Elmwood Avenue, is positive for the entire West Side community. 

 “Obviously, when this happens it creates a spill over that benefits the whole neighborhood,”   Sowiski said

Pica anticipates  having a soft open before the New Year.   Once her shop is open, Pica plans on advertising coupons and sample opportunities on her shop’s Facebook page.  

Despite the delays, Pica is in no rush as she plans on being here for the long-haul.

“I love Grant Street,” said Pica. “My heart belongs to Grant Street and my house is right around the corner.”