Blended Fruit Smoothies Start at $3.50

Smoothies, a blend of fruit, fruit juice and other ingredients, are a fresh alternative to ice cream or coffee. Around the Piedmont area, they cost somewhere between $3.50 and $4.50 for 16 to 20 ounces and come with a wide variety of ingredients and flavors, from mango to mocha.

, 3311 Grand Ave., Oakland, offers strawberry, wild berry and mango guava smoothie,s which cost $3.50 for 16 ounces and $3.95 for 20 ounces. The smoothies come with both premixed and fresh ingredients, said Jenny Yim. “It’s very good, very healthy,” she said. The café also offers sandwiches, coffee, pastries and other items.

Down the street at the , 3363 Grand Ave., Oakland, smoothies cost $4.25 for 16 ounces and $4.75 for 20 ounces. The seven flavors include Strawberry Sensation with strawberries, apple juice, nonfat yogurt and banana, and Super Soy Berry, with strawberries, apple juice, soy milk and bananas. The Coffee Mill also sells breakfast, lunch, pastries and other items.

Recently, , 4150 Piedmont Ave., Oakland, was offering smoothies made with blueberries, raspberries and bananas, though the flavors vary depending on the availability of ingredients. The drink is also made with fruit juices, though soy milk can be substituted for an additional 50¢, said manager Kelly Klein. “It’s a pretty simple smoothie,” she said. The smoothies are 16 ounces and cost $3.90.

Mr. Green Bubble, a modern dessert shop at 4299 Piedmont Ave., Oakland, offers no fewer than 27 smoothie flavors, including lychee, Thai tea, avocado, watermelon, honeydew and Oreo cookie. The smoothies, which cost $3.95 for one flavor or $4.55 for two, are made with fresh fruit as well as syrups and powders. A lemon smoothie comes with fresh lemon juice, while a Chai Tea smoothie uses fresh tea as well as Chai Tea powder. Mr. Green Bubble, which opened last May, also offers milk tea, parfaits, frozen yogurt and fried snacks.

Jamba Juice, 5108 Broadway, Oakland (in the Rockridge Center near the CVS drugstore), offers several kinds of smoothies – all fruit, Jamba light, pre-boosted, classic and creamy treats – with different prices for each type and size. Overall, the smoothies cost between $3.65 and $4.25 for 16 ounces, $4.45 to $5.05 for 20 ounces and $5.25 to $5.85 for 30 ounces. In addition to smoothies, Jamba Juice sells hot oatmeal, parfaits, tea, coffee and cocoa.

Juice Appeal, 2075 Mountain Blvd., Oakland (in Montclair Village), offers a huge variety of smoothies that cost $3.75 for 16 ounces and $4.25 for 24 ounces. The smoothies are grouped into four categories —berry, citrus, tropical and special selections. They include Cappuccino Cooler with non-fat milk, cappuccino, ice milk and ice, and South Seas Sensation with passionfruit, mango juice, strawberries, peaches, pineapple sherbet and ice.

Juice Appeal also sells fresh-squeezed juices, wheat grass “shots” and snacks. Owner Hout Lim said the shop has been there 15 years and has thrived while a Jamba Juice came and went across the street.

 “They like my smoothies,” Lim said. “They say they’re the best smoothies in town.”