New High School Hot Spot

New+High+School+Hot+Spot

Andrew DeCasperis, Contributor

With the help of social media, Jem’s Gardens and Dairy Barn has grown from a small vegetable stand 20 years ago, to now a trendy lunch and ice cream eatery while still keeping its roots. The food and dairy portion of the business is still fairly new, with this only being its 4th year.

Jem’s is owned and operated by a mother- daughter duo. Ellen and Jordan Marouski have come up with a lengthy and cost effective menu, full of all natural ingredients and better service to come along with it.

Jem’s offers a wide menu to choose from. Whether it be sandwiches, freshly squeezed lemonade, smoothies, milkshakes, or their famous ice cream from Jay Foster Farms in Avon, CT, where they get a rotation of 15 different homemade flavors each week. When you are at Jem’s, you can always count on quality food and even better service.

While what I stated above may sound appetizing, there is one item I left off of the list. Jem’s offers a one of a kind “smoothie bowl”. The smoothie bowl is similar to a traditional smoothie, only it is made thicker than a traditional smoothie so you can eat it with a spoon, and is then topped with whatever you as a customer want. Whether it be granola, fruit, chocolate chips, and just about anything else you can think of, they can put it on. As a customer, you get a variety of options to choose from. For example, their most popular smoothie bowl is the “Honey Nut”. The Honey Nut is a mixture of banana, strawberry, and blueberry topped with granola, nuts, fresh fruit, and drizzled honey. You can also create your own smoothie bowl with whatever fruit you want to make the smoothie.

The most attractive part of the smoothie bowl is the appearance. Smoothie bowls have been popping up everywhere on Instagram and Snapchat. These artsy photos have been serving almost as free advertisements for the business.

Austin Frigugliett is a current Jem’s employee and also senior at SWHS. In a conversation with him, he states that almost every day new kids from school show up to try their first smoothie bowl.

Jem’s also does a very nice job with their set up around the dairy barn. Clean tables, umbrellas, and even a greenhouse to keep you warm on a cold night make this place great to enjoy your food no matter the conditions. Jem’s recently built a fireplace as another area to chill out for dessert.

“I consider myself a regular there.” says senior Anna Hanchuk. “It’s the first place I stop after the gym. I usually meet up with my friends Nicole and Gabby there.”

If you haven’t been to Jem’s yet, you are late to the party. Don’t worry though, you still have a full summer to catch up with the trend! Jem’s is open every day of the week until 9pm, with the exception for Sunday when it closes at 8pm.