Smoothie King had to go and destroy my relationship with them. Smoothie King first entered my life when I was working in Atlanta for several months. I liked to go jogging after work in Piedmont Park and then grab a smoothie. Smoothie King began in New Orleans (another place I love) and spread in the east, but there were no stores in Dallas. I became addicted to the “Pep Upper” in Atlanta, a delicious, icy and refreshing blend of strawberries and orange juice. Unlike many other Smoothie King brand smoothies, this one did not come loaded down with carbohydrate mix. I also am not a fan of yogurt-based smoothies, nor do I like bananas in my smoothie, which is a common ingredient to help make the drink, well, smoother. The “Pep Upper” was the perfect smoothie for me.
But now our happy relationship has been destroyed. Kaput. Kablooey.
On Saturday, I strolled into the local Smoothie King and just ordered the “Pep Upper.” It was somewhat crowded in there, so there was a wait. While I waiting, I perused the menu, checking out some of the new beverages that I might be interested in trying at a later date. I noticed that the “Pep Upper” was no longer on the menu. At first I thought, “Wow, I just ordered something they no longer offer, but it’s been around so long, they still can make it. Cool!”
Turns out, they have modified the ingredients. It’s on their new “X-Treme Energy” menu and no longer contains orange juice. Now it has papaya and passion fruit – and a huge dose of caffeine! Not something I want to put in my body – I even moderate my coffee consumption to keep caffeine to a minimum. Caffeine has a huge impact on my body – primarily my mood. It can even cause headaches – usually two days after large amounts of caffeine and one reason I only occasionaly treat myself to a Starbucks drink.
Fortunately, I caught on to this before they made my drink. I tried something else, but it just wasn’t the same. They’ve forever ruined something unique and wonderful. I’m not sure I can cope with this loss…. *sniff*
I like the Activator and the Immune Builder neither is good for a guy with high cholesterol though.