Come For The Vape, Stay For The Juice!

By: Drew Liszt and Nessa Preis

The best beverages aren't always on a map. It takes a special partnership and two welcoming hearts to attract customers.

(Picture on left is from GoogleMaps, picture on the right is a full picture of the E Smoke andConvenience shop and Juice and Bubbles in the bottom corner- the one with the OPEN sign.Photographed by Nessa Preis.)

The two cooks in the kitchen laughed and conversed fluidly together. They speak to and command each other in Spanish with no filter. “He’s very dramatic. Drama, drama,” Carol jokes about her business partner, Josh Rojas. You might be thinking to yourself, they’re a couple right? In reality, you’re wrong. They’re just two sarcastic, loving juice-makers running a concealed juicery in a culinarily diverse town.

Carol David shows up to work with an attitude reflected by her zebra print pants and a white T-shirt. She’s a Colombian woman who moved to the United States five years ago, leaving her ex-husband and two children. But don't worry! She currently has a boyfriend of two years, who owns a liquor store in her resident neighborhood of Williamsburg.

On the Corner of Roosevelt Avenue and 80th Street, in the heart of the Jackson Heights neighborhood, lies Juice and Bubbles. A shop known by locals’ word of mouth, concealed inside E Smoke and Convenience, is a juicy story that blends the ideals of Latin immigrant life and a passion for community.

Carol likes the distinction between living there and working in Jackson Heights. “I know my area,” she says. “It’s different. As they say necessary.” While living in Colombia, she studied to be a nurse. However, due to the career being “too expensive,” she wasn't able to continue the same path in America. A fluent Spanish speaker struggling to learn English, she attends language courses at LaGuardia Community College.

Josh Rojas owns his short buzzed hair with bulging head folds, small hoop earrings, and black athletic tank top and shorts. Carol's partner for the business joyfully popped into the tiny kitchen. The Venezuelan native was studying philosophy and business administration before he arrived in America in 2020. He unfortunately contracted Pneumonia and Covid at the same time; his immune system was hanging on for dear life.

In a new country alone and vulnerable, he was devastatingly frightened. Laying in the hospital for 7 days, Josh said, “Oh my god. I don’t want to die.” The only thing that eased his mind was the priest attending his hospital bed and his comfortable reassurance. Overcoming his traveling and sickness scares, he now lives in Harlem, New York City.

As an immigrant joining the advancing economy, continuing his studies became too difficult. He found that the only way to make it here was picking up conversation on the streets. As Josh says, “English more doors open.”

After bonding at a Williamsburg juice shop, Carol and Josh opened their own spot in Jackson Heights last year, next to thrilling trains and the Latin community. Located in the corner of E Smoke and Convenience, their clever trick was being located in a shop that already had approved licenses. It's a “strategic partnership,” Carol says, because the convenience shop has 70 locations all across New York.

While we were discussing this, a Colombian woman named Sulay Yepex entered the convenience store to buy a vape. Her mission was immediately changed once she started talking to Carol realizing their common denominator– they’re both Colombian! Carol instantly connected with the gold-eyeshadow woman and recommended the Frutas Rojas drink– including strawberries, blackberries and apples. “Us Colombians, we help each other,” said Carol in Spanish.

64% of the Jackson Heights population are immigrants according to nyc.gov, meaning that Carol and Josh are not outliers, but have instead found their community there. Although Carol doesn’t directly know of anyone getting deported, every day more tales of broken families “break my heart,” she said. “It’s scary because it is very sad for other people.”

(The interior view of Juice and Bubbles, and Immigration Services directly out the window. Photographed by Nessa Preis.)

Working in a juice hub across the street from an attorney Immigration Services, Carol and Josh interact daily with customers who are experiencing these hardships mostly from Latin communities. One family that Carol regularly served hasn’t been seen in a few weeks. She is uncertain what happened to them and truly looked concerned.

Deportation is not only affecting their customers and alarming their ears, but shipping their one of a kind ingredients from across the country has become dramatically expensive. The Trump-induced tariffs are making shipments harder and causing an increase on the prices of certain juices, like the Jugo de Borojó y Chontaduro, made from Columbia imported Chontaduro fruits– a fan favorite for customers.

Carol's favorite customer is a friendly man who comes in almost every day and orders the legendary Jugo de Borojó y Chontaduro. Carol says that this fruit is popular with the men, even her own boyfriend because it is “How do you say… Aphrodisiac?”

While visiting, we tried this juice as well as the Frutas de Rojas smoothies. The Chontaduro beverage was sweet with a cinnamon-like spice that powered energy throughout our bones. At first, its flavor confused us, but as soon as the sweet and tangy aftertaste settled in, we were tempted for more. As for the purple berry drink, it was fresh, light, and had the warmth only possible when a gay man and divorced woman blend together a juice.

(Both pictures are photos of the menus at Juice and Bubbles. Photographed by Nessa Preis.)

This shop sells everything from this special juice to Taro bubble tea. Their bobas range from $6 to $7 depending on the flavor and size. Fresh and fierce, they also have the option to add different protein powders and choose between almond and regular milk. This shop is fully equipped to meet any of your thirstiest desires between the hours of 9:00 A.M. to 7:30 P.M. Remember, only come on weekdays, because Carol and Josh take the weekends to themselves.

With their time off, they fantasize about adding a location in Williamsburg on      Grand Avenue. They have in mind for the business to be closer to Carol’s residency. Even though they want to expand, they want to keep their partnership with E Smoke and Convenience, hoping to open up a new store in one of their locations. Carol is currently saving up to fulfill her marvelous dream, bringing in friends and family to her Latin Williamsburg shop.

There are many juice places around Jackson Heights, but as Carol would say, “we are better” because “we are Latin.” A successful juice business doesn't need to be on an official map when people running it create such a beautiful community. Where else can you get Jugo de Borojó y Chontaduro and Taro Milk Tea in the same store? Your taste buds will remember the spot and lead you back for more– but make sure to take note of the intersection!