Isaac and Moishe's Green Drink a Salad in a Glass

If you've been to La Casa de Isaac and Moishe recently, you've seen it: the green drink.

If the look of it doesn't catch you off guard -- a thick, glistening green liquid -- its preparation will. The drink is spinach, kale, celery, cucumber, cactus, aloe vera, pineapple, flax seed, oatmeal, granola, orange juice, ice and honey blended together and poured into a 16 or 32 ounce glass.

Some of you may have stopped reading this at "kale." Those still here get to be let in on a little secret: this drink is delicious.

Last fall, the minds behind Highland Park's a Mexican food gem on the North Shore, decided to install a juice bar in their Highwood grocery store. Isaac and Moishe Nava borrowed a recipe from a weight-lifting relative for a drink that includes ingredients you wouldn't normally expect to, well, drink.

The honey and orange juice give the drink a sweetness while the granola and oatmeal make it surprisingly filling. It should surprise no one that the drink's color comes from the veggies.

A 16 ounce glass costs $3, and a 32 ounce glass costs $6. For a few bucks more, you can get a dose of protein added as well (though its this writer's humble opinion that the taste is better sans protein).

I was at Isaac and Moishe's Highwood market last summer and watched as about a dozen people came in and out to buy a green drink. One man bought a 64 ounce jug of it so he could store it for the week. Since its popularity has grown, the drinks availability expanded from the market to the brothers' restaurants as well.

The Nava brothers know the drink may be intimidating to those that wouldn't try its ingredients on their own, in the safety of its solid form. As a result, they're liberal with their samples. So next time you're at one of their restaurants or their market and someone holds a small cup of green liquid towards you, don't be scared: it's just a lot of healthy stuff in a glass.