Hello, lovely people! My name is Dannica, and though you may recognize me from my Starbucks coffee reviews, this time I'm trying something less caffeinated and more...well, pricey: Olivia Rodrigo's new Erewhon smoothie.
Priced at $18 and available through mid-January, the smoothie comes with a plethora of ingredients advertised to be "gut-friendly." Playing on Olivia's song "Good 4 U" and the recent release of her album Guts, the smoothie's official name is "Good 4 ur GUTS."
If you haven't heard of Erewhon, it's an upscale grocery chain located in and around Los Angeles. It's become extremely popular in recent years partly because of its celebrity-branded smoothies. In the past, Erewhon has worked with celebs like Emma Chamberlain and Hailey Bieber to craft their own custom smoothies, which then sell for $17–$20 each. In fact, the company claims that there are 40,000 monthly sales of Hailey Bieber's smoothie alone.
Being an Olivia Rodrigo fan, a smoothie lover, and someone who's been to the doctor for gut issues, I naturally just had to try this smoothie. Also, I was just extremely intrigued by the idea of an $18 smoothie existing. So my sister and I drove to the Erewhon location in Pasadena, all while listening to Olivia's music along the way.
Here's the full ingredient list for the "Good 4 ur GUTS" smoothie:
I honestly don't think I've ever had a drink that included so many things in it. However, though $18 is a pretty bonkers price, IMO, I can kind of see why it's that expensive. Erewhon has all the ingredients they use in the store, so I went online and added everything needed to make Olivia's smoothie to my cart. The total came out to a whopping $213.71, with the sea buckthorn puree costing $41.99.
Now, let's get to the drink itself. First of all, she's gorgeous!? Second of all, I didn't take the time to understand what exactly sea buckthorn is, so as someone allergic to seafood, I brought some antihistamine with me in case I had a minor tussle with an allergic reaction. (Spoiler alert: I was fine, and it turns out sea buckthorn is simply just a plant, LOL.) Third, I definitely felt like an influencer girly and was absolutely living my best life with this $18 smoothie in hand.
First sip:
NGL, I was expecting the drink to not taste super cohesive because of all the ingredients in it, but it really just tasted like a delicious berry smoothie. My favorite thing about it was how prominent the oat flavor was — it was almost as if there were oat chunks in the drink? The other standout flavors to me were the avocado, the coconut whip, and the acai (of course), and I could even taste the chocolate from the maca and cacao powder peeking through. TBH, it was an all-around good smoothie, and I could taste the quality and freshness of everything in there. Would I get it again? If I'm in the area and feeling a little bougie, maybe. But do I live a lifestyle that would allow me to spend $20 every time I want a smoothie? Absolutely not.
Alright, so the smoothie is good and looks very aesthetically pleasing. But one thing I wanted to get to the bottom of was if this drink lived up to its "gut-friendly" marketing. When Erewhon announced "Good 4 ur GUTS" on Instagram, some people took to the comments questioning whether some of the ingredients actually provided those health benefits. One user said, "Oat milk can be very inflammatory and a trigger for people with gut issues like IBS." Meanwhile, another person posted, "not sure about the high glycemic, fruit sugars combined with gut health yet I'm sure it will be a crowd pleaser."
To dig into the drink a bit more, I spoke to registered dietitian Carlie Saint-Laurent Beaucejour. I wanted to really dive into the ingredients in the "Good 4 ur GUTS" smoothie and unpack the potential benefits or downsides each ingredient has. To first address what helps create a "healthy gut," Carlie told BuzzFeed that consuming prebiotics and probiotics is needed to create and feed healthy gut bacteria. "Prebiotics help feed the good bacteria," Carlie said, "and in this smoothie, the fruit blend, avocado, dates, cacao powder, and acai do just that. The probiotics in this recipe come from the kombucha."
However, although kombucha provides probiotics, Carlie expressed worry about the drink's sugar content — and not because of all the fruit. Fruit is a good source of fiber and has naturally occurring sugars, but what raised Carlie's concern is the added sugars coming from the kombucha, oat milk, and protein powder. She explained that too much added sugar can negatively affect one's gut health.
"Too much of anything is not good when it comes to your nutrition," Carlie explained. "We want to balance our blood sugar. I recommend keeping your fruit intake to 1 cup per serving to not overdo it."
When I asked Carlie what she would personally put into a smoothie meant to be gut-friendly, she recommended adding ingredients with minimal "added sugars" and that also list minimally processed foods on the label. Carlie suggested including a variety of fruits and veggies and also incorporating whole foods like avocados, Greek yogurt, seeds, and nuts.
When I brought up some of the comments people left on Erewhon's Instagram page, Carlie explained how crucial it is to understand terms like "spiking glucose levels" and "inflammatory." "Literally anything with carbs can spike blood sugars, which isn't bad," she told BuzzFeed. "But if you have low blood sugar, consuming something that will spike it could be beneficial." As for the "Good 4 ur GUTS" smoothie potentially assisting in creating even blood-sugar levels, Carlie said that the protein and healthy fats in the recipe can help with balancing them out.
When I asked Carlie about the potential dangers that brands can cause when marketing products to address health concerns, she said that the danger is when people see something and run with it without taking the time to understand why the product is branded a certain way. What came to mind was Erewhon's smoothie collaboration with Hailey Bieber, where the Strawberry Glaze Skin Smoothie was advertised to be "skin supporting."
All in all, Carlie stressed the importance of consuming a variety of foods in order to get a variety of nutrients. "Know what you are consuming so that you can make informed decisions," she advises. "There is no one magic pill when it comes to our nutrition."
All that said, will an Olivia Rodrigo smoothie single-handedly solve all my gut problems? No, most likely not. But after speaking to Carlie, I realize there definitely are ingredients in there that may be gut-friendly. But of course, everyone's body is different, so be sure to consult a medical professional about any health concerns you may have. I personally thought the "Good 4 ur GUTS" smoothie was delicious, so I'll just take it as that!
Alright, what are your thoughts on Erewhon smoothies? Would you feel inclined to try one if you were ever in Los Angeles? Even just a teeny-tiny bit? Let me know in the comments!
For more content from Carlie Saint-Laurent Beaucejour, RD, follow her on Instagram.