Courtey of Neon Banana
What’s in a name? In the case of Neon Banana (10283 Clayton), pretty much everything: youth, vitality, electricity. In short, everything that partners John Brunner, Nick Zotos, and Michael Friedman are hoping to evoke with their new health food restaurant, slated to open in Ladue this spring.
The Menu
Courtesy Neon Banana
Vegan bone broth in production
The Neon Banana will offer traditional counter service, including made-to-order juices and smoothies (customizable with adaptogens), as well as an expansive grab-and-go selection, with such options as overnight oats, bottled juices, bone broths, and salads.
The co-owners are still finalizing the menu, but they anticipate the acai bowl will be a hit. “We have a frozen yogurt machine where we’re going to be making it,” Brunner says. “This will create the creamy texture where everything is smooth and velvety.”
Courtesy Neon Banana
While they’re treading new territory on that front, they’re going back to their roots with some of the juice offerings. “Citrus juice, grapefruit, and orange,” Brunner notes. “We’ll have celery juices—a lot of the basic juices, which are coming back around.” The ownership group is still toying with what exactly to call it, but they’ve tentatively landed on “monojuices,” which will be made in house with a new machine (pictured at right) that can cold-press 200 to 300 gallons at a time.
Courtesy of Neon Banana
Beef Broth Bowl - with rice, bok choy, kimchee, chili crisp, micro greens, egg
The Team & Future Plans
A St. Louis native, Brunner moved to Nashville about a decade ago to open a brewery but instead fell for juices—namely, the I Love Juice brand. He brought the juice bar franchise back to St. Louis, where he worked with Friedman, ultimately opening two locations.
When Zotos—who helped introduce a combo juice-and-bone broth concept to the area at the former Beets & Bones—walked into one of the I Love Juice locations, Brunner recalls, "we had such a similar background that we kind of hit if off from Day 1... It occurred to us that if we combined our powers, we could have the best juice company in the Midwest.”
That’s the trio’s goal with Neon Banana. They’re eyeing April for a soft launch at the Ladue location, and by then, they hope to be announcing a second location in Wildwood or Webster Groves. They aspire to open five to 10 locations by 2026.
