New & Better For You

Everyone that knows me will tell you that when it comes to coffee shops Second Cup is always at the top of my list. It may have something to do with the best EVER hot chocolate they serve that is reliable and always consistent (and who knows how many calories), it’s one of my favourite treats and I WILL seek it out whenever we are at home in Canada. As of February 2017, though, Hot Chocolate is now competing with some new exciting menu items for that top spot.

The new ‘Better For You’ menu now offers breakfast, snacks and beverage items that provide healthier, more nutritious options for those of us on the go. High quality ingredients and lower calorie counts are the main focus and the new menu is marked with a green striped border so that you can easily spot it… no more excuses! Your favorite beverages now also come with a choice of skim or almond milk or half sweet in the new ‘ReThink your Drink’ initiative not to mention we can all lay off the whipped cream once in a while (guilty here for sure!), that alone will save more than 100 calories! With the world [finally] becoming more health conscious, whether it’s trend driven or not, it’s really great to see this Canadian brand giving it’s customers options to make healthier choices. Lead by example, as they say, am I right?!

Not one for compromising great taste I invited my friend Devon to come and try the newest menu in person. In addition to being insanely beautiful Devon is also a nutritionist and herself leads a healthy and active lifestyle so between the two of us it was going to be a true taste test. Funnily enough, as we got into the restaurant (the newly renovated Breaside location) at 8am, on her way to work we spotted our smoothies being prepared with fresh bananas, kale, strawberries and yogurt. A welcome change from always seeing the fruit come out of the freezer or worse yet, not seeing it at all. Think greens, fibre, whole grains, proteins and vitamins, all available at the same time and the same place as your coffee. Why not pick up a healthy smoothie instead, or together with your morning coffee and get that daily intake of something that’s good for you. The green mango boost smoothie is the clear winner for me. I love the texture that kale provides plus drinking something green makes me feel less terrible of not regularly incorporating it into my diet.