Playa Bowls Turns Protein and Blue Spirulina Into a Viral Sales Engine

A 20-ounce smoothie carrying 31 grams of protein has become the best-selling limited-time offer in Playa Bowls' history, and the Belmar, New Jersey-based fast casual expects to make it permanent by 2027.

The Tidal Wave Smoothie blends Playa's coconut base with banana, pineapple, vanilla protein, blue spirulina, organic coconut milk and non-dairy coco whip. The 16-ounce version delivers 17 grams of protein plus 16% of daily fiber — a nutrient profile the brand positions squarely at GLP-1 users, a demographic increasingly shaping beverage menus across the industry.

The drink's virality wasn't engineered on nutrition alone. Its electric blue color, mimicking what CMO Tim Hackbardt calls "this big churning ocean," caught the attention of a high-follower influencer, and the smoothie became a social media sensation. That happened even though many customers don't know what spirulina is.

"That discovery is part of the experience," Hackbardt said. "The people in our shops are trained to explain the ingredients and their benefits, and younger generations, especially, are looking for those discoveries."

How does a beverage make the menu?

Every drink must clear four benchmarks before it reaches Playa Bowls' boards. Functional benefits come first, but taste and visual appeal are non-negotiable, and the item has to be operationally executable in a fast-casual environment.

"But every item also must be visually appealing and taste great," Hackbardt said. "And then it has to be operationally executable, so we do a really good job."

That discipline earned the brand the 2026 Bevvy Award for Best Functional Beverage Offering — an industry recognition that validates a menu-engineering strategy built as much on color and crew training as on nutrient density.

What else is on the functional menu?

Protein drove much of Playa's pipeline this past year, spreading across multiple platforms:

• Mermaid SZN, a summer promotion featuring the Passion Glow Smoothie — passion fruit and mango bases, strawberries, organic coconut milk, collagen peptides and a coco whip swirl, promising "glow-from-within wellness."
• Purple Mermaid Smoothie, built on pitaya with banana, pineapple, blue spirulina, coconut milk and vanilla protein, touting "sustained energy, muscle support, and feel-good fuel."
• Protein Clouds, blending Brazilian acai with vanilla or chocolate protein powder and whole fruits, delivering 16–17 grams of protein per serving aimed at GLP-1 support.
• Cold-pressed juices and wellness shots with turmeric, ginger, cayenne and elderberry for immunity and adaptogen claims.

Even indulgence items carry a functional hook. The Mermaid Mood Bowl, drizzled with Nutella and topped with a chocolate-hazelnut seashell treat, still features blue spirulina — letting the brand serve dessert-seekers without abandoning its wellness positioning.

For operators watching from the sidelines, the playbook is straightforward: functional claims drive trial, but color and shareability drive scale. With Tidal Wave's sales record and a Bevvy Award on the shelf, Playa Bowls appears positioned to keep converting wellness trends into permanent, operationally simple menu staples.