SAMBAZON Açaí Bowls had its grand opening in the University of Connecticut Student Union at 9 a.m. on Thursday, March 6.
The opening included a ribbon cutting ceremony, short speeches from people who contributed to the new location and free açaí samples. There was also a table giving away shirts, stickers and açaí seed bracelets.
Scott Hauver, the assistant director for retail operations for UConn Dining Services, said that a location with açaí bowls and healthy options is an asset to the Student Union.
“I think it’s a great fit for the Student Union, and the partnership with SAMBAZON has been going really well,” Hauver said. “The açaí bowl, if you go to lots of places like airports and other universities, it’s an item that’s being offered these days, so we thought it was it was great to have that açaí sorbet available with all the fresh ingredients and nutritional value that it has.”
SAMBAZON’s location in the union opened on Feb. 6. Hauver said the reception from students has been very positive so far.
“Students seem to love it. The most popular in the morning is the Sunrise Bowl. It’s really good. It’s got strawberries, mango and honey, it gets people going,” Hauver said. “My favorite is the Protein Bowl. It has all kinds of nuts and chocolate, so it’s really good.”
Hauver said he expects business to go up as spring and summer approach.
“We think we’re going to get busier as the warmer weather arrives and we’re excited for that,” Hauver said.
Vito Buscemi, the president of SAMBAZON’s hospitality group, explained how their business model was “farm to table on steroids.”
“The harvesters shimmy up 70-foot trees, they cut down the branches, they put the berries in baskets and then they bring them in boats down the rivers in the Amazon to one of two of our eco-friendly plants that are in the rainforest,” Buscemi said.
Buscemi said SAMBAZON was the first to bring açaí into the United States, where the company started out with guerilla marketing.
“We’ve been able to build a business from 24 years ago to today to be in 30,000 grocery stores and food service across college campuses and food service operations across the U.S.,” Buscemi said.
Buscemi said that beyond the U.S., SAMBAZON is in 50 countries across the globe.
“We’re building purple smiles around the world,” Buscemi said.
SAMBAZON is open on the lower level of the Student Union from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. on weekdays, according to UConn Dining. Its hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturdays and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sundays.