As mercury soars, juice shops record good sales

Thiruvananthapuram: While the city continues to battle the extreme heat, a few people can be seen diligently serving the thronging crowd in front of them with tasty drinks one after the other. Students, professionals, passers-by and regulars stop by the road next to Palayam Juma Masjid to have their favourite “pocket-friendly” sarbaths.“These days, 25 to 30 litres of milk we bring every morning get over by 3pm. We have about 10 varieties of sarbaths at our stall like ‘dates naruneendi’, honey, avil milk and the like. Recently, grape sarbath has become a hit among youngsters. The ingredients used are primarily homemade and the milk is directly bought from a cooperative society,” says S Ravindran of Anamika Sarbath stall.The low-cost nature attracts school and college students who find solace in a tall glass of chilled beverage in the hot sun.“It has been about 15 years now since I opened this stall. I have kept the price at Rs 10 for a sarbath as my major customers are students. The business is in full bloom now. But it is dull during school vacation days,” says Bindu Thomas, who sells fruits-based sarbaths.Another good-old spot here is the Bakers snack shop inside Saphalyam shopping complex which has been in the business for around 17 years.“Compared to the pandemic era, sales have picked up this year. It is our policy to never compromise on the quality of shakes and snacks here. We never buy crushed ice but rather rely on ice cubes made from good drinking water,” says the owner, Arshad.