Two young men from New Haven have created a new lemonade that’s really taking off and may become a local summertime staple.
“They’re selling out too fast, extremely fast,” said Brian Burkett-Thompson, co-founder of Eat Up LLC.
Burkett-Thompson and fellow Eat Up co-founder Kristen Threatt have stuck gold and in their new drink.
“We knew it was going to have some buzz, but we didn’t think the buzz would be the way that it is now,” said Threatt. “People are calling like crazy; they want these gorilla lemonades.”
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They say they chose the “gorilla” because of the confidence, gentile nature and family that are important to the animal. They say those same traits are within them.
They founded Eat Up LLC in 2019. The catering company serves Italian-inspired soul food at community and private events around New Haven.
“Right now, I have a carbonara with a fried chicken breast on top. It’s really nice, really good,” said Burkett-Thompson.
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So, the idea was to come up with a drink to make a complete meal for customers. Burkett-Thompson developed the lemonades and they started stocking them at Andalouse Fresh Shop on Howe Street. Owner Ammar Chekhess said it doesn’t last long.
“It’s like really fast. Almost like every other day I need an order,” said Chekhess.
And it’s all natural, made by hand.
“Honestly it will probably take me almost two and a half hours to finish a whole batch, which is about 80 bottles,” said Burkett-Thompson.
They say it’s worth it. Right now, they’re in Andalouse on Howe Street and in Momma Bear’s Kitchen in Waterbury.
All of the work with the lemonades and catering gives them the cash to give back to New Haven. They’ve held chili cookoff competitions, donated back-to-school supplies, given out Christmas gifts, and helped a Hamden fire victim.
Their slogan: community over competition.
“It just brings New Haven some light,” Threatt said. “Instead of all the negativity that’s going on, we’re changing the narrative of what the community is about and who we’re about.”
And they said their work and drive is now an inspiration for others.
“Seeing this now means a lot to me because I didn’t expect this to happen this way,” said Burkett-Thompson.
“We’ve done a whole lot within the community thus far and we have a whole lot more to go,” said Threatt.
