Tropical Juice Bar is scheduled to open at 401 Irvington Ave. in South Orange's Seton Village on Saturday, September 26, at 11 a.m. The owner, South Orange police detective Hipolito Felix, announced the opening, according to The Village Green.
The storefront is in the Seton Village section of a corridor that has been the subject of years of revitalization efforts. The space was formerly a mechanic's shop and has been converted into a fresh food and beverage business, according to The Village Green.
Felix signed a franchise agreement in 2025 and began construction in March 2026, according to the company's account of its expansion as reported by The Village Green. The buildout converted the former mechanic's shop, and the South Orange location was described as the 12th Tropical Juice Bar site under construction.
Felix's Police and Business Roles
Felix is an active detective with the South Orange Police Department and has local familiarity with the village's businesses and university community.
He plans to remain on the police force while running the juice bar as a separate family business, as noted by The Village Green.
The timing lands as the South Orange Police Department prepares for its final on-site accreditation assessment with the New Jersey State Association of Chiefs of Police, scheduled for this month, a review of departmental policies, operations and community service standards, according to the department's own announcement.
Why Felix Says He Took the Leap
Felix has described opening the juice bar as another way to invest in and contribute to the South Orange community, and he has called entrepreneurship a long-standing personal goal. Per a letter attributed to him, he described South Orange Village as the perfect community to bring the juice bar's vision to life.
The business will offer green juices without artificial ingredients as well as Caribbean-inspired meals. Felix has said he expects the shop to create jobs and serve families, students, residents and visitors along the corridor.
Village Officials Welcome the Opening
The grand opening was announced at a South Orange Village Council meeting by Hannah Zollman, who said the village is thrilled to have a Tropical Juice Bar. Her announcement folds the new shop into a longer municipal push: Seton Village and South Orange Village were awarded a five-year Neighborhood Preservation Program grant from the Seton Village South Orange partnership and the state Department of Community Affairs, aimed at driving economic development and physical revitalization along Irvington Avenue.
That funding cycle is now entering its home stretch. South Orange Village's fiscal year 2026 budget presentation notes that this year marks the fifth and final year of the Seton Village NPP grant, meaning municipal planners are navigating the transition just as the grant-funded support for small businesses and streetscape improvements winds down. The timing coincides with other redevelopment moves on the same street: in July, the South Orange Village Council approved key municipal redevelopment steps targeting properties including 270 and 299 Irvington Ave., signaling that the corridor's momentum extends well beyond a single storefront.
What Comes Next for Irvington Avenue
The five-year Seton Village Neighborhood Preservation Program grant has focused on economic development and physical revitalization, and South Orange's fiscal 2026 budget presentation identifies this year as the grant's fifth and final year. The village's approved redevelopment plan for 270 and 299 Irvington Avenue calls for 60 housing units, including 12 affordable units, and between 10,000 and 15,000 square feet of commercial space, according to the South Orange Village official website. The village's revised draft redevelopment plan describes the 270 Irvington Avenue area as a community-revitalization effort emphasizing context-sensitive design for nearby residents and the broader South Orange community, according to the South Orange Village revised draft redevelopment plan. Those plans provide a broader backdrop for the new storefront as the grant-funded period approaches its end.
Part of a Growing Statewide Chain
Tropical Juice Bar was founded in 2010 by brothers Carlos M. Lopez, the company's CEO, and Carlos D. Lopez, its COO. In a June 2, 2025 expansion update, Tropical Juice Bar said it had opened its 10th location, that the new store was its second franchise and that three additional locations were in development.
The South Orange location adds a university-adjacent market, putting the shop within easy reach of Seton Hall students as well as longtime Seton Village residents.
