This one’s for you, Central Jersey. Meet Clique! Locally crafted, farm-to-dispensary edibles made with real ingredients from right here in Mercer County. And it’s all made with love by four-time James Beard nominee Chef Scott Anderson, co-owner of Elements and Mistral in Princeton! IYKYK, Scott’s restaurants are all about fresh, seasonal and locally sourced ingredients, so it’s only natural that his edibles carry that same love and philosophy.
We had the honor to speak with Clique’s Executive Chef Scott Anderson (SA), COO Tenisha Victor (TV), and VP of Partnerships and Distribution Britt D’Amico (BD) about their first-of-its-kind, Jersey-grown creation and their incredible partnerships with Great Meadow Farm in Lawrenceville and Terhune Orchards.
Tell us a little bit about Clique and the team?
TV: “I’m from New Jersey, born and raised. Britt and I have been in the industry for over 10 years. I’ve spent a lot of time on the dispensary side and in West Coast markets, opening 80+ dispensaries across eight different markets and launching numerous brands. In New Jersey, I played a key role in social equity efforts, helping start Mud Brothers and bring them into AYR and to market. Eventually, we decided to spread our wings and build something of our own. We started with one-off consulting before realizing we wanted to launch a brand.”
BD: “As Tenisha said, we’ve been in the industry for over 10 years, working and launching many brands into the market. What we’ve found is that—putting it as nicely as possible—everyone pretty much has the same stuff.”
SA: “I’ve always grown my own herbs, and in the past few years, I’ve started planting vegetables. But it really began in the forest—picking wild mushrooms, spring ephemerals, certain barks and wild medicinals. Over time, it all became part of my natural diet and eventually led to these gummies.
I hate the term ‘wellness product,’ but I wanted to create something that truly feels accessible to everyone. My goal is to incorporate medicinal herbs, roots, fruits, and vegetables to craft the best possible product.”
How did you get into cannabis and what led you to create gummies?
SA: “I’ve been a cannabis user pretty much my whole life. From the very beginning, I understood its potential from a recreational standpoint, but as I got older, I recognized its medicinal properties. That’s when I started exploring the synergy between cannabis—the adaptogen of all adaptogens—and other adaptogens and nootropics, especially medicinal mushrooms and various herbs. It naturally fit into my day-to-day cookery.
The gummies I make are a classic French variety of candies. It was just a natural thing. It wasn’t something that I really sat and thought over. I just started playing around with non-infused at the restaurant and started infusing them. It was easy and I just went from there.”
What makes your gummies superior?
BD: “The texture and taste are everything. I’ve eaten so many edibles and these stand out. You know what you’re putting in your body is pure and clean and with no weird aftertaste. The Apples & Spices one literally tastes like my Aunt Sue’s applesauce on Thanksgiving. It’s so pure, so good.”
TV: “Nobody is formulating gummies the way we are. We take fresh produce, juice it and infuse it with single-strain live resin. During this process, Scott will look at all of the terpenes and cannabinoid profiles in the live resin we choose. He’ll determine, for example, if this is very high in limonene, this is going to be a good choice for our yuzu product. Essentially, he’s mirroring the natural botanical terpenes that are prevalent in all of the fruits and the cannabis-derived terpenes.”
PB: You’re really speaking our language. Everyone at the shop has really, really been excited about you guys coming in. Also, when we had heard about the the Terhune Orchards collaboration…this is one of the most interesting products we’ve seen in the state. So thank you guys. We’ve been waiting for you.
TV: “That means so much to us to hear that! It makes us so much more focused on our mission and continuing to provide better products to New Jersey because we’re all passionate cannabis users. I’ve been using cannabis since I was 14. Most of my partners can see the same about themselves.”
What Makes This a True New Jersey Brand?
SA: “I wanted to really create a homegrown New Jersey product. And I think we’re the first out there that is truly dedicated to the state of New Jersey’s cannabis, farming, medicinals, and foraging programs. This is a New Jersey product and we should be proud to have this as our own.”
PB: We’re so excited for this to exist. With the farming culture and the produce culture that exists here, we’ve been waiting for someone to truly embrace it and bring it into the industry through edibles.
BD: “It’s the Garden State, right? Let’s really lean into that. And like Tenisha said, we’re all very passionate cannabis users. One of the first brands I ever launched was a brand called Cannabiotix out in Nevada, an extension of a California brand. I saw the care they put into growing and learned that when you truly care about what goes into your master plan, it shows in the final product.”
We’d love to hear more about the process of partnering with local farms like Terhune Orchards
TV: “Scott has been in the legacy market for over 10 years and owns Great Meadow Farm in Lawrenceville.” If you haven’t checked them out yet, they have a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program. This is a great way to get fresh, farm-grown produce from mid-May through late October. Fun fact—this is where the honey for Yuzu Go-To Gummies and the berries for Berry Zen Gummies come from!
SA: “We have our own honey. The beekeeper on our farm has multiple hives and multiple different farms. [Only five minutes away from Pure Blossom] I naturally used Terhune Orchards [for the apples in the Apples and Spices gummies], but most of the medicinals and the herbs come from our farm. We’re just waiting for springtime to start harvesting and drying.”
TV: “[Scott] also purveys from other farmers as well and thanks to those long-standing relationships, we’ve been able to source locally whenever possible.”
How Did You Perfect the Art of Infused Edibles?
SA: “20 years ago, I started making edibles by infusing butter or oil with flower, but dosing was unpredictable. It wasn’t until I worked with distillate and live resin that the math became easy, allowing me to fine-tune the effects.
I’m a loyal sativa smoker and I realized that in the morning, if you smoke the right sativas and pair it with ginger and orange juice, you’ll have a good morning. You know—a pick-me-up. I have the best job of creating these weird things that work and people like it.
Furthermore, black pepper, cloves, and allspice reveal high levels of beta-caryophyllene, while oregano contains limonene and ocimene. All these terpenes are there for me to play with and cannabis carries them all. When you strip her down, she tells us what her terpene profile is. I then pull from the correlating spices or herbs and fortify it, making her as strong as possible.”
Could you share more details on sunflower lecithin, including its role and benefits?
SA: “Sunflower lecithin is mainly an emulsifier. It’s used across the industry, whether from sunflower or soy lecithin. And from a cook’s perspective, it helps oily and watery things get along, which normally doesn’t happen. And when you mix that in an edible, the bioavailability in your system becomes much quicker. Traditionally, you might wait 45 minutes to two hours for a gummy to take effect, but when you emulsify it with lecithin, it becomes much, much more bioavailable in your system.”
PB: Interesting, kind of like the nano technology in some of the beverages we’ve seen in other markets…
SA: “It helps the spread of the emulsion more throughout the product, so when it enters your system it’s not trying to figure out whether it’s an oil or a liquid.” Meaning faster absorption and onset.
Would you say that you’re all gummy people?
TV: “I’m a huge gummy and flower person. I love our gummies because of the adaptogens and nootropics—they’re the only edibles that actually work for me. Most edibles hit me too hard, and my body doesn’t metabolize them well, but I can sit here and smoke just fine.
I’m a mom, and so is Britt. We have toddlers, so we can’t be completely out of it. This blend is perfect for me, especially since I don’t always have time to consume the way I did before motherhood. It’s become part of my wellness routine. No bong hits before bedtime, but if he’s still sleeping in the morning, I might sneak a couple in.
Scott, I know you’re a huge flower guy, because he also grows.”
SA: “Flower, flower, flower all day. Gummies maybe in the megas. I like to eat 120 milligrams.”
TV: “We’re going to do a big one—kind of a one-and-done in RSO. Something heavy for Scott to enjoy…I’ll be dead.”
BD: “I’m also mainly a flower user—1906 daily and now Clique daily. I use Genius throughout the day, and when I get home, my husband can’t wait to eat these gummies. He hadn’t touched edibles in years, but ever since we got the product two weeks ago, he’s obsessed with the Apple Cider and asks for it every night.
As a mom, I need to stay alert, so consistency is everything. So many times, you buy the same product, and it just doesn’t hit the same. You’re left wondering, Did it work better last time? That uncertainty is frustrating. With our edibles, I finally know I’ll feel the same way every time.”
PB: We’re definitely see our customers looking for more minor cannabinoid ratio options and how to pinpoint specific effects (i.e. sleep, pain, etc.) instead of relying on standard labels like sativa or indica. We really try to push intentional use and how cannabis can be integrated into their lifestyle.
TV: “Yeah, we call them mindsets. We came up with it as a mindset-based approach and we’re going to continue to expand upon. But everything’s going to be designed around a mindset that you intend to feel.”
Could you share a little insight into what you consider when choosing which dispensaries to stock?
TV: “We focus heavily on independents. They were the first store we were going into. But it’s also about working with teams that truly care, like you guys, who want to learn about the product and put in the effort. We plan to invest in you the same way, through activations and events, especially since you’re so close to the farm and everything we do there.
In particular, Scott has always loved coming to Pure Blossom—he was a regular shopper long before Clique even existed. So it felt serendipitous that you were the first store to carry us. It’s the prettiest dispensary by far. Compared to the stark realities of larger chains and all the others. Yours was welcoming, comfortable and it’s just nice.”
Any updates or upcoming rollouts?
TV: “We’ve got big plans! Scott has deep connections in the chef community, so we’re exploring Michelin-level collaborations and unexpected flavor combinations. He once made a Coca-Cola flavor using nothing artificial—just natural tree sap. Those would be super small-batch releases since you’re literally tapping from the tree.
We’re also experimenting with new product formats. Scott is R&D-ing drink powders since most on the market are packed with dyes and artificial flavors. The goal is to create something shelf-stable yet completely natural, like dehydrated fruits.”
Is there anyone in the New Jersey market that you’d like to shout out?
TV: “Christy from 1906. We love her. She’s a great friend, always so passionate, bubbly and super, super educated on all things cannabis. And she’s a Clique lover too.”
PB: Wonderful. Well, thank you so much. Tenisha, Scott and Britt. It’s so wonderful talking to you!
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