Lemonade and Brownies received a generally mixed response from critics upon its release. AllMusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine wrote that the album is "a competent set of alternative funk/metal", but noted that "nothing on Lemonade & Brownies is particularly distinctive."
In August 1995, CMJ New Music Monthly wrote that the album "jumps hyperactively between rap, hardcore, arena rock and funk with a lot more skill and strength than you might expect (although, like so many white boys, they sound like they're trying a bit too hard to be funk-ay)". The publication further stated that, "The Beastie Boys (there's even a "Cookie Puss"-style prank phone call), Bad Brains and Van Halen loom large here. Although its Beasties/Peppers personality sometimes overpowers the music, Sugar Ray manages to pull it off throughout most of this LP." In April 1995, David Beran of the Gavin Report similarly wrote, "dangling their feet in the streams of hard rock and funk, Sugar Ray manage to do what the Beasties and Chilis have done." In his August 1995 review, Scott Iwasaki of the Deseret News described Sugar Ray as a "hardcore hip-metal act resembling Beastie Boys and Red Hot Chili Peppers", and said that the album has "a couple of innovative surprises". He described the opening track "Snug Harbor" as being "a little acid jazz" and said that "'Hold Your Eyes' sounds so urban you'd think Dr. Dre played a hand in the mix." New Zealand publication Rip It Up wrote in their November 1995 review that the album has "excursions into [various] musical genres, combined with a sense of humor and quirkiness." They add that, "shuffled in their deck of harder songs are laidback funk songs 'Danzig Needs a Hug' and 'Hold Your Eyes', which could easily pass as the product of a cheesy combo fitted with polyester lounge suits." In April 1999, shortly after the release of Sugar Ray's third album 14:59, the Daily Press reflected on Lemonade and Brownies, saying that it "included songs that more closely resembled the raunchy punk-funk of the Red Hot Chili Peppers than either of Sugar Ray's [current] hits." The Rolling Stone Album Guide (2004) gave the album two out of five stars, saying "early on, Sugar Ray had a bunch of musical ideas — funk-metal, ska-pop, like that. Unfortunately, better bands had had the same ideas years before." In 2019, Rani Baker of Grunge.com included Sugar Ray on a list titled "Bands That Don't Sound Anything Like They Used To". She called Lemonade and Brownies a "messy funk-punk effort", and noted that, "to many folks, Sugar Ray was [just] another blonde-frosted late-'90s nothing of a band whose songs showed up in sitcoms and romcoms."
Due to its sensual nature, the cover has been included in several lists focusing on sexual album artwork. In 2012, Danielle Bacher of the LA Weekly placed it third on a list titled "The Top Ten Sexiest Album Covers We've Ever Seen", while Ultimate Classic Rock placed it 19th on their list of "Rock's 50 Sexiest (And Maybe NSFW) Album Covers". British tabloid the Daily Star also included it on their list of "The 21 Naughtiest Album Covers" in 2023.
Track listing
Personnel
Sugar Ray
- Mark McGrath - lead vocals (credited as "Liar")
- Rodney Sheppard - guitars, backing vocals (credited as "Traitor")
- Murphy Karges - bass, backing vocals (credited as "Sellout")
- Stan Frazier - drums, backing vocals (credited as "Cheat")
Additional musicians
- DJ Lethal - turntables, samples
- DJ Homicide - additional scratches
- Janine Harris - additional vocals on "Danzig Needs a Hug"
Production
- McG - producer
- DJ Lethal - executive producer
- Jason Roberts - mixing
- Ben Wallach - engineer
- Tom Baker - mastering
- Barry "Lord" Conley, Steve Gallagher, Mon Agranat, Eric Fischer & John Ewing Jr. - additional engineers
- Dante Ariola & Jay Papke - art direction and design
- Stephen Stickler & Dante Ariola - cover photography
- Melanie Nissen - additional photography