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Anyone who knows me is aware of my love for tea. I drink a ton of it daily and any tea place I can find I have to check out. I love Tea’s Me downtown and miss working downtown just for the reason of popping in there several times a week. I was excited to see that downtown Carmel was getting a tea shop called Tea Buds. I headed in there with several of the high school girls in my Merge group to check it out. We loved it and several girls tried the bubble tea. I don’t really know how to describe it but you just have to try it!

They have a great mix of teas to choose from and their chocolate chai tea latte was smooth and creamy. I didn’t get to try any of their treats but those looked pretty amazing. I was so busy talking that I almost forgot to grab a couple of photos so here’s just a few.

The bubble tea.

I haven’t posted a Such Great Hangout in awhile. It’s been nasty outside the past couple of days and I would like to just tuck into a diner, have a warm drink and some comfort food. Uptown Cafe in Noblesville is just perfect for this. Their chai tea latte comes in an extra large mug which is always a plus. The Mega Miller breakfast sandwich is huge and sooo good. We’ve been there for breakfast and lunch and love it. Tuck yourself into a warm seat and enjoy.

This cute little place is tucked away in downtown Zionsville. The owner, Kelly, is actually one of our past brides and we just love that she followed her dream and opened up a bakery! We have tasted a bunch of her treats and they are amazing. She has everything from fresh doughnuts to macaroons. I was there celebrating one of our 2011 SGH Models heading off to college so we grabbed a couple of goodies. You can find Le Dolce Vita Patisserie on Facebook or at their website and you should for sure stop in and grab a treat.

Here’s one of the yummy cupcakes.

And some of the macaroons.

We have driven by this location so many times and said “We need to go check that out.” I finally met a friend there, checked it out, loved it and have been back since! Blu Moon Cafe is in downtown Carmel and has a menu with all kinds of yummy sandwiches, soups and salads. The second time I was there I had breakfast and tried their signature biscuits and gravy. Yum!!! They had a tea, called swamp water, that was recommended and I loved it too. I haven’t tried the desserts yet but they look amazing as well.

My friend got the chicken salad sandwich.

I had a sandwich with turkey, cucumber, avocado and all kinds of goodies!

Just love the interior of the restaurant including these chairs.

This cute little shop opened in downtown Carmel just last week. We were walking through downtown Carmel checking out Artomobilia and noticed it was open so stopped in to check it out.

They have cupcakes and ice cream. We need to go back to try a cupcake but this time went for ice cream with how warm it was outside. Zane got the dreamsicle flavor ice cream which I tried and it was delicious. Pat and I got a butterscotch milkshake to share and we were fighting over who got the next sip. It was so good! You need to stop by this place!

The dreamsicle ice cream.

The yummy butterscotch milkshake!

Zane enjoying his ice cream.

Several years ago, before Zane was born, Pat and I strolled through the streets of Paris stopping to get snacks at the street vendors with the fresh crepes. I remember the warmth of the crepes, watching the lady make them in front of me and trying to teach me to say strawberry in French while she made them as I had poorly attempted saying it when I ordered.

We’ve had crepes since then but they just haven’t added up to that experience. But we can now say there’s a place in town to get a crepe that tastes almost exactly like the Parisian crepes! George & Jeff’s Crepes & Creamery just opened up in Carmel where the old Ritters was located on Rangeline, right off the Monon Trail. They have ice cream, which was wonderful too, but you HAVE to go get a crepe.

Zane had the chocolate ice cream and barely would let me take a photo of it before he dug into it.

I had the Nutella/whip cream crepe and Pat had the cinnamon, butter and sugar crepe. I’ve since been back and had the Nutella and fresh fruit crepe which was amazing too. They serve them warm and in a holder so you don’t get the mess all over you. Okay I need to stop talking about it…I’ll end up back there today!

We had a meeting the other morning at Soho Cafe & Gallery and loved the place! We want to go back and grab some lunch and just hang out. I had a chai tea latte with vanilla soy and Pat had a strawberry smoothie. I love the little touch of the Soho logo on my chai. I love that Soho has events all the time including musicians playing out on their deck which is right against the Monon Trail. There’s also artist studios that local artists can rent and create their work there. What a great combo of artists and coffee/food. Head to here to relax or do some work and call us if you’re going…we might join you!

Find Soho Cafe & Gallery on Facebook.

It’s funny how you drive by a place so many times and say “we should go there” but just keep forgetting! Pat and I have made a deal that if we’re going out to eat, we’re eating someplace locally owned when we have the choice as to where we’re eating. We have driven by The Local Eatery & Pub (find them on Facebook also) a ton of times and finally stopped in for lunch. It’s a farm to table restaurant with local food, something else we highly support. We had trouble deciding what we wanted there were so many things that sounded good!

They did a great job with having a clean design for the restaurant and have local art displayed too.

I tried the grilled chicken sandwich and had a hard time deciding between fries or tator tots, yes they have tots! I loved their homemade sauce that was on the sandwich.

Pat went for the fish and chips. We’re always on the search for good fish and chips after our time in London and we have to say this comes pretty close. It’s not a heavy batter, very light and not greasy, and very tasty.

Then we decided to treat ourselves to dessert. The beignets were amazing! They came with caramel sauce to dip them in and we ate these way too fast they were so good.

Pat and I feel strongly about supporting local businesses. There’s just something about going into a place that you know they are dedicated to the area, have had a dream and are making it work. I’d love to see the local businesses staying around instead of some of the corporate chains. What better way to help them out than share them here so you can head in and check them out?

First up is a coffee shop that has only been open just over a week in Westfield. Good Life Coffee House is located in downtown Westfield right off of State Road 32. The owner, Lisa, is super sweet and makes some killer danishes. We happened to get there just as she was cooking them and Pat got this apple danish warm. Yum! Since we’re not coffee drinkers we didn’t test out the coffee but the hot chocolate was wonderful!

Lisa hand drew this onto the shop’s wall.

Stop by and say hi to this new place!