Sometimes you need a little afternoon pick-me-up, especially when the sky darkens with summer storms. Luckily, several shops offer a bevy of sweets and other treats to tide you over until our beautiful sunsets and moonrises this time of year. Heres a look at some places to pop in and spoil yourself and others.
Old Florida Coffee Co.
Since opening earlier this year in a historic building in downtown Fort Pierce that originally housed a trading post, Old Florida Coffee Co. has become a destination for gourmet coffee drinks and crpes. Cool off with its Floridaccino, an ingenious, frozen blended drink of cream and local produce like Natalies orange juice. oldfloridacoffee.com
Lderach
Swiss chocolatier Lderach opened its first Florida outposts. More than 85 varieties of its bean-to-bar, artisanal chocolates are available at locations in Fort Lauderdale and Aventura Mall. The family-owned firm is dedicated to freshness by sourcing cocoa beans from vetted suppliers throughout Latin America and Africa for signature products like hand-broken chocolate bark. us.laderach.com
Fireman Dereks Bake Shop
Wynwood-born Fireman Dereks Bake Shop reopened in a much larger location for an elevated experience. Display cases offer sweet and savory items from pies to cheesecakes, in addition to a selection of hand-churned ice creams and seasonal specialties (strawberry shortcake cream pie through July 31). Coconut Grove also has a branch. firemandereks.com
Southern Belles Cakery
Founded by an Alabama transplant in Palm Beach County, Southern Belles Cakery is taking over the bakery scene one slice of poundcake at a time. She uses her great-grandmothers vanilla and almond recipe, further honoring her by calling it the Sissy poundcake. Complement the star dessert with newly introduced cold brew coffee. sbcakery.com
Proper Ice Cream
Hand-made ice cream in exotic flavors is catching on. Delray Beach-based Proper Ice Cream, which added a Boca Raton location designed like an old-fashion ice cream parlor, features regular flavors like orange creamsicle, blueberry muffin and chocolate covered honeycomb. The extensive menu also offers ice cream drinks, interesting sorbets and elaborate sundaes. propericecream.com
Wagnolias
Not to leave out our furry friends, Wagnolias in Stuart makes all sorts of yummy, all-natural dog treats. Ingredients including peanut butter, blueberries, oatmeal and honey show up in birthday cakes, cookies and biscuits. Its Thunder cookies calm pooches during summer storms, while goat milk and peanut butter Pupsicles alleviate sizzling temps. wagnolias.com
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