Earth and Friends Cafe & Espresso Bar

It was a cold and rainy day - it's how all good stories start right?  My daughter and I were looking for a place to get a cup of something warm - and not from Mc Donald's or Circle K.  We wanted a good latte or dirty Chai to brighten our day...even a Carmel Apple Spice woulda been nice to bring some sunshine onto our spotless minds :-/.  We were cold, wet and just plain tired!

We finally gave up on Indiana allowing there to be a Starbucks within a 1000 miles of the Southern Indiana Region....which was fine - when we lived over here before we lived on  small independently own coffee houses.  But where the heck were they now?  There were none in Jeff we could find - less the Starbucks burried inside Target - and that's just wrong to me.  The whole point of a cafe is the atmosphere and as much as I luv Target - I'm sorry it still kills the cafe experience.  

When we lived in the hub of Cafe world - no - not facebook - but on the Sunnier side of the bridge (don't let the slogan fool ya - Hoosierland is NOT the sunnier side here folks! ;-p) - We had like 4 Starbucks within idk - I'm bad at miles but within a few miles of each other.  Depending on what area we were in town we could always grab a cup o' joe.  BUT -if we were happenin' to be shopping that 4th Starbucks, it was in our local Target...and that my friends, made it convienent - not a necessity.  

We would still seek out nice and friendly locally owned coffee shops and try them out.  Some were great and some failed miserably. Yet in a hurry that Starbucks drive-thru was always handy!  But this lack of coffee is ridiculous.  UNTIL...we found our new home away from home! :-D  

We were cordially greeted by a lady at the front counter - she pleasently asked us if we were there for lunch or just hot beverages.  I had said just hot beverages.  Their place was mezmerizing - everything was purchased locally, fresh, organic, frair trade, and/or cruelty free.  This is the FIRST place I've found on this side of the river with a vegetarian/vegan friendly menu (gluten-free too for those looking).  

Their prices were comprabable to Starbucks with better ingredients.  It is my dream come true! :o  

They are tucked away in a small office park, had to use a combo GPS and google to find them.  Their atmosphere is enough to bring peace and harmony to anyone's day/life - even their handsoap was homeaid and eco-friendly...and smelled so great it made you want to bathe in it! :p lol.

I cannot WAIT to go back and try their food!  

The downside - Starbuck's coffee is strong - even though I always get decaf - or 1 shot cafinated esspresso and the 2 other decaf for a 1/2 caf drink - their coffee is a little bit weaker and you may notice the difference, if it is something you're used to.  I wouldn't write home about their coffee perse, but the fact that I can find a place that is not inside a Target store, all vegetarian/vegan, and has the nearly same price and the nearly same menu but better - I can hang.  

And of course, each barista is different so - next time I could be saying how strong their coffee was, who knows?  It's just something worth mentioning when you're talking to cofffee lovers! :p lol