Blue Tranquility

During my much to frequent stop to this one coffee shop down in waterford lakes I came across an advertisement for this lunch spot and just had to try it out.
To start off with the positive:
The retail section is really quite large. There is everything from art prints to soaps to jewelry. It’s great. It would be nice to some more local artists on the walls, since I don’t know about most people, but I really enjoy the local flair. There is ample seating and it’s brightly lit, great for catching up on some work after a bite and a sparkling water.
I had a watermelon sparkling water and my husband had a raspberry sparkling water and they were the best part about our visit. Fruity, fresh, light, bubbly, not loaded with sugar. We will definitely be back for the sparkling water.
I do have to touch upon the things I noted that were not quite as charming:
The lighting was maybe too bright, a little reminiscent of the dentist’s office… Maybe I’ve grow much too accustomed to the low lights of the coffee shop and the big plush seating that just whispers «sit here and drink another cup of java»? Either way, the set up is a little bit workplace cafeteria and doesn’t really bring the word «tranquil» to mind, but maybe it’s because I used to work at a hospital and had to respond to emergencies and the cafeteria looked a lot like the seating here… flash backs… yikes. The set up of the store is a little awkward, with the tables lined up silent auction style. I was almost afraid to touch anything because I might break something. Can you tell I’m a little klutzy? Maybe if the retail area was in the front and there was cozier seating towards the back it would provide some privacy to the dinners and the type of ambience reminiscent of a cutesy café and less workplace break room.
We had a roasted pepper and hummus sandwich and a mushroom soup…
The menu items are simple (maybe a little lackluster) but really do well for a quick bite on the go. However, it’s nothing I can’t whip up at home in 3 minutes flat and I’d have to really think about driving somewhere to eat something I can throw together much quicker. I guess maybe I’m weird, but when I go out to eat it’s because I’m going to enjoy something that would take more effort, more ingredients (more cleanup) and more time to make than what I’ve got going on at home.
On to the lunch items:
The (cold) roasted pepper and hummus sandwich came with a side of potato chips and cut up carrot sticks. I would have paired the sandwich with a nice robust and fresh lemony, poppy seed cole slaw and the potato chips to counter the crunch of the chips with a more «salady» option… but that’s just me. Also, a panini grill would put a nice touch on the yummy freshly sliced bread, giving it that extra oomph that we all seek when going out to eat.
The mushroom broth was tasty enough, but needed some sort of crusty something on the side to dip with. Or kale chips just to have on the side. It just seemed to be lacking a little.
Overall the experience was a-​ok, but I don’t know if I would return due to the lack of lure… It would be a great pit stop if running around doing errands.
I really want this place to succeed and I think they have a really great concept– I think it needs further development and truly hope to return and enjoy some of the delicious sparkling waters. They were a treat and a delight.

I stopped in to the HUGE storefront the other day after a trip to Publix. The front of the store is a café with a bar and some tables and chairs, while the back half of the place is for retail goods. They have handmade jewelry, art, and bath and body products from local businesses on display and for sale. I am unsure how long the sale will be ongoing, but it was 15% off retail pricing when I was in.
This place specializes in natural sparkling soda. They use real fruit and have organic options and special flavor combos (I had the summer splash, for example) that they hand mix when you order. Sort of like Italian sodas, if you will. They also offer coffee beverages and light tapas style food like pita bread and hummus. The store owner/​manager was very polite and talkative and happy to chat about what they do and their ingredients. I’d picture this sort of a place in Winter Park or Lake Mary/​Heathrow. It’d be nice to have a meeting there or drop in to do some studying. I’m not sure how this will fare at this location in Oviedo, but we don’t have any places even remotely like this, so I’ll be happy to see them succeed.