All Sweets and Treats

Quintessential Rivertown Spice & Tea – Where 75+ Teas and 100+ Spices Meet Proper Tea Service in a Three-Stage Historic Home Most tea shops offer a dozen common varieties and call it a selection. Quintessential Rivertown Spice & Tea stocks over 75 tea varieties and more than 100 different spices in an 1811 historic home that’s been lovingly converted into a tasting lounge, gift shop, and lunch destination where tea isn’t just steeped—it’s brewed at precisely the correct temperature using thermometers that ensure each variety reaches its optimal extraction point. This matters enormously. Green tea scorched at boiling temperatures turns bitter and astringent. Black tea steeped too cool tastes flat and underdeveloped. White tea needs gentle heat. Oolongs demand specific ranges. The difference between mediocre tea and exceptional tea often comes down to water temperature precision that most cafés ignore in favor of speed and convenience. At Quintessential Rivertown, they do it right—measuring, monitoring, and delivering tea the way serious tea enthusiasts know it should be prepared. Beyond the tea expertise, this is where you discover lunch done delicately rather than heartily—dainty sandwiches with crusts trimmed, finger foods arranged on tiered serving platters, expertly baked scones with clotted cream and Read more…

Sara’s Ice Cream is the place that you expect to find in Sainte Geneviève, which makes it all the more satisfying when you do.  It’s what makes you feel like you’ve arrived at a destination—that’s how important it is to the DNA of what we’re trying to build here.  Sara’s has been a fixture here since 1981 and it’s now under new ownership that has breathed even more life into the town’s favorite stop for locals and visitors alike. Set in the town’s de-facto center right across from Audubon’s Hotel and Restaurant, Sara’s will take you back to the good times when coffee was 10 cents —it still is at Sara’s — where malts needed heavy equipment — they still do at Sara’s —and you could get house-made sodas called phosphates — guess what?  You can get them at Sara’s. It’s the perfect spot to take a break while exploring Main Street—close to local shops, restaurants, and historic sites. Whether you’re after a quick cone or a hand-dipped shake, Sara’s Ice Cream delivers a sweet taste of Sainte Geneviève. Read more…

Sweet Things Sweet Shop – “The World’s Okayest Candy Store” Where Nostalgic Treats Meet Hand-Dipped Chocolates in an 1860 Historic Building At 242 Market Street in downtown Sainte Geneviève, Sweet Things Sweet Shop occupies a two-room historic building dating to 1860, functioning as candy and toy store since the shop’s original founding in 1985—making it a 40-year Ste. Genevieve institution that’s survived multiple ownership changes, economic recessions, and the rise of online shopping through consistent quality, mother-daughter family operation (since late 2013), and self-deprecating “World’s Okayest Candy Store” branding that undersells genuinely exceptional hand-dipped chocolates, nostalgic penny candies, Jelly Belly selections by weight, novelty treats (bacon and cheese flavored crickets, anyone?), and carefully curated toys and children’s books. Sweet Things represents endangered species—the independent small-town candy shop where glass jars line shelves, chocolates are made on-site using traditional techniques, ice-cold Coca-Colas come in old glass bottles, and the owners (mother and daughter team who live in town) actually know customers by name, recommend favorites, provide directions to historic sites, and hand-deliver chocolate gifts within five miles of the store. Walking into Sweet Things triggers childhood memories for adults while creating new ones for kids discovering candy that tastes exactly as Read more…