Coffee & Treats in Lake Saint Louis

Not many restaurants arm their patrons with the apparel to play dress-up. But at Aggie’s Closet and Tea Room, youngsters and their adult charges can head up to the closet, where they rifle through dresses, feather boas, and flower-adorned hats to don while sipping tea, munching on cucumber sandwiches, and scoffing at flying machines like real Victorians. Downstairs, in the Victorian-inspired dining room, guests savor herbal tea from fine china and nosh on handmade, seasonal salads, sandwiches, and wraps. During the warmer months, the tearoom opens up its wine and beer garden, where live music on the weekends serenades guests.

Homemade cakes, cookies, and cinnamon rolls emerge from ovens at Mary’s Morsels, tag-teaming taste buds with a menu of breakfast and lunch fare in an intimate bakery and café. Mollify petulant sweet teeth with slices of old-fashion cheesecake ($3.99/small, $6.99/large) and giant cinnamon rolls ($2.49), which diners can affix to ears as an edible ode to Princess Leia. Fifteen cookie varieties ($3.99/dozen) provide an appetizing epilogue to an ample spread of lunch fare, including classic sandwiches, honey cornbread, and, on Thursday, home-style chicken and dumplings ($4.29/small, $5.29/large). Gobs of rich gravy ooze over fresh-baked biscuits ($3.99/small, $4.99/large), appeasing early-morning appetites alongside open-face croissants crowned with fluffy scrambled eggs ($6.99).

Almost 100 years ago, Peter J. Oberweis found himself with a surplus of milk. Rather than throw it out or freeze it into popsicles, Peter began selling it to his neighbors, an endeavor that was so popular that he began a milk-delivery service in 1927. Fast-forward to today, and Oberweis Dairy still delivers glass bottles of creamy milk to doorsteps. The small family-owned dairies that produce milk exclusively for Oberweis pledge never to use artificial growth hormones, therefore imbuing craft cheeses, super-premium ice cream, and yogurt with fresh, unobstructed taste. Oberweis partners with other like-minded companies to deliver such items as certified-humane Phil’s Fresh Eggs, Chuckanut Bay Foods cheesecake, and Connie’s Pizza to homes or to sell them at the company’s various retail locations.

At Adam's Caf??, the aromas and flavors of the Mediterranean caf??mingle with those of the?American?diner. At lunch, classic burgers and chicken or beef philly cheese steaks are served alongside plates of steaming chicken shawarma and beef kabab. In addition to savory meat-based lunch dishes, Adam's Caf? also serves up a variety of vegetarian dishes. During breakfast, the kitchen turns out hearty egg-and-cheese sandwiches on texas toast, croissants, pita bread, or bagels. They also dish up omelets stuffed with gyro meat and saut?ed vegetables. Throughout the day, hot coffee and sweet treats such as housemade cake donuts and baklava keep the spice levels under control.

The day’s biggest sports games unfold on the two 100-inch big-screen HDTVs and several more HDTVS at Redbirds Sports Cafe. Clients play their own games in the bar, sinking pool balls into the pockets of four pool tables, hitting bull’s-eyes on three dartboards, and scoring goals in air hockey. To complement the sporty atmosphere, cooks specialize in hearty game day favorites such as chicken wings served in 1.25-pound batches and party platters full of appetizers like cheddar poppers and mini burritos. An arcade harboring a Nintendo Wii and PS3 amuses guests while a jukebox projects various rock and dances jams throughout the festive game space.

Frustrated by bakeries that lacked imagination, Laulie Cakes' namesake Laura began steadfastly whipping up custom confections in her home kitchen before moving into the business's first storefront in 2011. Each day of the week, Laura artfully bakes batches of traditional and specialty cupcakes and helps party hosts to plot out their soiree's sweets. The shops cake artists work with event planners of weddings and birthdays, embellishing cakes in the flavors and design of the customer's choice, whether it be a dulce-de-leche cake adorned in lovely swirls of realistic flowers or a coconut cake topped in fondant figurines of a bride and her ostrich groom. Cupcake vase centerpieces and other elaborate confections are freshly baked each day, often with help from Laura's young daughters, who share their mother's passion for great-tasting icing.