If you are looking for a new option for coffee off the beaten path and want to support local businesses, look no further than Eli’s Coffee at 205 W. Jefferson St. in Morton. The local coffee shop is about a 20 minute drive away, but it is worth every second. While all dine-in options are paused per the governor’s orders, you can still order in the store to go or online for pick-up or curbside service.
Eli’s offers an array of café dining options like coffees, teas, bakery items and deli sandwiches for breakfast and lunch. I tried popular breakfast items and a couple of specialty drinks. Here are my thoughts:
Sausage, Egg and Cheese Bagel:
This bagel was like every other breakfast sandwich. The sausage had a savory flavor and was a hefty helping of protein. The three components were evenly spread out over all of the sandwich, providing the same taste throughout. It was smaller in size, so it made for eating on the go easy and quick.
For $3.14, it was nice to have a sandwich that was comforting. Even though it was familiar and could be made at home, no flavors left a bad taste or made me feel weighed down after enjoying it.
3/5
Chocolate Chip Scone:
The scone was dry and crumbly, as a scone should be. The sweetness of the chocolate and the icing on top really made it a delicious, wonderful Sunday morning breakfast treat. Its only real flaw is that there were too many chocolate chips in it, which led to the chocolate flavor drowning out the icing a little too much.
This was the best scone I have ever tasted. For $2.65, this scone absolutely exceeded my expectations.
4/5
Hot Caramel Apple Tea Latte (Seasonal):
This latte is an autumn-time special, and for someone who does not enjoy tea, this was still adequate.
Besides the strong apple taste, the nutmeg and cinnamon stood out and complemented the apple flavor. It tasted like fall in a cup. The milk made it smooth and easily enjoyable, even to my coffee drinker taste. There was also no rush to drink it, as it stayed warm for the drive home and then some.
It is only available hot and in 12 ounces for $3.69, 16 ounces for $4.09 or 20 ounces for $4.49.
4/5
Iced Bohemian (Specialty):
The “Iced Bohemian” is my personal favorite. The drink is one of the house specialties, and the most popular. It is an iced coffee with milk, chocolate, caramel and hazelnut flavoring. You could still taste all the flavors and the coffee, but no flavor overpowered the others. They all blended together for a well balanced breakfast drink. Periodically, the drink needed to be stirred because the syrups were settling, but otherwise there are no complaints.
The iced coffee comes in either 16 ounces for $4.19 ounces 24 ounces for $4.99 and it was worth every cent.
5/5
Vanilla Cake Pop:
The cake tasted like it was homemade, but it was crumbly and a little dry. Because of its size, I was looking to be a little more satisfied. It was a little more challenging to eat because it crumbled after the first bite, but it’s also easy to eat on the go.
For $1.99, its solid taste and icing design makes for as good a cake pop as you can get outside of a bakery.
3.5/5
Bacon, Egg and Cheese Biscuit:
The seasoning on the biscuit was overpowering but the bacon fit right on it, which made it easier to hold to eat and provided an even taste throughout the whole sandwich. Given the length of the drive to Eli’s, the biscuit was super easy to eat while on the go.
The bacon, egg and cheese biscuit was good, but not anything to rave about. Nothing set it apart from others. For $3.14, it tasted just like it should. Each individual ingredient was really good and well prepared, but when paired together, it was not as impressive as other items on the menu.
3/5
For less than $20, Eli’s provided a wonderful breakfast meal for less than most local coffeehouses.
