Ask a foodie: Socials Cafe: Bringing happiness and tastebuds together since 2007

The river was up and raging, and we found ourselves in downtown Cape Girardeau looking for a new place to eat. After finding an amazing 110-year-old children's book in one of the antique stores, my daughter and I were ready for a meal. We walked by Socials Cafe and Catering at 31 Main St. and were instantly interested in the front door. The entire restaurant front was a line of long, paneled windows, and the door is the exact same width as a window. Narrow and lined in wood, it blended in with the windows, and except for the "Entrance" sign on the door and the doorknob, you wouldn't have known it was an entryway. This made the door feel cool and a little bit magical.

Inside, an entire wall was carpeted with coffee bean bags. These burlap sacks can be colorful, unique and interesting, and we pointed out our favorites to each other while we waited for our food. Socials' menu was much larger than I expected, with a generous selection of wraps, sandwiches, paninis and salads. Most of the back page was consumed with coffee selections of all kinds, lattes and mochas and other espresso concoctions.

But I think my favorite part of Socials' decor was the bakery counter. With no more than 5 feet of counter space, the chefs here have arranged a sugary feast for the eyes: chocolate chip cookie-topped ooey gooey cupcakes bursting out of their wrappers and piled high with whipped cream, an impressive and stately cake topped with white chocolate balls towering at least 9 inches above its cake plate and pillowy cinnamon rolls as large as two of my fists. This and more were arranged on cake plates, cupcake towers and platters, all dressed with catchy name tags, so many layers placed in such a way that I just wanted to take a picture and hang it on my wall. It was beautiful and artfully arranged, and I appreciated the work that went into making not only the baked items themselves, but the overall presentation.

We ordered Italian sodas to drink. Made in store, they are comprised of syrup, ice and club soda. We could have them mix two flavors for no extra charge and add half-and-half to make a cream soda. Many flavors, many combinations, many ways to taste this homemade soda treat, but we kept it simple. My daughter ordered strawberry, and I ordered amaretto. I'm watching my sugar intake, so my daughter ended up mixing what was left of her strawberry to what was left of my amaretto, and that was good, too -- fresh, bubbly and different.

For lunch, she ordered a club wrap that came out looking like it belonged on a magazine cover. It was huge, and she loved it. I ordered the spinach strawberry salad. It came topped with red onions, feta and walnuts. I opted to have the grilled chicken added for some extra protein. The salad was enormous, with the fresh spinach leaves hanging off of the plate. The chicken was steaming hot, and the toppings, especially the sweet strawberries, were generous. I ate my fill and still left some on the plate.

A club wrap from Socials.Submitted by Rebecca LaClair

For dessert, we split a chocolate cake pop, rolled in peanut butter cups. Oh my goodness ... Socials' baking game is on point. The inside of the pop was rich and moist, melt-in-the-mouth delicious. The texture was more like fudge than cake, but the flavor was definitely all cake. The outside was crunchy and encrusted with small cut up peanut butter cups. We were happy.

Socials Cafe has been in historic downtown Cape since 2007. They make absolutely beautiful cakes, and I'm going to see about ordering one the next time I have a special occasion. Looking over their Facebook page, it looks like they do more than cakes, so check them out if you need special cupcakes or cookies for an event, or maybe just a big sheet pan of those giant cinnamon rolls for the office. And drop in for some homemade sandwiches, complete with fresh sauces and perfect vegetables. The food quality here is impressive.