Best of Rhode Island 2008 Editors' Picks

Forget the uniformity of commercial coffee shops. Bristol's Beehive Cafe is fiercely independent and more appealing than the nation-wide chains. They've got plenty of ice cold coffee drinks (mmmm, caramel latte) and smoothies, but the real appeal lies in the homemade baked goods and water view. Owner Jennifer Cavallaro makes raved-about savories (soups, biscuits, strombolis) and sweets (brioche sticks filled with chocolate, raspberry mousse cakes and Scottish shortbread dusted with sugar) daily.