Tropical Smoothie Cafe – Fishers

Tropical Smoothie Café Debuts Tasty Drinks & Sandwiches at Fishers District

Photographer / Eli Beaverson

When dreaming of days on the beach, Central Indiana may not be the first place that comes to mind. Take a step into Fishers’ new Tropical Smoothie Café, however, and you may just find a slice of paradise.

Located at 11545 IKEA Way Ste. 620, the new Tropical Smoothie Café location brings all the franchise’s delicious sandwiches and smoothies to The Yard at Fishers District. Now with hundreds of locations across the U.S., this Fishers franchise marks the second Central Indiana location opened by local franchisee James Volpert, with the first being located at The Bridges in Carmel.

Back in its early days, the Tropical Smoothie brand simply served smoothies at a beachside shop in Destin, Fla. In 1997, however, the first Tropical Smoothie Café opened in Tallahassee, Fla., and the rest was history.

“About one-seventh of the 750 stores are now up in Michigan, so it’s even doing pretty well in a colder climate than Indianapolis,” Volpert says. “Even the CEO was kind of astonished with how well they’ve done up in Michigan.”

With the Fishers location marking his second franchise in Central Indiana, Volpert has already witnessed firsthand how much old and new customers alike enjoy the Tropical Smoothie Café brand.

“There’s kind of a cult following,” he says. “People who have experienced it in other states have immediately embraced us. And people that have come in who know nothing about us have enjoyed the smoothies and the food and returned again and again.”

When it comes to the Tropical Smoothie Café menu, Volpert says a popular smoothie option is the Detox Island Green, which blends together spinach, kale, mango, pineapple, banana and fresh ginger.

“It’s like a salad in a cup, and you don’t know that you’re drinking a salad,” Volpert says. “It tastes so good even though you’ve got kale and spinach in there. It’s been a very popular item.”

As for the food, Volpert says their flatbreads and quesadillas are popular, as well as their chicken Caprese and chicken jerk sandwiches.

“The food has a tropical flair to it,” Volpert says. “You’ve always got a spice or something on it that makes it stand out.”

From the beginning, The Yard was a targeted location for Tropical Smoothie Café.

“Our real estate team worked with Thompson Thrift and basically, they said, ‘We’ve gotta be at The Yard,’” he says. “It’s kind of like the crown jewel of Fishers like the Palladium is to Carmel.”

With fellow business neighbors like the Hyatt Place hotel and St. Elmo’s 1933 Lounge, Volpert couldn’t be more excited about having this Tropical Smoothie Café franchise located in The Yard.

“The vibe of The Yard is tremendous,” Volpert says. “I have met a lot of the owners of the stores, and the synergy has been great. It’s a destination place with all the restaurants and bars.”

Tropical Smoothie Café’s Fishers store is located at 11545 IKEA Way Ste. 620. You can also call them at 317-288-0585 or visit them online at tropicalsmoothiecafe.com for more information.