We heard so many amazing stories from people's experiences at Tala this week. In fact, we had way more submissions than we were prepared for, so it has taken several extra days to sort through it all. Thank you to everyone who shared their memories and thoughts about our cafe. We are so honored by the community and stories you’ve provided! We’ve chosen the top five memories, and randomly picked the winner of the $200 giveaway. Read all five stories below and see who is the lucky grand prize winner.

Sunday tradition

“Every Sunday, my three best friends and I drive an hour to get our favorite 16oz iced caramel latte with lite ice and oat milk. This has not only become a tradition in our friend group, but also an amazing way to spend time together. On talas first birthday, we each ordered three of our favorite drinks and brought them to the beach in Highwood, where we spent the day and went swimming in Lake Michigan. Tala will always be a staple in our friendship, and now that we are all going to college, we hope to still be able to come home as often as we can so that we can drive the hour to our favorite coffee shop.”

A special place

“Tala has become a special place for us. We’ve seen them grow from the stand in Highwood Wednesday market to opening day of this coffee shop, went there for many celebrations including birthdays and our engagement photos, and it became our go to spot for any meetups. Leon loves meeting people there and knows when we walk in that direction Not only it has an awesome vibe, their graphic/ packaging design and coffee are superb!! Can’t wait to try this special Truest Tala line! Happy 2 years!”

And the winners are…

Congratulations to Stacy O. for winning the Grand Prize $200 gift card. Thank you, also, to Tatiana G, Donna C, Anna G and Judy L, our four runners-up, each receiving $25 gift cards! We will contact you to win your prize!