Small Town Sweets

South Carolina is known for its quaint Southern towns. These towns may be small in size, but they are rich in flavor with an abundance of locally owned bakeries, fudgeries and sweet shops. Check out these off-the-beaten-path spots to satisfy your sweet tooth on your next trip to South Carolina.

Laila’s Place Cafe & Bakery

Named for the owner’s daughter, Laila’s Place focuses on family and homemade food. If you stop by this Main Street Newberry staple, you will be sure to meet a member of Laila’s family, whose goal is to make you feel at home. This bakery’s signature item is a vanilla pound cake that comes from an old family recipe. Other old-fashioned baked goods include cookies, cupcakes and doughnuts made with ingredients from local farms.

Smith’s Exxon

Don’t let the location of this fudgery fool you; Smith’s Exxon off Interstate 95 in Santee is worth the stop. Since 1968, Smith’s has been serving up the best fudge and pralines in the South. With over 80 varieties of fudge made in house on a giant marble slab, it is hard to leave with just a full tank. Red velvet, pistachio, dark sea salt caramel and dulce are customer favorites.

TLC Confections

Located in the historic Edgefield town square, TLC Confections serves up delicious confectionaries like fried apple pies, beignets, cannolis and cake pops, but their specialty is dessert coffee. Flavors like caramel nut mocha and peanut butter mocha frappe are popular coffee orders at this sweet spot.

Mama’s Sweet Shoppe

Doughnuts take the main stage at this shop in Due West. Made from scratch every day, these artisan pastries come in over 50 flavors that include birthday cake, maple bacon, Oreo crème, lemon crème and of course, the classic glazed doughnut. Your only problem will be narrowing down which delectable pick to nosh.

Southern Touch Bakery, Coffee Shop & Cafe

This cafe in downtown York has all the sweets that you are craving. The bakery case is always stocked with Southern classics like cinnamon rolls, pecan pie, red velvet cake, peach cobbler and, their most popular item, buttermilk pie. This creamy custard pie is one not to miss.