About Perk Up Café

Perk Up Café is on The Monon in Broad Ripple, but it still feels like it’s off-the-beaten-path in the very best way. I’m here to tell you that it is one of the most unique coffee experiences in Indy.

Perk Up Café has been quietly caffeinating Broad Ripple since 2004 when Indy didn’t really have much of a specialty coffee scene. Since then though, they’ve kept a unique perspective on local coffee.

It was purchased in 2009 by its current owners, Jeanette Footman and Alice Matsuo. Jeanette is Black German and from Berlin and Alice is Brazilian Japanese from São Paulo. CAN YOU IMAGINE all of the experiences they powerhouse women have that we don’t?

Alice was trained in Germany as an artisan baker (making her cooler than I will ever be) and created all of the bread recipes for Perk Up while Jeanette is responsible for the pastries. And to top it off, they roast their own coffee in-house. Perk Up is also the only shop in Indy (that we know of) that uses a manual, three-lever espresso machine. OH OKAY. NO BIG DEAL.

There are a million reasons why you should visit Perk Up Café in Broad Ripple, and hopefully this gives you a little more incentive to try them out because we highly recommend it.