A New Cafe Opens in Gatlinburg And... A Closing?

I wanted to combine a couple of things happening here in Gatlinburg, currently. I don’t want information to get scrambled and misunderstood, so I’m writing this post to set the record straight on one particular happening; the other is mainly good news about an opening on the Parkway in Gatlinburg… so let’s briefly tackle them.

First of all, I want to get ahead of this news before people start to spread it online. No, Walgreens is NOT closing their downtown Gatlinburg location. However, they are closing the pharmacy, which is a big bummer for us personally, since this is where we go as locals to fill our prescriptions. Instead, we have to drive to the Pigeon Forge location at 3071 Parkway.

Just to reiterate, the rest of the store will remain open. According to a letter we received in the mail that went out to people who use the Gatlinburg pharmacy, it states: The front end of this location will remain open for your convenience, so you can continue to visit the store for beauty and everyday household products, groceries, and photo orders.

This is a relief. I know many of you, including myself, patronize the chain convenience store, and it would be a big loss to see it close. On busy days, the line goes down the aisle, but the cashiers usually keep the waits at a minimum. While I’m disappointed the convenience aspect of getting my medications here is going away, I’m happy Walgreens will remain here on the Gatlinburg Parkway.

On an even more positive note, Tropical Smoothie Cafe is now open on the Parkway in downtown Gatlinburg. It occupies a space in the new building downtown that now contains the newly opened China Bazaar, Gifts of Gatlinburg, Tennessee Sock Company, and The Toychest Company.

Tropical Smoothie Cafe is a chain franchise-owned eatery that offers made-to-order smoothies, wraps, sandwiches, and flatbreads. They now operate more than 1,400 locations nationwide. The first Tropical Smoothie opened along the Florida panhandle in 1993, and their first franchise-owned store debuted in Tallahassee, FL in 1998.

The Gatlinburg location joins Pigeon Forge as Tropical Smoothie Cafe destinations in the Smoky Mountain tourist area. All of the familiar favorites you’ve come to love about this cafe should be on the menu. I personally have only visited the chain once in Knoxville, and I remember enjoying my wrap, but I couldn’t tell you which one I chose.

Those were two tidbits of information I thought deserved to be expanded upon. Usually I’ll just put out something on Facebook—and I could’ve in this case—but both needed more space than just a brief write-up. Overall, nothing earth-shattering; however, they were a necessary mention.

Just my two cents: I know Tropical Smoothie promotes their business as a healthier option, but their smoothies are loaded with sugar, and while it’s better than most places on the Parkway, I’ll likely just go with a simple lunch wrap. Unfortunately, my body treats all sugars the same, even the natural ones in fruit, so I have to be mindful.

So, to finish this off, Walgreens will fortunately stay open, and Gatlinburg has a new cafe for a quick pick-me-up during a long day of exploring all the fun in town on foot. I hope you enjoyed this post and all the others I’ll be putting out real soon. Stay tuned, and I thank you all for taking the time to read my publication. I appreciate it!