Turtley Awesome Nutrition opens on Route 1

For those who like their coffee or smoothie in the morning, a new shop has opened on Route 1 in Lewes that hopes to be the healthy answer to Starbucks or Wawa.

Turtley Awesome Nutrition opened Oct. 2 at a storefront adjacent to Community Bank at the split of Route 1 and Kings Highway. Run by the husband-and-wife team of Robbie Vogl and Renada L'Italien, the store serves up 34 different styles of smoothies and six varieties of coffee. The menu also includes energy mocktails.

While not a direct affiliate, Turtley Awesome Nutrition is related to sister locations such as Mission Nutrition in Dover and Next Level Nutrition in Milford, among others. 

Vogl and L’Italien said they view their place as “Starbucks, but healthy.” They are both certified personal trainers and wellness coaches.

“Our main goal is to really dive into the community and help the community get healthier,” L’Italien said. “Whatever they need in terms of health and wellness, we can provide here.”

She said there are plans for workout programs at the store, weight-loss challenges and full meal replacement smoothies that are 24 grams of protein with under 250 calories. Even the cake pops are made in a healthy way, L’Italien said. 

Vogl said Turtley Awesome is intended to be a spot where people can come in, relax, discuss fitness goals and get advice. 

“We love just having people come and chill,” he said. 

“This area needed some kind of healthy alternative, or somewhere you can go outside of Dunkin’ and Starbucks,” L’Italien said.

She said the name came from her and Vogl’s 3-year-old son and his love of turtles.

“It was our baby’s nursery theme,” L’Italien said. “His first word was ‘turtle.’ We had a couple of different names picked, but we just kept seeing signs of turtles everywhere. We thought it would fit cute into the community.”

“It was almost like naming a kid,” Vogl added. “Being down the road from Crooked Hammock and Crabby Dick’s, it just kind of seems to fit into the community.”

For their opening, the first 30,000 customers at Turtley Awesome will get a free smoothie. 

“We tell people, ‘You’ve got to try it,’” Vogl said. “I was an avid coffee drinker. I was 40 pounds heavier. And it just changed my life. I had this drink, I felt great, I didn’t have to crash after. I feel like my heart beats better. My energy is better.”

Turtley Awesome Nutrition is open seven days a week at 18259 Coastal Hwy. For more information, call 302-632-9123, or find Turtley Awesome Nutrition on Facebook or turtley.awesome.de on Instagram.