It has been far too long sense I posted on this page, but I have found the next gem! 

Yesterday, I went to have lunch with my mother at a little cafe called French Press Coffee and Crepes (2725 Commercial Street SE Salem, Oregon) and holy moly, I have never been to France, but I'm pretty sure these crepes are just as authentic.

I am never disappointed with the food and coffee I device from French Press because of how good the quality is as well. The employees are also the sweetest thing to exist. Another great quality about French Press is that they are an open kitchen, so they have nothing to hide, you can actually watch the chef make your crepe right in front of you!

I recently just gave up coffee and tea, which has been hard, but I would highly recommend purchasing their french press (duh) or their mochas! In the summer time they have this peach tea that tastes like an actual peach and it is literally heaven in your mouth.

Yesterday was the first time I went there and didn't get coffee or tea, but I got something just as good, a salted carmel hot chocolate, and was so beautiful.

Salted Carmel hot coco! So delicious.

My mother got a sugar free iced latte, which was obviously pretty tasty because she sucked it down before I was able to take a picture of it! 

French Press doesn't just sell coffee, they sell crepes, but not just say crepes, they serve an endless possibilities of crepes. Build your own crepe, a pure Nutella crepe, a chicken crepe, a BLTA crepe (my personal favorite, I get it every time I go there!), a sweet crepe or a savory crepe, seriously, any crepe your little hungry heart desires. Not only do they have crepes but they have other options if crepes really aren't your thing! They serve sandwiches, which I have heard nothing but great things about, and they have breakfast options such as omelets. French Press really caters to everyones hardy appetite!

My mother and I both got our savory crepes and then ordered a dessert crepe because the food was just so good that we had to get more! 

Marionberry Crepe! 

One of the best things about French Press is that if you're in a hurry, no need to fret! They have a drive thru! Also, if you just need to pick something up really fast, you can call ahead and they will have your food ready right then and there by the time for pick up! Trust me, I call them all the time when I am craving a BLTA crepe for lunch. I just drive on over during lunch time, pick it up and devour it in my APLIT class. 

I hope you guys enjoyed! If you have any suggestions for the next gem, let me know! 

Until the next gem is dug up!

-Saige

Hello everyone! Sorry I haven't posted a new gem in awhile! I actually have been tour colleges and visiting some family with a great friend of mine, which was such great experience. I never thought I would love the University of Utah so much, things surprise you sometimes!

Anyways, down to business. Before I left for my trip, I got some coffee with a good friend of mine, Natalie Brown! She told me about this place called Break Point Coffee Co. (1120 Commercial St SE  Salem, OR 97302, it's right across the street from Straight From New York and Dutch Brothers!) I decided it would be glorious for this little local business blog. 

This the Break Point sign! It's pretty in your face and hard to miss!

They had the cutest little set up in this coffee shop. It made you feel right at home to a certain extent. It's pretty quite, so it's a great place to read a book or catch up with a friend you haven't seen in awhile. All the baristas are helpful and make a mean cup of joe! I've been here once before, and I ordered a roasted marshmallow mocha, it was like a choir for my taste buds. So yummy. If you like doing funky things to your coffee, I could totally recommend trying that outrageous choice! 

Natalie and I both got the blended Tiger Chai
and a homemade lemon bar! 

The Tiger Chai was really great if you like very thick chai. It wasn't really my cup of chai because I like it more light, but it is one of there best sellers, people drink it up like nobody's business. Natalie got her wisdom teeth removed and had to eat her chai with a spoon, so it wisdom teeth friendly! 

Another thing I found really great about Break Point is that they have so many gluten free options! Since so many people are gluten sensitive, this is great place to pick up a lunch and chat with a good friend or read a good book (I just finished the Hunger Games and let me tell ya, it was very captivating) 

They have so many cake ball options! It's cake ball heaven!
Who doesn't like cake balls?

This was one of the coolest things at Break Point! They have so many options for cake balls. I love cake balls. How could you not like cake balls? They are like a little taste of Heaven. The best thing about these cake balls, is that they have a few gluten free options, so those poor souls can still enjoy a little slice of heaven. I'm gluten free, and Break Points cake balls are on point! (See what I did there?) 

I hope you all check out Break Point! It has great coffee and tons of food options! 

Until the next gem is found,

-Saige 

Hello readers of my blooming blog! I have found a new local business in Salem that would be perfect for my blog!

The Konditorei (310 Kearney St SE  Salem, OR 97302) is the second place I will be sharing for your new adventures around Salem, Oregon! This little restaurant is known for it's delicious cakes and pastries! The Konditorei certainly does not disappoint, I about inhaled every dessert I saw in the display cases. 

The most noticeable thing people see while driving by! When I was little I would
always tell my mom I wanted to go where the baker was. 

This friendly business was opened in 1982 by a man named Gerry Frank. He also has a book on the history of The Konditorei which I heard was really snazzy and captivating! (http://gerryfrankskonditorei.com/gerrys-book/  also available at Roth's and The Konditorei)
Gerry wanted to give his cake shop diner feel but still have that slice of elegance (get it? slice? like a slice of cake) that made his shop look mouth watering.

This place is so cute! It has the diner feel but still feels elegant! I sorta fell in love 

The Kondtitorei serves breakfast, lunch and dinner! My good friend Julia Silver and I went there for dinner, and while she got a sugar free italian soda, I was scoping out the menu trying to make up my mind on what I wanted! I ended up getting the house salad because I wasn't super hungry, but the salad was huge and extremely filling, and it was also a great price! The next thing I am totally going to try when I go back is the homemade mac and cheese! Who doesn't like mac and cheese? It sounded so yummy!
People have so many option to choose from on the dinner menu! They have soups, salads, sandwiches, and so much more! Their cake options are seriously endless, I could not even process how many cake flavors they had, it was like walking into cakeland instead of candyland.

A demolished chocolate macaroon 

When I explored this bakery/diner with Julia, I decided I was going to be a glutton with absolutely no shame. I was going to take a picture of this mountain like macaroon, but it looked too good so I dived into the delicious looking dessert, and I don't believe I came up for air until it was almost gone. I highly recommend getting the macaroon! I almost bought two, I probably would have developed high blood sugar if I did that though.

Frosted cream cheese brownie. It's so rich! Sorry about the bite in the corner :) 

This was the other dessert I purchased. It was so rich and chocolatey that I'm pretty sure after they bagged it for me, I left it at the register, oops. If you're the kind of person who loves frosted and rich desserts, this is the brownie for you! Their brownies are so huge, it's almost the size of a piece of cake. This brownie probably took up half my face.

If you have a sweet tooth, this is the place to go!

I hope you enjoy my totally not sugar free post!

-Saige

Hi guys!! I decided to start a blog about Salem, Oregon and all it's little small businesses. Everyone always raves about how boring Salem is, and how there's nothing to do. I've been searching around the area to find places that are cheap, relaxing and fun!

Toadally Joe Cafe (located on commercial street, right across the street from Jack-in-the-Box, on top of the hill!) is the first place I'm going to write about, and attempt to convince the people who call Salem home, and the people who come to visit Salem that this a must go to cafe!

I made this glitter banner for the owners and they loved it! 

First off they have amazing customer service and connect with any guest that walk in. Molly and Ryan Wilks, the owners of Toadally Joe Cafe have turned this little coffee shop into a full blown menu with amazing sandwiches and salads. Molly takes absolute pride in her cafe and is always coming up with new ideas to improve the quality, service, and overall experience.

Drink: Blended Oregonian (Hazelnut and chocolate) Soup: Tomato ravioli
Sandwich: Gluten free turkey and pepperjack cheese 

Now, doesn't this presentation look awesome?! That's not even the best thing about this meal! I got all of this for under $10! This cafe is notorious for having affordable prices for everyone. I'm a teenage girl, with a minimum wage job, and can still afford to come here almost everyday. Can we all just take a second to marvel over that delicious looking drink? Their whipped cream is homemade from scratch as well.

Another great reason to check out Toadally Joe Cafe is because they use all local organic coffee, and try to keep their options as health as possible! Their salads are bigger than Jupiter and are under $4! Everywhere else a salad the size for Pluto is anywhere from $7-$12! That's a bargain.

They have so many flavor options I couldn't fit them all in one picture! 

This is the back of the cafe, where all the magic happens! One thing I really like about it is that it's an open kitchen! I have also liked open kitchens because I always believes that was their single that they had nothing to hide. Plus watching people make your food and drink is always cool.

Anyways! Molly and Ryan have a coffee drink list of an amazing 33 options to chose from! Isn't that insane! They also are the only store in Salem that carries Pistachio, so if you're really craving that flavor, they are the only coffee shop that has it! Like I stated before, they use all organic coffee beans as well!

They also have specials everyday besides on the weekends! I can't remember the exact order of the specials, but they will tell anyone who stops in to buy a coffee.

If any of you reading this blog post decided you want to check out this amazing cafe, I can tell you right now that you won't be disappointed in the result of your visit! The owners will make you feel right at home and will start up a casual conversation about the weather, or the book you decided to bring and read!

Toadally Joe Cafe is open from 6 am-6 pm Monday-Thursday, 6 am-7 pm Friday-Saturday and 9 am-2 pm on Sundays!

I hope you all enjoy! :)

-Saige