Coffee Talk

Thanks for stopping by! Love a good coffee shop? Live in or around the Twin Cities? Neat! You sound like me! Check out the blog for info on a new coffee shop every week! Check the "How it Started" page for more info.

[twincitiescoffeetalk]

Glam Doll Donuts | Minneapolis, MN

Let me just say that this place is one of the most unique shops I've ever been too, by far my favorite one yet.  From the moment you walk in, this place has a special vibe that would be hard to capture anywhere else. The staff was super friendly and seem to fit right in with the atmosphere at Glam Doll.  The whole shop has a vintage feel to it, including their furniture choices, decorations, as well as their old time photo booth. Don't get me wrong though, this cool shop definitely has a little taste of the new as well- which made for a good mixture of old meets new.

Me, being the reserved person that I am, had their traditional glazed donut, the Sugar Kane.  I know, I know, I should probably venture out of my comfort zone a little bit to give you the best of reviews.  But I wanted a usual so I could compare it easily. (Good enough excuse?)  Hands down their Sugar Kane was the best glazed donut I've ever had.  And that's saying a lot.. I'm comparing to Krispy Kreme as well as Dunkin' Donuts! My husband got the Dark Angel which has vanilla bean cream and chocolate icing.  That too, was quite delicious, but unfortunately a little too doughy for his taste.  On to the chai.  It was creamy, just the way I like it. Glam Doll also has a house blend, so no luck with a brand here either.  But that's okay, I'll just have to keep coming back for more! And trust me, I will, I've seriously been craving another donut since I walked out the door!

http://www.glamdolldonuts.com/

Food & Drink 5/5

Atmosphere 5/5

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Coffee Talk | Taylors Falls, MN

Now I know this is a stretch, not exactly the Twin Cities, I get it.  But hear me out.  Jake and I took a day trip down to Taylors Falls, Minnesota a few months back to hike along Interstate Park.  When we woke up early that morning it was pouring outside; we were both pretty disappointed thinking that we might have reschedule our mini vacation. But it cleared up slightly and we decided to give it a go anyways, after all it was only about 45 minutes away.  When we arrived it was still raining so we decided to pull over; we saw people continuously going in and out of this house and finally we realized that this house was in fact a coffee shop.  Unintentionally the title of my blog… yes, the coffee shop is called Coffee Talk.  Little did we know this revamped home would be our cozy safe place until it stopped raining an hour later.  

When we walked into the shop honestly it wasn’t anything too eye catching or really unique.. just your average coffee shop.  But after we ordered our drinks and realized that there was nowhere to sit, we awkwardly stood around for a while until we saw there was seating upstairs as well. The upstairs had a very woodsy vibe, which went well with their location.  When we sat down there was a group of six or seven teenagers studying for a Chemistry exam.  It made me thankful that I wouldn’t have to go to school the next day like they would.  Jake and I sat around the corner from them and enjoyed each others company while sitting at what looked like a hand made wooden counter and matching stools.

This place too, had a private house blend of chai but I remember it being creamy and delicious (and very hot, I burnt my tongue).  Jake, on the other hand got his usual coffee, black.  As far as food goes, they had your usual pastries but at the time were not serving soups or sandwiches. 

Food & Drink 4/5

Atmosphere 3.5/5

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Chilkoot Cafe & Cyclery | Stillwater, MN

Another Stillwater one, I know.  Bare with me while I play catch up with a few from the past so I'm up to date!  Chilkoot is honestly one of my favorite places to go in Stillwater.  One thing that makes the Chilkook unique is that it's atmosphere literally changes at night.  If you go in the morning you'll see your average coffee shop offering lovely pastries and warm coffee drinks; which alone, is perfectly fine.  But sometime in the afternoon (I've never actually been there for the switch up) they bring out the black tablecloths, turn on the sparkle lights, and on Saturdays they throw in a super chill band of choice.  I don't know about everyone else, but if you ask me, I think the fact that they revamp the atmosphere at night is just super neat. They have some amazing options for dinner as well- Linguine, Ribs, and Vegetarian options too and they have a great selection of beer on tap. Keep in mind when you head over to Chilkoot that their food may be delicious but their portion sizes aren't exactly large.  So if you're starving and just ready to indulge, this may not be the place for you.

And on to the Chai, of course.  Chilkoot uses a house blend so I'm sorry, I cant help you out with a brand.  But I can tell you that it has more of a spicy taste than a creamy taste and to be honest, I'm not a fan of a chai that's super spicy.  Regardless of their chai, their night atmosphere is seriously amazing.  My husband and I actually went there for a little anniversary dinner earlier this year.  I enjoyed a "Platter of Fine Things" while my husband took a liking to the "Braised Pork Shoulder" and a craft beer.  For real, check this place out.

http://www.chilkootcc.com/

Food and Drink 4/5 

Atmosphere 5/5

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Daily Grind | Stillwater, MN

The Daily Grind definitely has that hometown feel to it.  Maybe you don't know everyone in the shop but as soon as you walk in, you know everyone else.. knows everyone.  Does that make sense?  I've gone here a handful of times and you really do see people of all ages there.  If you go real early in the morning you'll see a couple groups of older gentlemen reading the newspaper, talking about their new gadgets, and even giving a few lessons on love.  You'll see the EMTs who come in before their shift and sometimes have to jump off their stools to catch a call.  If you go in the afternoon you'll probably see a younger crowd there too.  Some working on their lap tops and some playing chess at their built in chess & checkers table.  If you're lucky, you'll meet the owners.  And they'll tell you that their moving soon.  They're moving to a new building a few blocks down, and they'll share their space with the local book shop.  I'll be sure to post an update once they're at the new location.  As for now though, their atmosphere really does the trick; from their taped up lounge chairs to their mismatched table and chairs you'll be sure to have a good time.

As far as food and drink go? The Daily Grind uses Oregon Chai, which is seriously delicious. (Better iced if you ask me)  You know, the concentrate you can buy at your local grocery store? That's Oregon.  In any other situation, concentrate (even if it does taste wonderful) would definitely move you down to a 4/5.  BUT their cookies are so delightful that it makes up for it!  They have some of the best homemade chocolate chip cookies around!

http://www.dailygrindstillwater.com/

Food and Drink 5/5

Atmosphere 4/5

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Blog One: Welcome!

So here's the deal.  I've been going to many coffee shops around the Twin Cities for a while and for each one I go to I write down a rating out of five stars.  At first I just started doing it for my own benefit.  I wanted to see who had the best atmosphere, who had the best chai, and for my husband- who had the best coffee, black (or craft beer for those late night shops).  Any who, after people started to get word that I was doing this, they were curious as to which ones I thought were the best and wanted to see my list of places to go.  Not that my opinion means anything to the greater public but it did mean something to my friends.  So. I decided to take my opinion and make it into a blog. (isn't that really what blogs are?) So here's a coffee shop blog.  And here are my thoughts.

Side note:  Since I've documented a few from the past already, I'll post those first.  After that I'm hoping to get to a different coffee shop each week. Hope you come back to check it out!