Category Archives: coffee

Great Coffee In Yellville

Although I live in Flippin, my office is in Yellville. Yellville is the county seat for Marion County but with a population of 1170 people, it’s certainly not the big city.

We don’t have big city coffee shops but that doesn’t mean you can’t get a good cup of coffee. At The Loft Coffee Shop you can get just about any type of coffee drink you’d like. And, in my opinion, it tastes better than coffee you get in that large coffee shop chain you can find worldwide.

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Imagine That Flowers and Giftsis co-located with The Loft. You can order flowers and plants for delivery or buy a cute gift for your friend’s birthday. Since we’re moving to the country this week, I’ll probably need this little gift for myself.

I’m especially thankful to Lyndsey, the owner, who allowed me to debut my gourmet marshmallows (another blog!) in her shop last week.

I love these shops, their owner, employees, and products. If you’re in Yellville, stop by. I’m sure you’ll love them, too!

Around Accra: Coco Lounge

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My birthday was October 4 and David’s was November 4. Since we weren’t together for either one of them, we decided we’d celebrate both birthdays together on December 4. As I cruised around the internet and Trip Advisor, I decided that Coco Lounge looked like a good place to go.

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We arrived right on time even though I’m pretty sure the last kilometer of the drive took us 25 minutes. The traffic in Accra is unlike any I’ve ever seen before and 6:00 p.m. is a pretty busy time of day.

We decided to order a cocktail and some chips while we decided on what to eat. David decided on a Heineken, the only beer they have on draft. I looked at the wine selection and was going to go with a glass of red wine until David discovered they have Beefeater Gin. Well! Since that’s my favorite, I ordered a dry Beefeater Martini up with olives.

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This part of our visit, the martini part, was the only part of our visit that was less than perfect. We saw they had drawn his beer but it appeared that they were stumped on how to make the martini. David said that I shouldn’t get my hopes up too high since they seemed to be having trouble. Our server finally delivered David’s beer and a perfect Beefeater martini for me. It was really good!

We ordered a second round of drinks while placing our dinner order. The second martini was not good. I’m not sure what was wrong with it but my guess is that they didn’t use the right gin. I took it back and she came back with a second martini. It wasn’t quite as good as the first but it was Beefeater and it was good.

For dinner, David ordered spicy beef and rice stir fry which came in a bowl. It looked good and he confirmed that it was very good. I decided on the Coco Burger with additional cheese. If you know me, you’ll know that I’m on the endless search for the best burger in the world and a burger will be my first choice at any restaurant that serves one. This burger was delish! The cheese that was added was a nice thick chunk of cheddar. The fries were also good and I’m pretty picky about my fries.

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We decided we’d split a piece of cake and the cake on the dessert menu was one of the big factors in my selection of this restaurant since we were celebrating birthdays. The three choices of cake (banana, sticky toffee, and raspberry vanilla) didn’t compare to the idea of a brownie with ice cream on top which is what we ended up with along with coffee. It was a very satisfying end to our meal!

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We got really good service and I love the decor and the vibe at Coco Lounge. I was also able to make my reservation via Facebook messenger before I ever even left Oklahoma! We will for sure return to try more of the menu items and help them to perfect their dry Beefeater martini. 😉

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It was a great place to celebrate our birthdays!

RE: defined Coffee House

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While I was in Texas this past week, I got a chance to have coffee at RE:defined Coffee House. It was extra special since I planned to meet a friend from snapchat.

I walked in and immediately liked the vibe. There were comfy couches and chairs to sit in and cool things to look at on the wall.

Looking up was fun, too, as it was still decorated for the Christmas holiday and it was pretty.

I had a cup of brewed coffee. I meant to go back and ask again what kind it was. It was their coffee of the day and all I can remember is that it was a medium roast from Central America. It was good with citrus and chocolate notes.

They had a goodie case but I didn’t partake. I probably should have because I drank more coffee that day than I have in a long time!

The best part is that I met my friend, Amanda (ARay), from Snapchat.

We sat and talked like we had known each other forever. The best part of social media, in my opinion, is meeting IRL.

I will definitely stop by RE:defined Coffee House again when I’m in Grapevine!

Fog Chaser

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I’m sitting here enjoying a cup of Fog Chaser by San Francisco Bay Gourmet Coffee. It’s tasty! Yesterday, I made it using my Aeropress. Today, I made it in the drip pot. I’m always surprised how you can get a different taste from the same coffee when making it using different methods.

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Anyway, this coffee is good. Made from Arabica beands, it’s a lighter roast than I’m used to drinking but it has a nice, smooth taste. The first thing I did when I opened the bag (what I always do first) was smell the coffee. It wasn’t terribly strong but it smelled good. After pressing it, the resultant brew was a little light and I was afraid I wouldn’t like it.

The coffee has a nice flavor with the major notes being chocolate and nutty. It is definitely a contender for a middle of the day coffee for me. As a bonus, David liked it, too. 🙂

Coffee Holic

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When I drove by Coffee Holic yesterday, I knew I was going to have to come back and visit. I’m in from out of town, working, and wasn’t familiar.
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This morning I had the perfect opportunity. As I entered I saw that they have wifi which is always a plus. The first thing you see is a nice goodie case and I honed in on the Chocolate Almond Croissant. Almond Croissants are my favorite and after verifying they didn’t have plain ones, I ordered the chocolate version which she heated up for me. It was delicious!

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I ordered brewed coffee and it was okay. Nothing spectacular, but drinkable. The total cost was under $5 which was pleasantly surprising.

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Their menu is small but diverse with many options including smoothies, waffles, and sandwiches. Several choices of energy type bars are available for a portable option.

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I’m glad I stopped in and if I return to Lewisville I’ll drop in again!

Social Media in the Real World

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I’ve written before about my reason for being on social media. It’s to be able to have coffee with a friend anywhere in the world. I’ve had coffee with one of my snapchat friends, nessamakes, who happens to live just a mile away from me. But we were heading to Jacksonville, FL for the Mrs.International Pageant and I was excited to see that one of my other snap friends, Dapromoqueen, lives there. I made arrangements to get together with her.

We met at a cute coffee shop called Urban Grind Coffee Shop. It was an easy walk from the Omni Hotel where we were staying and was on Laura Street. Now, I don’t like when someone calls me Laura (even though it’s my given name) but I had to have a photo with the cool Laura Street sign.

When Dapromoqueen aka Tory, arrived, we had to snap about our meeting, of course. We had a fun time visting. She’s so nice and genuine and I love that we felt like friends right away.

When we got ready to head back to the hotel we took a photo together. I’m really tall AND I had tall wedge shoes on. Tory was prepared for work and had flats on so I was WAY taller than she was. It was pretty funny!

THIS, my friends, is what social media is about in the real world. At least for me. I know I have a friend to share coffee with anywhere I go. I’m so glad I got to meet Tory. I hope I’ll get to meet you when I am in your town!

Promised Post Pageant Donut

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We stumbled upon Psycho Donuts on one of our morning walks a month or so ago. I loved how the outside was decorated. We didn’t go in but when I got home, I investigated a little further and decided that after the pageant, I was going to Psycho Donuts and have a donut.

This morning, in a radical departure from my normally ultra healthy diet, we indulged. It was truly difficult to decide which one of these amazing donuts I wanted to try. I asked the man in front of me if I could take a photo of his box and he said, “Sure”.

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After we ordered, he ordered 6 more! It really is a tough decision.

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We decided on the Rocky Road (David) and the S’Mores (me)

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They were served up by this very pleasant health care provider. 🙂

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We also had a cup of coffee. I had the dark roast which was excellent and David had the lighter roast.

Oh yum!!!!

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We grabbed some napkins for the sticky deliciosity.

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Sat at a cute table.

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It was amazing. Afterwards, I was buzzed to the max, ready to walk another 1397 miles. David just wanted to sleep. 🙂

Although it’s not in my usual repertoire of food choices, I’m glad we tried Psycho Donuts. It was awesome! 😀

V is for Vero’s Coffee Bar

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Today we wandered down to SoFA (South First Area District) to have coffee at Vero’s Coffee Bar.

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Vero’s is located in the SoFA Market. Accoriding to the folks at Vero’s, the SoFA Market is going to be similar to San Pedro Square, offering many of the same vendors.

They have a nice selection of coffees to chose from and several ways to have it made. They also have coffee you can purchase to make at home.

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It was a tasty cup of coffee! They have a small variety of treats but we decided to take a pass on that, today.

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We’ll definitely wander down this way again. The coffee was delish, the folks at Vero’s were super nice and it will be interesting to see how the SoFA Market progresses! 🙂

P is for Philz Coffee

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I was excited for it to be Saturday and that we could use our letter to try another coffee spot in San Jose.

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Philz Coffee is down on the Paseo de San Antonio which is a cute area with lots of shops and restaurants.

We walked in and found the place to stand and wait to give our order. We perused the menu while we waited.

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I see Turkish and I get all excited. I adore cardamom and the idea of having Turkish coffee without all the sugar was really appealing to me. And, of course, I love dark roasts. I ordered the Tantalizing Turkish. I loved it!

There is a nice pastry case off goodies to choose from.

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And a cookie case.

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I was intrigued by the Kouign Amann pastry especially after reading a Yelp review that said “you need this in your life”. I tried the fig filled pastry and it was amazing, all buttery and delicious. 😀

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David stuck to his traditional chocolate croissant which he ate before I was able to snap a photo. He isn’t a coffee achiever, like I am, and was unsure of which coffee to select. With the barista’s help, we settled on the Tesora, which he said was their house coffee. David let me steal a sip of it and it was good, as well. The coffee at Philz is made, by pour over method, one cup at a time.

You can buy Philz Coffee’s to take home, which is nice, and I like their logo mugs you can buy. (I didn’t get a photo. :()

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This shop is really close to the university and was really, really busy. We were able to snag a table outside which, as you know, I love.

I definitely plan a return trip to sample some of the other coffees and pastries in the future. 🙂

Lauri Rottmayer

Catch the Rottitude!

Category Archives: coffee

Great Coffee In Yellville

Around Accra: Coco Lounge

Fog Chaser

Coffee Holic

Promised Post Pageant Donut

V is for Vero’s Coffee Bar

P is for Philz Coffee