Waxing Poetry on Floriole

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Espresso is really what inspired the development of this blog. I was in Spain recently where I had a cafe con leche every day...in a real cup...sitting down...at a table...for a minimum of 10 minutes. This was a ritual that I saw everyone doing every morning; they seemed so....well...relaxed. There wasn't anyone racing down the street with their Starbucks to-go cups in tow. Ah-ha! This is the right way to start off a day, slowly and serenely. So upon my return stateside, I decided to put this morning routine into motion by frequenting area cafes. A friend encouraged, "Why don't you start a blog?" I replied matter-of-factly that I wasn't a coffee connoisseur and couldn't possibly have a respectable point of view. To which my other friend challenged me, "You don't have to be an expert to write a blog." Good point. This became my jumping off point.



My first stop was a cafe that I had passed a handful of times while traversing down Webster Avenue in Lincoln Park. Floriole Cafe & Bakery is a gem and waxing poetry on it is about as hard as eating a Sweet Mandy B's cupcake. Upon entering, you cannot ignore the glass case filled with an endless array of croissants, sweet and savory galettes, tarts, clafoutis, quiche, tea cakes, yogurt, pizzettas, shortbread, salad, fresh bread and more. If some of these names are intriguing you then we are probably compatible food friends, so call me and we can explore more of them together :) My eyes glimmered brightly and my tummy knew it was in for a treat. After I drank it all in, with my eyes of course, I ordered a macchiato, the closest thing I could find to a Spanish cafe con leche, and a croissant. The employee proudly stated that the croissants were hand-rolled and hand-formed. Having watched Martha Bake's TV show on Hallmark, I knew what he meant by this: a LOAD of work! I wouldn't be surprised if Martha rolled that croissant dough more than 10-15 different times over who knows how many hours. It surely made me not want to tackle making the croissant at home. I digress. This croissant was flaky and downright delicious to the point of licking every last crumb off the plate. How remiss of me, also, the baristas here are the genuine article and my macchiato, replete with fun coffee art in the foam, was solid.

Fresh bread, homemade yogurt, tarts

Pizzettas and galettes

Other things I love about this place. Free wifi. Virtually everything is homemade on premise. The food is organic and sourced from local farms as much as possible. They have a small sign that displays what foods and farms they are featuring that week. The quality and freshness of the food is readily apparent. They offer 4 alfresco tables for outside dining which is what I prefer, and there's an upstairs area that is periodically open and a little quieter than the downstairs.

Have I mentioned the quiche? Just do it. You will be happy. I promise. The breakfast sandwiches aren't too shabby either.

Spinach quiche

Flakiest Croissant

If you like good coffee, french pastries and savories, or if you are looking for a solid breakfast or brunch place that you will not have to wait in an hour line for, you won't be disappointed if you come here. You may be so happy that you will want to return, again and again, until you've enjoyed every last morsel they have to offer...like me!