Tag: kid friendly restaurants

Coffee Shops & Restaurants, Welcome and About

Crumbl Cookies

ericavo1

Holy cookies! This place is yummy! As Facebook is scarily in tune with my preferences and interests, Crumbl Cookies showed up on my feed with the handy announcement that a location was opening up in our town. Since the new location is very close to one of Chicken’s activities, we made a stop on our way there. Another location will be opening soon in the area, which is going to be quite dangerous for us.

If you haven’t heard of Crumbl, it’s a fun concept. They sell cookies- huge, warm, gooey cookies. They always have warm chocolate chip and chilled sugar cookies, as well as four recipes that change each week. It seems the rotating cookies are generally served warm as well.

The coolest part? They deliver. They deliver warm cookies and cold milk to your house. Until midnight. This would have changed my college experience. Or it’s perfect for those days when a warm cookie and milk would really hit the spot for the kiddos and you just don’t have it in you to make a whole batch of cookies which you know won’t all get eaten, and then you still have to do the dishes.

I ordered warm chocolate chip, Chicken got Nutella with sea salt, and Nugget got the chilled sugar cookie topped with pink frosting. Mine was delicious. Warm, soft, thick, melty chocolate chips- it was serious cookie perfection. Chicken’s Nutella cookie had a gooey Nutella center and warm Nutella drizzled on top, resulting in a very chocolatey face. Nugget also loved his cookie. It was a really good soft sugar cookie. It seemed to have an almond extract flavor instead of vanilla (I prefer vanilla), but he was very happy with his choice.

Cookies are sold individually ($4) or in a box of four. The boxes are adorable and make it feel more special. At this price they are definitely a treat, at least for us, but they really are exceptional cookies. White and chocolate milk are sold for $2.

Since their niche is cookie delivery, there isn’t much seating. There is a small cushioned bench next to the window, but no tables or chairs. There are some tables outside, which we took advantage of since it was a nice day, but otherwise be prepared to take your treats to go.

What it’s not: diet food, cheap

What it is: Yummy!, fun treat, warm, gooey cookies to go or delivered to your house

Do we recommend it? For sure!

Find more information and a location near you here: https://crumblcookies.com/#

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Adventure Box, Coffee Shops & Restaurants

Slappy Cakes

ericavo1

Today we had some of the best pancakes I have ever eaten.  It was our first trip to Slappy Cakes and we are officially hooked!  For those of you who, like us, have never visited before, Slappy Cakes is an incredibly popular breakfast spot in southeast Portland.  The idea is to select a pancake batter, things to mix in, and toppings for serving.  There are nonstick griddles built into the tables and you are free to let your food creativity flow!

We chose chocolate batter and traditional buttermilk.  Chicken and Nugget talked me into chocolate chips, whipped cream, and strawberries.  How do you say no to that?!?  Examples of other options include blueberries, bacon, candied bacon, nuts, coconut, lemon curd, bananas, lavender honey, etc.

Chicken and Nugget had a blast drawing pictures with the batter, trying out different combinations, attempting to flip the pancakes, and eating the fruits of their labor.  Nugget cheered for me every time I successfully flipped a pancake, so that was an added bonus that put a little pep in my step.  We may not be pancake Picassos, but we had fun- and that seems like the point, doesn’t it? And the pancakes were seriously delicious.  I don’t know how they did it.

Like I mentioned, this place is popular.  We got there around 9:30 and were told the wait would be an hour.  Luckily they use a texting system, so we headed out to explore the area, finding and adorable hat boutique.  We wound up waiting about 30 minutes.

Once we were seated, service was incredibly quick.  Since we only ordered pancakes, they have all the batters already in bottles and the toppings already prepared, so the wait time is minimal.

If you don’t feel like going to a restaurant and still cooking your own food, they do have a traditional breakfast menu.  We didn’t try any of it, but many people around us did.  The servings were huge and it all looked really good.

Batters were about $8 a bottle, and toppings/mix ins were $2-3.  Maple syrup was available on the table for no additional charge.  The waitress said each bottle would make about 3 pancakes the size of their serving plate.  That seems about right.  Our two bottles of batter and three toppings, two of which we had refilled (which they charge for), ran about $30.  We ate it all and the three of us left full but not stuffed.  Well, Nugget was stuffed.  Chicken and I had a bit more self restraint.  You could get away with spending less, or spending quite a bit more.  Depending how many things you add in, you could wind up with some pretty pricey pancakes.  Just be mindful, and you should be fine.

Overall, Slappy Cakes was a huge hit and we will definitely be going back!

What it is: a fun, family friendly restaurant, design-your-own pancakes, delicious, interactive, a mix of communal and stand alone tables, quick service once seated

What it’s not: a short wait

Would we recommend it?  Totally!  Chicken and Nugget were trying to talk me into another visit before we even finished eating!  As they were getting ready for bed later in the evening, I heard Chicken say “Slappy Cakes was really good, wasn’t it?”  Nugget answered “Yeah.  I wish we could live there.”

More information about Slappy Cakes can be found here:  https://www.slappycakes.com/portland