Sparrow Bakery - Bend, Oregon

Mr. Ramon and I took a long weekend to go to Bend, Oregon. This is where I grew up through the age of 14 before moving to Southern California. My mom and her husband moved back to Bend two years ago. They have 3/4 of an acre in unincorporated Bend - fully fenced the pups could run safely in their own personal dog park.

I love visiting Bend - so much of it is the same from my childhood and so much is new and bigger. It has a small town feel and nature is so close at hand. Mr. Ramon spent the weekend golfing, fishing and eating. I spent time with mom antiquing, completing decorating projects and eating.

I wanted to find a great bakery while I was there and share it with all of you. Sparrow is a hidden gem in Bend. The cafe is only part of the picture - Micah the owners passion lies with bread - and about a year ago he opened Bread LaVoy on 3rd street in an old donut shop that I remember fondly as a child. His bread is mostly wholesaled - but at the 3rd street location you can pick up a fresh loaf.

The four of us had a great lunch at Sparrow.  I loved the building immediately with its old brick and charming decor.





I had heard about their hand folded croissants - and had to try them. I am not a huge croissant fan as they seem airy and flakey and a bit boring. These were amazing - heavy and loaded with butter - perfectly crisp and browned on the outside with a moist and chewy center with layer and layers of dough.

My mom and her husband had the soup de jour which was cream of mushroom. They shared the croissant.

Mr Ramon had the Sparrow version of a Monte Cristo sandwich and I had the tuna melt - both yummy!

Here are some other goodies from their case - they all look amazing.

If you find yourself visiting or driving through Bend - stop by Sparrow - you won't be sorry!!

Le Marais - our neighborhood in Paris

While in Paris we stayed in the wonderful Le Marais neighborhood. Full of great food and shopping but also all of the usual Paris type establishments that make this city so fun - cafes, butchers, bakers, pastry shops and green grocers - just to name a few.

We arrived tired but exhilarated - so we decided to start walking our neighborhood and get a sense of what is and Paris had to offer.

Hungry and ready for a breakfast - we stopped in for a little coffee and Croque Monsieur (a wonderful version of grilled ham and cheese with a bechemal or mornay sauce). This is not your typical breakfast item and garnered some unusual looks from our waitress. But once she knew we were americans it all made sense.

I was amazed at the amount of pastry/bakery options that one neighborhood could support. From basic bread to fancy pastries and confections.

This store had amazing marshmallow options as well as beautiful cakes and pastries.





The butcher shops were so pretty - these people take their craft very seriously and meat was displayed like works of art. Some still had feet and heads attached - it was nice to see a culture still in touch with their food. Not like here where most things are shrink wrapped - boneless and no longer representing the animal that it once was.



There were a great deal of deli type stores - filled with cured meats, salads, cheeses etc. A great place to stop and pick up a meal or side dish. We oohed and ahhed over the aspics and meat gels.





One very cool little chain of stores is called the Daily Monop. Here you can get a wide variety of pre-made sandwiches, salads and soups. Also prepared fruit, yogurt, beverages and dry snacks. There is a variety of fresh-baked bread and rolls to choose from as well.

We stopped by here regularly for little snacks - it was so convenient to say - "I am running down to the Monop", it was so close and handy.

doors in paris

This post will show my geekier side for sure. I love doors. There was a time when doors were really important design elements - and I love that and miss that. I even have a door in my house that was a gift quite some years ago - it has moved with me all over and just hangs out against a wall in the dining room.

One of things I loved in Paris were all the doors - so old and so beautiful. I took a few pictures of them alone - then decided that Ramon would be a good door prop.

So here you go -

paris street art

Both of us really love street art - and when we travel we try to get a feel of what the city has to offer. Paris was pretty amazing. On the train ride in to the city and back to the airport we saw so many great strips of art. My camera was not available for that - so I concentrated on picking up images of smaller art in the city as we walked around.

ahh Pariee

After a long fun year with my new store - this vacation was so needed. Mr. Ramon and I headed to Paris with our good friends Jessie of CakySpy fame and her husband Danny. We had eight days of fun and I am excited to share it with you bit by bit!

This was our first time traveling to Europe so we were so excited. After a long journey - we finally made it!

We rented a fantastic apartment in the Marais neighborhood. A good choice for cool shops, bars, and bakeries. Plus some super people watching!

Our first day was filled with food and bakeries and walking! I think I was the only one who slept on the plane - so the rest of the crew was a bit on overload.

 First day of discovery a success. See you tomorrow!