Review Visit: October 30th, 2017…read more With my love for coffee and visiting coffeehouses, it is a surprise that this place popped up in Peoria without me knowing. My friend and I were actually heading to Riley's Cupcakes and Coffee Lounge for some caffeine and sweets when we found out they were closed on Mondays as of recent. Sad at the thought of not getting to try a new coffee place, my friend suggested we try the place a few doors down. Come to my surprise that there was a newer coffeehouse right there. So, in we went! [CxT] appears to be a new coffeehouse in Peoria, a city that seems to be going through a renewal of sorts... tons of new places, young places, fresh places... and [CxT] is a welcome addition, in my books. If cozy coffeehouses needed a photo, this place would be perfect. It's small with very limited seating but it's still open enough to feel inviting. Upon going in, we were greeted by one of the owners behind the counter and we chatted for a bit while trying to figure out what to order. Very nice fellow and I hope their company does well. My friend ended up ordering a Matcha Tea Latte while I ordered an Iced Caramel Latte. Oftentimes when I order my usual, it is either a bit too bitter or a bit too sweet, but the balance of this latte was a near perfect blend of flavor and espresso. It is easily a Top 10 for me. My friend said his Matcha Tea was pretty good. He had to explain to me what he ordered as I had never heard of it before. If you like their coffee a lot, they roast it themselves and you can get it in a multitude of flavors. They also offers some unique chocolates, which my friend bought and liked. They have these cool things that you stir in Hot Cocoa and it dissolves, giving it a new flavor. I want to go back and get a few of those things before winter fully hits! There appears to be art on one wall that is for sale. I didn't get a good look at them but they looked cool from afar. There is also a pretty decent-sized jewelry set up, if you need to accessorize while picking up some coffee. All-in-all, [CxT] Roasting Company is a great addition to not just Main Street in Peoria but also to Peoria itself.

The service is great! The Barista, Elliot, gave great recommendations and made some great coffee…read more Great coffee and good vibes. Highly recommended.

Dar-Al is what Peoria needed! I Loveee this new location. The matcha and macarons are my fav…read more Always 10/10 customer service and the decor and aesthetic of the place is top tier.

Growing pains... I…read morehaven't had my finger on the pulse of what's new in my area since I've been busy with work lately so it was a complete surprise when Maria told me that Dar Al-Coffee had a new location open up out at the Grand Prairie Mall area. We made plans to drop in on a Friday when we were both not busy but dang... was this place hopping and popping when we walked in. The first thing we both noticed were the sheer amount of kids that parents brought here. I'm always amazed to see parents bring their kids to a coffeehouse because giving kids caffeine seems like a terrible idea. Granted, they could always be getting a non-caffeinated drink but since I am not a parent, not my place to judge and not the place to really talk about it. Maria and I both ordered an americano and I got a cake pop to go with it. With how busy it was, it took awhile for our drinks to come out, which is understandable. What kinda threw me for a loop is that I had to ask multiple times for the cake pop and they seemed confused when I kept asking about it. After about 20 minutes, we finally got the cake pop and the barista was apologetic for the wait and gave me a piece of dubai chocolate with pistachio in it as an apology. One thing I noticed during our few hours of sitting there and chatting is that there seemed to be a lot of missed or skipped orders. The barista running the register was constantly asking people if they were missing anything when they came up to get their orders or even lids/straws/napkins. There also did seem to be a lot of confusion between the baristas and the cook on what orders were who's and what was being brought out. I chalk this up to them being new and needing to find their footing, hopefully. One other criticism is that the register is at the back of the counter area and with where Maria and I were sitting, it got really tight for the people coming in to place an order who had to backtrack between the counter and our table to get to the waiting area. I would hope they flip that or maybe move things around a bit once they see how it bottlenecks the line. Any who, the americano was really good. I enjoyed every sip with just the slightest wish that it was a bit more bitter, but with how tired I was, any caffeine was welcomed. I let Maria have the cake pop since I realized I was pretty stuffed from the big breakfast I had and it didn't sound good after the ordeal of trying to get it. I really like the concept of Dar Al-Coffee and really enjoyed my experience at their first location. Like I said, hopefully they are working out the kinks of it being a new place as I can see Dar Al-Coffee becoming a staple coffee chain in Peoria. Hopefully I can go back after they've had some time with being open and have gotten the kinks worked out. Until then, stay caffeinated, my friends.

Seasonal blueberry pie latte is amazing. Creamy blueberry flavor. Not overly sweet. Perfect…read morecompliment to the muffin.

I've coming here for a long time, but every year that goes by the service and coffee gets worse…read more The cashiers are surly at best, no smiles, no greeting, I actually want to leave. This last time I ordered a signature drink, I dont know if it was made wrong, but it tasted horrible, I could taste the grounds. So, I asked for a new drink. No apology for making a terrible drink, just charged me for a new one and literally told me it was my fault for ordering something bad. Customer service has become terrible, not worth the stop anymore when I'm back in town. There are better options. Seriously, how hard would that have been to fix the situation and offer a refund or not charge me for a new drink.

We went in for coffee education and advice at their Lake Ave store (old Ventures store/across…read moreparking lot from Kroger's, old Venture reference lol) we have a latte machine w/grinder, and bought a drip maker bc we need to cut back on the lattes...aromas and inventory that lets you know your at the right spot for coffee! Though there are drinks avail., this first visit was about beans...great staff asked us our coffee habits, what flavors/roasting we liked and then made a few suggestions. We chose two varieties of beans we could use for the new maker, and one for our espresso/latte maker. I thought prices were reasonable and above all; LOCAL!!! Kick the chains and try this place!

Wasn't greeted from start to end of our conversation…read more Ordered a plain latte and it was full of grounds. Overall, not a welcoming or warm place despite all the colors and 5+ workers on the morning shift.

Review Visit: June 6th, 2016…read more If you visit the blog often, you will notice my trend for visiting coffeehouses and see that I tend to order Iced Caramel Lattes at most places. Black Maple was no different. A perfect blend of milk, espresso and caramel made this one place I would love to re-visit. It would've scored a perfect 5, but they are a walk-up/drive-thru only, so if it was a rainy day, it could possibly affect trying to get something from there. Also, they could've used some benches outside, but since it is located in the parking lot of a hotel, they are doing great with what they have. I don't frequent Canton, but I am going to always visit this place if I do.

We were really excited to try this place but very unimpressed. They didnt have anywhere hardly to…read moresit inside. When we ordered we asked how sweet drinks were and were told they weren't sweet. My husband ordered a vanilla latte which had hardly any flavor (including coffee flavor). I ordered a caramel macchiato which was SO sweet. We also ordered a bfest croissant. The croissant was panini style so smooshed and burnt. Sorry to say we will not be back. Hope others have a better experience then we did.

Great coffee bar w/ matcha, espresso drinks, and beautiful monsteras…read more Matcha latte was legit

Asked my Peoria native friend for recommendations around town and this was his number one spot- and…read moreI can see why! Zion was the perfect cafe to spend a few hours working while fueling up with some caffeine and breakfast. They had plenty of tables/bar space, and even an extra upstairs area with more seating. I tried their special banana butterscotch latte and it was incredible. Also tried the classic avocado toast. I was surprised to have two slices that were loaded with avocado mash! If I'm being picky it was a tad too salty, but the sourdough toast was delicious. I'm looking forward to trying the crunchy at my next visit. I'll absolutely be back next time I'm in the area!

CxT passes class with a 'C'…read more Located in Campustown, where a Starbucks used to be, is a new extension to the CxT Coffee Roasting company. I've been patiently waiting for the day they opened to finally pop in and try their americanos. I've only ever had lattes from CxT so I was excited to try my tried-and-true espresso and water here. Emily ordered their Coconut Cookie Butter Latte and I got my usual plain black americano, iced. We had a long day ahead of us so I also ordered a blueberry bagel to stave off the appetite while we ran around Peoria for the afternoon. The person taking our order was very nice and courteous. The place wasn't too busy and our drinks came out fairly quick. My americano was first and when I went up to grab Emily's drink a few minutes later, the barista putting it together said he doesn't know what is in the drink and hopes it was good. That did not instill a lot of hope in me as we settled down to enjoy our caffeine. I actually thought they forgot about my bagel since it wasn't until about 5 minutes later that they called for it to be picked up. The bagel itself was really good, even without any topping and was toasted to the right temperature. When I had my first sip of the americano, I knew it was going to be one of those 'lighter' varieties that I am not a fan of. It reminded me of a slightly better version of the one I got from 392Caffe. Just light on bitter and watery-tasting. To each their own but not really my cup of... coffee. Emily loves to get a seasonal drink and said this one was just not for her. I took a sip and thought it tasted fine but I am not big on the flavor of coconut. She said she liked her drink enough to finish it but wasn't really what she was feeling on this day. Being neighbors with Bradley University, there was a lot of foot traffic in the 30 minutes we were in there. Lots of young people coming in for coffee and heading out for their next class or study session. I actually joked with Emily that we are the old people in a coffeehouse now and how out-of-place we were in a sea of college students. I'd imagine a lot of college kids will be crashing this place throughout the year to get that last minute study session in while sipping some coffee and eating some tasty baked goods. I've had good experiences at the other two locations. One is down the hill from this location, on the same road, and is their Apollo location. Up near Peoria Heights off Knoxville Ave is their Keller Station location and that one is probably my favorite of the three. This one is nice but has a very clean, very modern vibe to it that feels more like Starbucks than a local coffeehouse. I will definitely be back to the CxT coffeehouses in the future but may stick to getting lattes or flavored drinks now that I know how they do americanos. On a side note, I did ask one of the cashiers if they had stickers and they do but it's the ones they put on their own stuff. He was nice enough to give us both one for free. So, if you are a sticker freak like we are, don't hesitate to ask and they might hook you up.

So happy to have found this super good coffee house! Amazing Chai Tea Latte and drip coffee! Don't…read moremiss out on this gorgeous coffee house!

Truro closed years ago. It was then reopened as a BBQ restaurant but didn't last long. Now it's a…read morefamily diner, and it's very friendly and good food.

What a find! This breakfast spot had some of the best biscuits and gravy I've had in a long time…read more Perfectly salty, but not too salty, buttery homemade biscuits, and crispy hashbrowns. My dad had a delicious cheesy grits bowl. And I really enjoyed my specialty coffee, the queen bee. Would definitely come back and highly recommend you get this place a visit.