I've been enjoying trying out different coffee shops in the Peoria area and this time I brought my…read moresister along! This is my very first time visiting Café Santa Rosa! When we arrived, there was only one other customer in the shop, so it was very quiet and relaxed. The music was playing but it was almost to quiet. We did get there right around 2:30 and they close at 3:00 p.m. so that could be why they weren't busy at all. Only one other customer came in while we drink our coffee. I was hoping to try one of their chocolate croissants, but they were out at the time. I ordered the winter spice latte, and my sister ordered the hot mocha latte. I have to say, my favorite part of the entire visit was the atmosphere. The space is absolutely beautiful -- warm, industrial, and rustic all at the same time. The wood accents paired with the exposed ceilings, soft lighting, and open layout make it feel welcoming while still being really unique. There's so much room, and it feels like a place where you could comfortably sit and hang out for a while with friends. One of the coolest little details was spotting an old dumbwaiter -- you really don't see those very often anymore, and it added even more character to the space. I also loved learning that they have a bar-style setup on the other side of the restaurant a few nights a week, which is a fun and unexpected touch. Another special feature is that their coffee comes straight from Colombia, and you could truly taste the quality. They've been in this location here for about 2 years and since the building is bigger I hope that they are getting a lot more customers but I'm not sure. Overall, it's a really neat spot with a great vibe, and it's worth checking out.

Visiting Peoria, and excited to try different coffee bars. After reading the story of Cafe Santa…read moreRosa, my HS bestie and I ventured in to try something new. We were warmly greeted by the owner, and fell in love with the layout. The menu is extensive, and I tried the cortado and a harvest muffin. Both were extraordinary, and my friend tried the avocado toast. Lucky to try a bite, it exceeded ALL avo toasts I've ever tried. The sourdough was homemade, and the avo had a Colombian twist that took it to a new level. Topped with a medium boiled egg, it was just sublime. Very classy, very comfortable..can't wait to go back!

The sugar cookie latte was perfect. Husband loved the strawberry macchiato too! Will most…read moredefinitely be back.

Review Visit: September 20th, 2019…read more Leaves 'n Beans, round three! At long last, I have finally visited the third and final Leaves 'n Beans. Does it contain the same feel as the Peoria Heights location? How about the same menu and good tasting coffee? Yes and no. (Should you be interested in the 3rd and closed location, you can read about it here.) Upon arriving, I noticed the feel and look of the place was of one that wasn't like the Peoria Heights location. This had more of a restaurant/basic feeling to it. There were some sparse autumn decorations on the tables and furniture. My friend sat on a couch and I sunk deep in to this cozy red chair. The area where they had products for sale had a nice look to it and everything looked well organized. I was looking at a coffee cup with their logo on it and was surprised at the price tag. $7.99 for a local coffeehouse cup is really cheap compared to other places I've been. With it nearing fall, I decided to look over their seasonal menu. Being a sucker for lattes, I decided to get the Maple Vanilla one. I took a seat in the aforementioned red chair and instantly felt relaxed. Before I could settle in too deep, the barista was setting my drink down in front of me. As my friend and I conversed, I took small sips to savor the latte as I knew we would be there for awhile. The blend of vanilla and maple was decent, if a bit lacking on the maple side until the very end, when it was all maple. I am not sure what my friend ordered as she was already there and had her drink by the time I walked in the door... plus I forgot to ask. During the 2 hours we were there, the barista/cashier never once stopped to ask if we needed anything. I thought that was a bit odd, as almost every other coffeehouse (and most places that serve food/drinks) will check in and make sure you are doing okay or if you need anything. Luckily, we didn't need anything but it still struck me as odd. Should you need to grab a coffee while on the go, they have a convenient drive thru. We witnessed quite a few people utilize that service. If you decide to go in, there is a public parking lot to the right of the building. If I had to recommend which of the two remaining places to visit, I would highly suggest the one in Peoria Heights. It just has this unique feel and atmosphere that this location is lacking, but you have to remember that one is in a house and this one is in a business location. If you don't need or care about any of that, you can't go wrong with either place for that burst of caffeine. Some day, I will try the food and update the blogs accordingly. Stay caffeinated!

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.

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.

From coffee truck to temporary location back to coffee truck…read more My friend Maria first told me about this place and how it is a coffee truck that's taking temporary residency in this Tropical Sno building until the end of winter. Not really wanting to stand outside and order coffee in 10 degree weather, I kind of forgot about it until we were at a hockey game and Maria said it was still open and was having their final day the next day. Having already plans to go to Weaver's for lunch on that same day, it only made sense to drop in next door to grab some caffeine before lunch. So, that's what Emily and I did. We both needed some caffeine before we dug into our lunch. The menu was pretty vast for being a mobile truck. I'm guessing them being in an actual building lets them expand their offerings. Being situated in the Tropical Sno building also lets them tap into that companies sauces and syrups to build some pretty interesting combinations and drinks. Emily got The Best Brew and I snagged Night Shift Special with some caramel flavoring. We took a seat to enjoy what little sunshine there was on this dreary day. It was a bit too cold to sit outside and enjoy our coffees so we took them to the car to sip them down. We tried Emily's first and it was really good. The cinnamon bun flavor was just subtle enough to not make the drink all about itself. Then we tried my Night Shift and we both fell in love. Usually when Emily and I grab coffee and food, she gets the better tasting thing but I won this one with the best tasting drink ever. This drink is legit a Top 3 coffee drink I've ever had. Every sip was smooth and delicious and full of flavor. After we drank most of our coffees, we wandered over to Weaver's for even more tasty goodies but we kept thinking about that Night Shift Special. With The Best Brew moving back to being a mobile truck, I am going to have to keep my eye on where it'll be setting up shop to get more of that sweet sweet Night Shift Special.

For the past two years, I have been getting best brew coffee before work when I can, and it is my…read morefavorite start of the day. The staff and ownership there is amazing and hilarious super welcoming. coffees to die for.

My husband and I were traveling back home from Knoxville, Illinois and thought we'd swing by and…read moretry out a coffee shop along the way. This was my first time trying out Kickabrew Coffee so I didn't know what to expect when I went inside. We had been outside for a while so I was looking forward to trying out a nice hot coffee! I got the white chocolate coffee and my husband got a hot cocoa. While we waited for our drinks we took a look around the coffee shop and I have to say, it's quite charming! I was not expecting the back room at all, not to mention all of the seating and the log cabin look that it had to offer either. It felt like the seating options were endless including couches and designer chairs. There's even an upstairs loft as well which is a great place to hang out with friends! It's so cute! A few moments later, they called out our drinks from the side window, it's located in the hallway leading to that cute log cabin looking back room. I think more places should have a side window by the way. It was nice to be able to step aside and not be in the way while other people are ordering. There were lots of people coming in and out so I think it's a popular spot in town, I don't blame them! Time to try out our drinks! They were great and we warmed right up! I would definitely go out of my way to come back and try this shop out again. I'd like a little more time to look at the menu and see what else they have to offer. I hear they have some yummy snacks so I'll have to try one of those next time! To the owner: great job on your coffee shop! It's super charming and I love it!

A T M O S P H E R E Warm and cozy! Perfect for coming here…read moreon the weekend to chill, after school to work on homework, or after work to hangout! Plenty of seating and HANDICAP/DISABLED FRIENDLY! (They have 2 entrances - the front and side with a ramp) S E R V I C E The barista was so nice! I was on the fence about what to try and she immediately recommended a couple different things, which landed me with their featured Blueberry Latte... IT WAS AMAZING! Could not have enjoyed my drink more! F O O D I didn't get any food this time, but like I said above... my Blueberry Latte was delicious and left me totally impressed with the taste and quality of their coffee!

Great place! welcoming atmosphere, high-quality drinks, and efficient, friendly staffread more

This place kicks butt!…read more My friend Tim told me about this place awhile back and has been waiting patiently for it to open. Fast forward 2 months when we planned a day to hang out and play board games when I suggested we check it out. Matt, Tim, and I popped in on a Saturday afternoon and all was quiet. As we walked up, we almost turned around as it looked closed (there was a big lock on one of the doors) but I wanted to 100% be sure it was closed so I walked up to visually confirm there was no one inside. Come to our surprise that it was open. We quickly dipped inside to avoid the humidity and heat of the day and made our ways to the giant tvs that displayed the menus. Said menus quickly irritated us as they were on a continuous scroll every 5 seconds or so... of the same photo. There are 3 tvs and each one displayed one portion of the menu. Each one was set up to a slideshow effect and would transition to the next photo of the same photo it just showed you. So, we kept having to re-focus on where we were despite it being the same image. It took a bit longer to figure out what we wanted to order because of this. But once we knew what we wanted, we ordered with the cashier and waited for our drinks. Tim was distracted with his phone when Matt and I got distracted with something behind the counter. It was this machine that shook the drinks and let me tell you... we were mesmerized by it. We both commented on it at the same time and kept watching the workers load drinks in it. Then we were mesmerized by the machine that put a seal on the cups. Both Matt and I said we could watch this process all day. I've had sealed drinks like this before but never one that was done within viewing range. Any who, like us getting distracted by that machine, I am getting off topic here. We were served our drinks and we walked over to Costco to get some pizzas for our game night. My first sip of my drink (which was a caramel macchiato) and I knew I made the right choice. It was a delicious mix of what you would expect a caramel macchiato to taste like but in a slush-form. For it being a hot and humid day, it was the perfect thing to sip on during the walk over and through Costco. I can see myself coming back here for a special treat once in awhile. The Levee District in East Peoria has a lot of cool shops but severely lacks a place that I think Kung Fu Tea fills in nicely. Sure, there is a Starbucks and Dunkin' nearby, but this place adds something to the area that I feel that it's lacking. This was evident by the fact that when we walked in, there were only 2 people in there but when we left, there were about 12-15 people milling about, waiting to order or waiting for their drinks. I hope they continue to do well as the landscape of most areas needs some diversity over the usual big chains and corporations.

This is my go to Starbucks. Mainly because it's right down the street from my house, and it's on my…read moreway to work. I usually order online and then just pick up in the drive thru or in store. It's always ready as soon as I get there. The staff are always so kind and sweet, and it's a nice little feeling in the morning to have a good human interaction. Today I went to the the Starbucks on war memorial. I ordered online and they said it would be ready in 5 mins. I got there 10 minutes later and they hadn't even started on my drink, and they weren't really that busy. The employees were very nice though so maybe it was just a rough day for them. Just wanted to give a shout out to the Glen /University store. You guys rock!

Horrible! If you're short on time avoid this Starbucks at all costs! Appears to be severely…read moreunderstaffed, especially during their busy times. Located at a very busy intersection with drive-thru patrons frequently spilling out onto the street due to tight/limited access. Only reason for one star is because zero isn't an option!