Do you ever have a moment where you stumble upon something in your own city that you didn't even know existed? That happened to me recently when I drove down Court Street one day and noticed Capitol Coffee on my right in Courthouse Square. I was super surprised to see it there because I didn't even know anything currently existed in that part of the building. Awhile back there had been some businesses down there, but then the whole fiasco with the building being structurally unsound had caused everyone to move out. Now that things are sound again, it looks like the business sector is moving back in.
When I saw it, I made a mental note to pay Capitol Coffee a visit sometime. I like to try out the different coffee options around here and know what's available to me, plus it's always fun to experience a new place. A few days ago when I walked home from work, I walked a different route than normal and it took me past Capitol Coffee. I stopped to observe their hours so that I could pay them a visit sometime, and I saw that they are only open on weekdays, and even then, only until 4:30. That put a small damper on things since I couldn't make it a weekend outing. I knew I'd have to fit it into my weekday schedule sometime.
This past week snow visited us in downtown Salem. It really only snowed for one day, but the temperature has been so consistently frigid every day that the snow and ice have been sticking around. It's been treacherous, but pretty! On Friday while the snow was still decorating the city, the sun came out with blue skies. I decided it would be the perfect day to take a snowy walk at lunch to go visit Capitol Coffee.
I texted my boyfriend to see if he wanted to walk over and meet me there, and I set out through the snow. It was a pretty walk!
I dilly dallied a little on my way to check out different animal tracks I saw in the snow around the Capitol!
Pretty sure these were bird tracks.
Squirrel tracks I assume. Have you ever noticed that they don't really walk, they kind of jump/hop? Their tracks are a testament to that.
Dog?
Human :)
After my exploring was done, I set out down Court Street.
I even saw a lonely little icicle hanging!
It got pretty icy in some patches!
But I arrived without incident! Woo hoo! Although my moseying had cause my bf to wonder if I was punking him. Ooops!
When I walked in I was first struck by their huge menu board! It was almost overwhelming! I was just there for coffee, but I eventually noticed that they served a variety of foods like sandwiches and paninis. They even had a sign saying that if I wanted something that I didn't see listed, I should just ask. Nice!
I ordered my latte (which came with a chocolate) and we took a seat in some comfy swively chairs.
I took in the ambiance. Overall it seemed bright and calm. They had some nice Christmas decorations up and I believe they had Christmas music playing too (though my memory is failing me now). There weren't a ton of people in the cafe, and I wonder if it always has such a calm/peaceful feeling or if it was just a product of the snow day. My guess is that Capitol Coffee caters largely to state/government workers (especially given their hours), and I think lots of those workers probably stayed home from work because of the ice.
I also really appreciated the fact that they have pictures of old timey Salem on their walls! I love that. It was a little odd though since the space they're in doesn't have a ton of character of its own, but I'm glad that they were paying homage to the charm of old Salem.
Now onto my latte. It was only $3.00, which is one of the cheaper lattes around here. Because of that I didn't totally expect a lot, but the latte was good! The coffee seemed to be high quality and the type that I like. My only complaint was that it seemed kind of watery. Perhaps they used nonfat milk? I'm not sure. I'm an as-full-fat-as-possible type of milk drinker, so that would have affected my experience. Next time perhaps I should specify 2% milk at least (if not whole milk).
We had a nice time chatting for a little bit as the sunlight streamed in through the windows. Then it was time for me to shuffle off through the ice back to my office. I checked the weather and it was a balmy 31 degrees as I walked back. It was a nice little escape from the office, a chance to take in the snowy sights, and fun to try out a new place. If you're downtown on a weekday and need a coffee or to grab a bite, check this place out!
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