Loaf & Ladle

"The best soup & pie in Longmont!"

This is their claim...I have yet to taste the soup but can't argue the pie part!
This is definitely a new Blogmont favorite. It should have been years ago, but I didn't know!
Mom wanted an egg salad sandwich. I always want an egg salad sandwich. So we went. It's surprising how hard it is to find a good sandwich sometimes. (I make splendid egg salad but then I have to MAKE it.)
For our first experience we met Debita for lunch. Madre and I both got egg salad, hers on a croissant and mine on sourdough. Debita got a reuben. I love reubens and I MUST try theirs some day.
Mom loves the croissants because we have rationalized that it's ok for her to eat them, even though she's generally gluten-free, because croissants must be mostly butter anyway...right?
They even smell like buttery goodness. So yummy. I always get mine on croissants now. I actually have yet to order something that's not egg salad or pie. I'll try to change it up next time. But still with pie. Obviously.

It could do with a little update (or a retro "update" whatever that might be called) but I love it.
It's always packed with little crowds of silver-haired regulars, which tells you the service is friendly and the food is consistent.
Part of the reason I never went before is that it's only open 11am-4pm and closed weekends, but if you can make it for lunch it's definitely worth it. Prices are very reasonable, the owner is super friendly, soda's a little flat but I deal because they can give me cherry Coke, and you can get milkshakes and a couple other old-fashioned style drinks.

This is an Egg Creme. I haven't the slightest idea what it is but Debita liked it.

 

Check out the old-fashioned shake maker!

 

Note from experience: You order and pay at the counter. This might make you forget to leave a tip for your lovely waitress before you leave. Try not to forget! Now that I am familiar with the place I just tip when I pay, but I think since you don't pay as you leave like at most sit-down places your brain forgets to think of money stuff. Mom stopped back in the next day to leave our tip because we forgot. :D Oopsie.
Loaf & Ladle is somewhere you can go often because it's affordable and friendly.
I've seen menu photos somewhere out there on the internet and if I can find them again I shall post them but at the moment they are hiding from me.

Found it!
http://www.menupix.com/menudirectory/menu.php?id=700281

Caffe Luna

This little hidden coffee nook can be found just to the east of Roosevelt Park on Coffman.
I had never been there all my years in Longmont until this summer. I never even knew it was there until a few years ago. It seems to have a cult-like following of Luna fans, from what I can tell.
I had an Italian soda sort of thing and had a bite (or two) of my friend's Curry Chicken Salad and both were quite good.

They had a variety of tasty looking pastries lining the itty bitty counter but I didn't indulge.
Caffe Luna reminds me of old Penny Lane in Boulder, where we used to beg to go for classes in high school...and were successful a surprising amount of the time.
Caffe Luna has lots of books lining the shelves, seems like a good reading spot and has free Wi-Fi.

Food and drink are good, atmosphere is quiet (maybe less so at peak coffe times) and laid-back, location is nice...near the park and bus stop. (If you don't like bus stop fumes however, you might want to stick to indoor seating.)
I personally prefer Ziggi's or Vita Bella over Caffe Luna but not really for any specific reason. They are just more my cup of...whatever I order. :) I think it might actually be a little TOO mellow for my taste. If I want quiet & calm I tend to stay home. But if you want mellow to mingle with your out and about then this might be a good spot for you.

When I visited they were NOT accepting credit cards but I think they were hoping to in the future so you might want to check before you go or make sure you have cash on hand.
 

Finally....amazing beans made by ME!

(This wouldn't load on my other blog for some reason so it's going here on Blogmont!)

This is the original recipe but I had to adjust a little bit as I was not cooking for 24 people.
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Mexican-Beans/

So here we go:

I start with about 1/2 pound of beans. That would have been good for us for dinner and maybe some leftovers.
I don't soak my beans but I do rinse them off before I throw them in the pot.

Put your 1/2 pound of beans in a medium sized pot with about 1 quart of water.
Bring to a boil and then simmer for 2-3 hours. (The original recipe simmers for 3 hours but it's four times as many beans as I'm using here so check after 2 hours or so and see if the beans are tender.)
After about 2 hours your beans will be fairly tender and the water will start getting a little "soupy."

I keep my beans simmering while I put on the bacon.

Cook 4 slices of bacon. When it's done take the slices out and chop them up.
I used about half an onion, half a jalapeno (I'd probably use more if it was only for me), and a small tomato. Dice these pretty small and toss it all in the bacon grease and cook for just a few minutes until your onions are tender.
You can toss the bacon back in and simmer a little longer if you need to.
Add a little bit of salt and garlic powder and anything else you might fancy.

(There's no tomato in this picture cause we didn't have any today. Add more or less of things depending on your taste.)

Dump this fabulous greasy bacon mixture in your pot of beans and cook for another 30 minutes to an hour. Check them after about 30 minutes and see if they are as tender as you like.
I then use the potato smasher to smoosh them up a bit but not to the point of being totally pureed. I like a little bit of chunky bean bits left.

Ideally I'd get some queso fresco from el mercado but I forgot so I just toss my tortilla on the skillet for a minute to warm it up and chow down.

Winchell's Donut House

I love donuts. They are the perfect "food." This is just a fact of life.

For reasons that only angels know, the donuts at our Longmont Winchell's are totally dreamy.

My personal favorite is the blueberry fritter. If you ever want to see a grown woman pouting, follow me in there some day when they've run out of blueberry. It's pathetic.

But there's always bright sprinkles to cheer me up.

 

The people working there are also quite friendly, but I would be too if I was surrounded by donuts all the time.

I've been meaning to do an official comparison to the other donut places in town but, honestly, I just don't think I need to. I love this place!

(If you're a Krispy Kreme fan you can grab those at Ziggi's but I think they taste funny. All Krispy Kreme, not just Ziggi's....no idea why.)

The usual order for me and Debita. Nom.

Beyond Longmont: Rocky Mountain Chili Bowl

This is one of my better late than never posts!

During the ColoRODans car show extravanza this summer I smelled something good...
Then I saw the sign that said Green Chili Nachos. Obviously I followed the smell and got myself nachos!

My nachos were hot, fresh, and amazing. I was short 12 cents somehow but the nice lady said to not worry about it. So if you go....take 12 cents for me please!

Oh how I would love some of these right this minute.

You can get breakfast bowls, burritos, chili cheese fries, and other bowls of wonderful varieties.
They are in Denver but check their website or Facebook to see if they will be at an event in your area.
YUM YUM!
http://www.rockymountainchilibowl.com/

Oh yeah....