Get Real Estate Blog|Salem Oregon Homes|Relocation Guide

In 1864, this photo was taken of the Cook Hotel located on the corner of High and State Streets…the SE corner of it, in fact.   The hotel changed owners a couple of times and was the Monroe Hotel before the Bligh’s purchased the building and land, razed it, and built Bligh’s Capital Theater.

Bligh’s Capital Theater became Warner Bros Capital Theater and most recently this corner of Salem has become a local gem…La Capitale Brasserie.  Owner David Rosales, opened La Cap (locals nickname for this place), just over a year ago.  Already it has a good reputation in town, and I personally agree with that reputation.

I think I have the only kid on the planet that hates french fries.  My son has NEVER liked them.  On a recent outing to La Cap, he couldn’t resist trying one, as we all raved about how good the pommes frites were.

Yep.  My 10 year old finally likes french fries. Not sure if that is a good thing or not, but whether you are here for the pommes frites, the sandwiches, the tomato soup, or the warm chocolate cake…chances are you will enjoy your meal at this new local restaurant.

This is a great addition to the Salem restaurant scene, and for parents rest assured that their grilled cheese is kid tested and approved so feel free to head over there knowing you can get something for your kids, while you have a more adult meal.

Did I mention the lemonade is fresh squeezed?

If you are considering moving to Salem Oregon, this is one restaurant you will want to check out.

La Capitale Brasserie is located at 508 State Street in the old Bligh Capital Theater building.  David even has the old sign up on the wall.

The old photos are from the Salem Public Libraries Historic Photos Collection.

Everyone has their holiday traditions.   My family and I celebrate Christmas and so our traditions revolve around that holiday.  Our family tradition for this holiday actually starts in the summer. I know, kind of weird folks that we are, but here’s why.

The Christmas Cottage.

In Lincoln City on the south end of town, is this small little store called the Christmas Cottage.  My husband and I discovered it several years ago before we had children.  We started a tradition that whenever we went to Lincoln City or Newport over the summer, we would stop into the store and each pick out one new ornament for our Christmas tree that year.  When we were first married we had no ornaments but we have slowly over time amassed some really beautiful ones from this store.

A couple of years ago we felt our kids were old enough to start choosing ornaments as well, so now we make sure we take a trip to Lincoln city every summer and our last stop is this store.

What I appreciate as a parent is that many of the ornaments are inexpensive, which was nice when the kids were small and tended to break their ornaments. This year my son picked a stunning glass dragon as his choice, and I felt confident that he could handle it without breaking it.

Every year they have different ornaments which is good and bad. Our rule is just one ornament each and sometimes I have wanted to come back and get another of what I loved the previous year only to see a different artist in its place.

These photos are just a sample of some of the ornaments we have gotten at the store over the years.  From whimsical to beautiful, I guarantee this small little store on the Oregon coast will have an ornament that you’d love to have on your tree.

Next time you head to the coast, head over to this little gem of a store.  There is also an ice cream and chocolate store in the strip.  It doesn’t get much better than that.

One of the great things about living in the Salem Oregon area is that we are kind of centrally located.  Portland is just an hour north, the coast is about 1.5 hours west, and central Oregon is about two hours away.   Depending on what kind of lifestyle you want to have, Salem is in good position for a weekend getaway.

I haven’t blogged all week because I was in central Oregon.  Bend in fact.  I hadn’t been there for 15 years so it was interesting to see how different Bend was this time around. I personally couldn’t live in Bend as it is too hot and arid for me, but it is a great place for a weekend jaunt or week long vacation from Salem.

One of the fun things about moving to a new area is exploring what is offered around you.  Many people move to Oregon for the “outdoor” lifestyle, and Smith Rock State Park, where this photo was taken, is part of that outdoor lifestyle.

If you are considering relocating to the Salem Oregon area and are trying to figure out where to get away for the weekend, consider a visit to the Bend area.