I have some clients that are relocating to Salem Oregon.  While I do my best to teach people about our area, the fact is, I haven’t been in every restaurant in town.  My son just upgraded his taste buds to halibut from grilled cheese so adventuring into Asian hasn’t happened for us as a family.  So when my clients asked me about good Asian food in town, I had to turn to Rebekah of the What’s Happening in Salem Blog.  Rebekah loves Asian food and I think has been to every Asian restaurant in town many times.  I knew if anyone could steer my clients in the right direction, it was her.   I thought her email to me would be a great list for my Top Lists, so this month, my Top List is brought to you…unknowingly…by Rebekah.

Salem’s best Asian Cuisine.

• Super Pho on Lancaster has the best pho
• Vietnam Restaurant on Center downtown has the best for other Vietnamese dishes.
• Thai Beer is hands down all-around the best Thai in town.
• Thai Lotus in Keizer is good too.
• Fuji Ricetime downtown is good sushi and
• Sushi Kyo has good sushi on a sushi train.
• Love Love Teriyaki is great!
• Venti’s also has great teriyaki plus a lot of other good fusion dishes.

So if you are looking for an Asian fix in Salem Oregon, check out these restaurants!

Move on over Starbucks…local coffee houses is where it’s at.  Salem is fortunate to have some really good local coffee houses, all with a slightly different atmosphere.  I think it is important to have different places to go depending on what you are looking for.  My favorite top local coffee houses, in no particular order are…

French Press. A newcomer to the Salem Oregon scene, this coffee house just happens to have some awesome crepes to go along with your drinks.  The smoothies are good and Tomson kid tested and approved  (which is saying something from my picky eaters).  With an elegant Eiffel Tower theme, this place is typically busy.  Just a fair warning the Kona is wonderful BUT strong.  For those of you like myself that aren’t regular coffee drinkers…go easy on this blend.  I was hyped up after drinking just one cup of this. I normally talk fast, but I felt like I was talking in super speed after drinking this coffee.  Seriously it made me hyper.

Ike Box-The Ike Box is also on the coffee house scene.  I LOVE the interior of this building.  The owners did a great job of preserving the architecture of the original building and for that I thank them.  Not everything old needs to be torn down and “updated.”  The Ike Box supports the owners non-profit program called Issac’s Room.  At-risk teens are welcome to come and just hang out here. They have rooms for them to come and just have a safe place to be, to learn skills and gain confidence.  I just love the idea of supporting a local business owner that has good coffee (they tend to make it sweet so keep that in mind when you order), great atmosphere, AND tries to help some of our troubled kids at the same time.  If you haven’t been here.  Go.

Blue Pepper-The Blue Pepper is a coffee house and gallery so there is art all along the walls that is for sale.  We have some excellent local artists so there is a lot to look at.  There is a conference room at the back for business meetings or get togethers.  They have Wi-Fi as well or you can hop on one of their computers at the coffee house for a fee.  Grab some coffee and surf the net.  Edit:  I wrote this post before the Blue Pepper lost its lease.  I don’t know if they are going to reopen at a new location or not, yet.  I’ll update this post if they move to a new location.

Coffee House Café-This is Salem’s laid back coffee house.  For those of you that want a really casual down to earth atmosphere, this is your coffee house.  It  has Wi-Fi, and if you are looking for a place to hang out with friends in a down to earth atmosphere this is the place for you.  I can’t help but feel that there are serious philosophical discussions occurring over coffee at this place.  They also have vegetarian food.  The owners are generous and have support our local charities.  I worked on a couple of auctions and they graciously donated to them.    I always appreciate our local business’s supporting our local community needs.

The Governor’s Cup-This coffee house is easy to miss because there is just a tiny sign to let you know it is there.  This is probably one of Salem’s older coffee houses and the interior kind of reflects that.  I guess I think that is part of it’s charm.  They roast their own coffee there and you will smell like coffee if you happen to go there while they are roasting.  Not necessarily a bad thing if you like the smell of coffee.  Be warned that if you sit down at this coffee house you are expected to order something.  One of the big complaints by the Willamette students that frequent this coffee shop is that they will be asked to leave if they don’t order anything.  If you want to hang out, that is what the library is for.  If you want to hang out at a local business, please support them and order something.

Cascade Baking Company-okay technically this really isn’t a coffee house, per se, but you really need to go in there and get some coffee and one of their incredibly delicious fresh baked goods.   We don’t have a lot of local bakeries, and many of our local shops buy their baked goods from CBC.  The hardest part is deciding what to get.  So if you want a good cup of coffee AND a yummy breakfast treat…this is your place.

So if you are looking to move to Salem Oregon and want to know…where do I go to get some coffee, consider checking out these LOCAL places to get some good coffee.  Each of our local coffee houses has something to offer everyone.    Whether you are a hippie, intellectual, tech geek, college kid, yuppie…we have a coffee house here that will work for you.

If you are crafty…and you crafty people know who you are…Salem Oregon has activities to keep you occupied depending on what you want to do.

7.  Quilted Forest. When I found out I was pregnant with my son, I “decided” I wanted to make him his baby quilt…well that is until I realized that I can’t sew worth beans.   Seriously, the pioneer women that traveled to Oregon would be shaking their heads at my crooked stitches and be muttering about how I would never get married with sewing skills like that…For those of you that can sew quilts, Greenbaum’s Quilted Forest is where you want to be.  I just walk into that store and drool over the beautiful quilts that have been made and have added taking a quilting class to my “things to do before I leave this planet list.”  The folks over there are really friendly and it’s a great local resource for our local quilters.

6. Capital Calligraphers. I don’t know if you all consider this an art, but I do.  For those of you that want to try something different, consider joining this group.   They display their work at several shows and even if you have never done calligraphy you are welcome to come to their group. It is meant for beginners through experienced folks.  Their art work is varied and beautiful. They have some samples on the website.

5. Scrapbook Fever. I do like to scrapbook and this is one of the places in town I like to go to for things.  They tend to have trendier scrapbook items, and you scrapbookers know what I am talking about.  They have several classes and often have kids classes as well.  It’s a great way to meet fellow scrapbook lovers, especially for those of you that are just relocating to Salem Oregon from other areas.

4. Craft Warehouse. Pretty much if you need something for a craft they have it here. Shadow boxes, frames, candles, beads… The Salem stamp club meets the second Tuesday of the month and the Salem Scrap Club meets the last Monday of the month.  The crafts these folks come up with are just beautiful.  This is my go to place for a good chunk of my crafting needs.

3. Beads a Bazillion. If you want to make jewelry and aren’t sure how, or just want to go and learn something new, this is the place in Salem Oregon.  They have classes, even ones for kids, about everything related to making your own jewelry.

2. Stampin’ Cat Studio Like scrapbooking (is that a verb or can I just make it up?) , stamping is an addiction with some of you.  If you are addicted to stamping then this is the place for you.   Some of the creations in there are really incredible and if you lack inspiration just head to their website or walk in the store.   They have regular classes, even for beginners.

1. Willamette Art Center-  Family Clay Sunday was gone for a bit, but has returned due to some grant funding. If you are a pottery making, glass blowing kind of person, this is the group for you. They offer classes and this is a great thing for local artsy folks.

This is not an exhaustive list by any means of what Salem Oregon has to offer on the arts/crafts front, but if I gave you more then my cool title won’t rhyme anymore.  You think I jest, but cool titles are everything in blogging.  Seriously ;-D

Salemites, if you have a favorite place you like to do arts or crafts add it in the comments so people that are considering relocating to Salem Oregon can see what we have to offer.

You can also read my top list about top things for kids in Salem Oregon.

Everyone needs a top 10 list for their blog. I think it’s a blogging rule or something.   I’ve never been one to follow the crowd so I’m doing a top 8 list instead.  I have to set myself apart somehow you know.   This is my first top list and just like my other Ugly Duckling posts, this will be a monthly series as well.

So without further ado, here is my top 8 list of things that I think are the best things for younger (think  under age 6 or so) kids in Salem Oregon…in no particular order.

8. A.C. Gilbert Discovery Village.  We locals call this the Gilbert House.  They changed the name to Discovery Village a few years ago, but old names die hard.   With the infamous “bubble room” this is a great place for kids.  Trying to find something to keep 3 year olds occupied during our rainy months can be hard.  It runs around $50 for a one year membership and we were members for several years when our children were small.  That $50 will also get you into OMSI in Portland for free.  Seriously, $50 for some sanity during winter.  It’s a good deal.

7.  Tot Indoor Parks.  When I first moved to Salem, Oregon there were, and still are, several tot parks that were located in churches.  These indoor gyms were a lifesaver in terms of giving kids a great place to run around and play during the rainy months.  I was surprised at how much socializing I got to do as a parent too.  It was so nice to let my little people play and talk with big people.   These operate as co-ops, so parents take turns setting up and cleaning up the gyms.  It used to be around $30 for a 9 month membership.  There are several around the city.

6. Kroc center.  This is just an incredible donation by the Krocs to the city of Salem.  Their water park is a great time for kids to just splash and have a good time.

5. Athletic Edge Saturday gym time-while not meant for infant or toddlers, Athletic Edge is a local gymnastics center.  Now even if your kids aren’t interested in gymnastics, they have open Saturday gym.  This is supervised by you, for your younger kids, so, please supervise them.  The kids can jump on the trampolines, and more importantly head into the foam pits.  This was a Saturday regular for my kids.   I dare you to jump into one of the foam pits and try and get out…then you’ll see why this is great for kids growing bodies.  A warning…it does sometimes smell a little sweaty in there…

4. The Carousel. The horses on the carousel were handmade.  While my kids are older now and aren’t as excited by the carousel as they used to be, I still think it is a great thing for kids.  The wide grins as they picked whether they were going to ride “Jazz” or some other horse that day was worth the small price for a ride.  Combine this with a picnic and they nice play structure at Riverfront Park and of course…

3. The Asher Anderson Splash Fountain. Added just this summer to Riverfront Park, this really is a great addition to the park.  Kids and squirting water…Need I say more?  For parents, there is NO shade by the fountain so keep this in mind if you don’t plan to hop in the fountain yourself.  It gets hot in the summer.

2. The Main Branch of the Salem Public Library/The Discovery Room-The Salem Public Library has a discovery room in the library which has a theme that they change monthly.  It is typically packed after story times, so I would often take the kids in during another time so they could really explore.  The kids library is upstairs off in a corner.  Puppets, telephone booths, and a lego table are just part of the package so some quieter play in-between reading books is possible.

1. Northwest Kids Club-Wanting to have a permanent place for young kids to play, the Kids Club was opened just a couple of years ago.  It is centrally located in Salem and meant for kids under the age of 8.  For parents looking for a place for kids to go and play and get some of that energy out. This is a good choice.

So if you are considering relocating to the Salem Oregon area and want to get a feel for what we have to offer our young kids, here were some of my favorites.