I Pledge Allegiance, to the Pies, and All Things Just as Good

It's Summer!

And I am finally back to my blog and finally have free time!

Now what is it that I am going to first write about in my Summer Collection of blog posts? Well, if you know me at all or have noticed a trend in what is I especially like to post about (or if you just so happened to already read the title of this post) then you will know what this is going to be all about...

FOOD!

So Let's Begin...

Yes indeed, this post is about PIES! More specifically though, Republic of Pie, an awesome coffee shop in North Hollywood with So Much Amazingness all concentrated in one area.

On Magnolia Blvd in North Hollywood, CA is quaint but cool cafe carrying a very relaxed and respectable atmosphere filled with scents of fresh coffee and nothing but sweet pastries as the first things you see when you walk through the door.  After you order in the front some coffee, pastries, slices of PIE, or some hearty and delicious breakfast options, you can go ahead and head to the back of the coffee shop and pull yourself a seat.  They have a wide assortment of couches, seats, stools, tables, benches, and other comfortable spaces where you can just have your meal, a cup of coffee, a sweet slice of pie and either have a good conversation with a friend, read a book, or get some work done. 

Similarly to Young Hickory which I wrote about a while ago, this coffee shop has a great atmosphere to it all and although I don't live in the area, if I did, I would definitely spend a lot of time here reading, writing, hanging out, or just indulging myself in delicious pieces of pie.

So by now you're probably DONE with me only mentioning all the delicious food here and not showing you what it looks like, so let me show you what this place is all about.

So as I mentioned before, once you walk in you will see all the savory pastries they have to offer especially since you have to walk past the earlier customers sitting at a the few couches they have in the front and refrain from drooling over them as you see the sweets they had already started enjoying.

To the right is the counter displaying Nutella Turnovers, Almond Danishes, Jam & Cheese Danishes, Apple Turnovers, a Variety of Croissants, Lemon Bars, Macarons, Coconut Bars, Lemon Tarts,  and SO MUCH PIE!

Peach, Apple, Strawberry Rhubard, Marion Berry, Chocolate Cream, Espresso Almond, Chocolate Banana Cream, Key Lime, Cookies & Cream, Banana Cream, Pumpkin Cheesecake, Coconut Cream, Pecan, Pumpkin, and SO MUCH MORE!

And just in case you don't wanna feel TOO guilty starting off your day with something sweet, you can kick off your day with some delicious breakfast plates such as these...

 But please make sure to grab a cup of coffee too because this stuff is good, their drip is fresh and tasty and their specialty drinks are so savory.  And just LOOK AT THEIR LATTE ART!

I went with my sister and because we didn't want to feel like we were just starting off with something sweet, I ordered the GRILLED BREAKFAST WRAP which had egg, bacon, mozzarella, potato, avocado, pico de gallo, and jack sauce... Seriously, this was Delicious!

My sister took the higher road though and ordered the yogurt with fruit and granola which was very tasty too and not absurdly creamy or tart

BUT OF COURSE WE GOT A SLICE OF PIE ARE YOU KIDDING ME!?!

The two of us after having our individual breakfast plates shared a slice of ooey gooey creamy whipped Cookies & Cream Pie and I say unto you we indulged in such a delectable piece of heaven, And. It. Was. Good.

2.4 seconds later of nothing but me looking like this gif

BOOM

The next time I was in the area my sister and I tried to convince my mom for us to go there again but noooooo we figured it would be good to explore another breakfast place.  Although I was initially bummed because, I mean come on you saw the pies, the other place turned out to be pretty good.  But back to Republic of Pie, if you are in the area, or even just somewhere in LA and willing to make the drive to North Hollywood despite LA traffic, do it! Or if maybe you live in the area and need a study spot or just some good pie go ahead and make your day with some delicious pie.  Maybe you could even bring a book and just kind of listen to the sounds of a real coffee shop.

I miss this place and I miss the coffee shops I came to love in San Diego I can't go to right now during the Summer so hopefully next time I come back to the blog I will have a coffee shop similar to this one I can go to near home

Ugh, me too

Coffee Keeps Me Young

It's that time of the Quarter Again!

What time of the Quarter you ask?

MIDTERMS!

So naturally college students here at UCSD and all of the other colleges/universities on the quarter system are lounging around in bum clothes, downing espresso shots, and losing sleep while surrounding themselves with books and lecture notes and listening to podcasts.

Not an overreaction

But luckily for me, I have two awesome friends that showed me the best study spot I have ever come to know: Young Hickory

And to be honest I don't even know if I should be talking about it on such a "public" place because its very underground and hipster as some have described it, but you know what, I have been so productive there and love it so much I MUST BLERG (Translation: "mispronunciation of the verb "to blog") ABOUT IT.

That's my friend! She's probably gonna get really excited that she is in this post

                                     

These are some shots of the interior which is really cool, the chalkboard is really well designed, and the music is very relaxing but still just gives off a cool college vibe (super cheesy I know but I don't care).  The place is not very small and has a lot of tables, but it does tend to get pretty packed ... but it's only probably because it is such a great space.  Also, the workers/baristas are very kind and helpful and if you walk in looking distraught seeking a table, they tend to help direct you to an open table so that's nice.

And so yea that's the environment, but you're probably wondering about the coffee right? You know, since it is a coffee shop and all haha

The coffee is delicious and the food is on the same great level.  My usual is a Vanilla Latte and an Acai Bowl which comes out to a nice $12 and I probably have made that purchase every single time that I have been there, and I probably need to be more adventurous in trying out new things there ... but what I get is just so good

$12 of delightful satisfaction

My friends showed me this place at the end of last quarter during Finals Week (my other favorite time of the Quarter) and I ended up going literally 4 days in a row.  I have never been so productive in my academic years.  The first day I went we were there for a good chunk of time and I was able to crank out most of my 10 page Visual Arts Paper that I originally had no motivation or no idea where to start.

(Me before finding Young Hickory)

(Me once I found this haven)

The next few days were also JUST as productive and it is officially my choice location for studying. And ANOTHER cool thing is that you can open a tab!  Now some of you may think this is not a big deal but I have never done this before so when they first asked me "Would you like to open a tab?" I tensed up and had no idea what to do and said "No Thanks" but man did I regret it.  I have never done anything so foolish again haha and now every time I go I open a tab and I feel so legit it's cool like now I am just ranting about it but I felt like an adult doing my thing just drinking coffee and keeping tabs open and what not... But then I get my tab back and turns out I downed 3 Vanilla Lattes, an Acai Bowl, and a Brownie woops

But anyway, back to studying

A lot of people are different, and so if you are still a student and can't seem to find that one place that really allows you to get those juices flowing in your brain, try out a new spot.  Try getting away from your friends if they distract you.  Try bringing them with you if you don't like studying by yourself.  TRY SOMETHING NEW - you'll never know what the results will be, I did not expect to have this place be so great and now I love it 

P.S. I am going back there this weekend to study 

 (There is something so satisfying about this gif)

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