Caroline "free-at-last" C.'s Profile

They care. If I'm eating something, and it's going to effect my body, I want whoever made it to care.

Fresh vegetables and fruits where called for in these cupcakes. They're all moist--I tried 4 flavors and each one was super, super moist. You know they're fresh because they're piping them up or cooling them from the oven when you come in daily.

Like real, fresh fruits & vegetables, each cupcake is a little different. I actually like this, they're professional but not too fussy, they're beautiful and all decorated and great to present, but not in the way that every snickers bar looks the same every time. They're clearly hand made.

I'm not usually someone who chooses carrot cake, but the carrot cake cupcake was divine. The chocolate was almost custardy it was so moist, it was great.

The owner is on site pretty much daily and I think that says a lot! You do need to order ahead if you need a bunch of the same flavor (or call ahead at least, on your way to see what your options are), or if you want a pie, but I saw real fruit in those refrigerators and who doesn't love something made to order!

They have peanut butter cookies, chocolate chip cookies, and brownies with white chocolate chips too.

Not only does this bakery have some of the very best pastries around (and one of the best selections), they are always well staffed and are wonderfully, surprisingly, haltingly friendly.

I lived above the place for four months or so; every morning I'd come in the back and grab a cappucino (you're suppose to pay at the counter first, but uh, just act like you know what you're doing and it all works out), went on to select a pastry while they were making it and paid, and magically it was on a plate for me where my cappucino had just been brewed at the (standing) bar.

Sometimes I forgot to pay because I was in a rush, and they were always kind about picking up the tab the next day. Ahh, the pleasures of a cash business.

When I left, though my Italian was still poor (Florentines largely speak English, it's hard place to learn Italian!) and I wasn't able to have a really legit conversation, I got the point across that it was my last day and I wouldn't be back, and they refused to let me pay for my breakfast. That's five star customer service!

Go for the specials; if they have anything with langostines or eggplant, it will be fabulous.

Amazing setting for outdoor seating, it's secluded and mostly frequented by locals. I only discovered this after living a block away for some months.

Weekend evenings are dressier but you can feel comfortable showing up in most anything aside from beachwear.

It's magical.

They speak English well, aren't snotty, and carry a really wonderful selection. It's fairly difficult to find a good selection of foreign wines or even wines from outside of Tuscany within Tuscany, but they do a great job of carrying the local stuff and the further outs.

This was the go-to store for students of the Culinary Institute of Florence and its wine program at Apicius, and for good reason.

Best kept secret. A lot of academics on sabbatical or vacation stay here; their rates are very reasonable and their rooms are all unique. They have a very small capacity and it is family run.

I once stayed here when my apartment lease was up and my plane ticket wasn't for a few more days--they had a vacancy, so they upgraded me from their single bed room to a king. I can't tell you how amazing this was after sleeping on effectively a cot for the four months before it.

They're kind people and it's run top notch. Proximity to the train station is awfully convenient too.

One of my very favorite restaurants in Florence. They have delicious and reasonable hand made pastas, and one of the very best outdoor dining experiences in the whole city--a huge, multi level garden that is romantic and sweet, with beautiful evening lighting and a refined local crowd.

It's also one of my favorite lunch spots on this side of the city.

My five star rating amounts to gratitude. I am so glad the Wooly Pig exists and exists so conveniently to me. We saw several other cafes and coffee shops struggle in this space. It is amazing to have the same quality food I make myself so readily available.

As someone who cooks high quality food for herself every day, I can really attest that there is love and quality in their food and ingredients. It's top notch. It's where I go when I want the day or the meal off from making it for myself, and in doing so I don't feel that I've compromised.

I love the strata (ham & cheese with side salad and excellent dijon) on the weekends, the Asian tuna, and the special sandwich of the day which usually involves pork and some amazing fennel slaw or something seasonal of sorts. They make a great wet cappuccino for those of us in need of caffeination.

Staple. This is my San Francisco Tacos de Mexico (San Luis Obispo). Eventually, I will put your kids through college via kaluha pork sandwiches.

I really wanted to love Big Bend Yoga, especially because they offer a more spiritual practice than some other studios in STL. But there are some issues.

The studio itself is in a converted garage that seems like it would have been for industrial use. At first, this is kind of charming, except that there are lots of uneven surfaces around the walls and it's extremely drafty. It's been painted, but not really converted.

I was there at the end of January when it was MOSTLY warm--I drove a convertible to class a few days, it was freakishly sunny. The studio has space heaters, but they sometimes don't work and there aren't really enough to fill the huge volume of air in there. It's also not so pleasant to have dry, warm air blowing on your during class when you are breathing deeply.

Out of about 6 classes or so I attended, in the last one I bothered to go to (I had planned to go two more days but after the experience really had trouble getting myself to go), the temperature dropped at night preceding a big rain storm, and I went to a restorative class where the instructor didn't check in about comfort at all, was distant before starting (I would have liked to have told her about my injury), made adjustments to practically every other student but me, and the temperature was an excruciating 58 or 60 degrees--while laying there, doing nothing, with a draft, in the dark.

I couldn't take it. I've never left a yoga class before it ended before--and I've put in about 200 hours or so--it was just awful. I felt bad, but also pretty annoyed at how uncomfortable I had been for the last 45 minutes because of the temperature.

That said, temperature control seems to be an issue at most of the STL studios I've tried, with most of them not heating up sufficiently before classes start. I understand that heat is expensive, but your rent is cheap and you're charging the same amount I get charged in San Francisco. Seriously. Warm it up a little.

What better place to celebrate the Yelp IPO than lunch at the Gold Club?

Others have said it before--$5 lunch, the food is pretty decent and they have really fresh salad with pretty decent dressing. And fried chicken. Did you read about the fried chicken?

When the Corner Bakery opened back around 2002 or 2003, it was delicious. Everything was just gorgeous and really well executed and super fresh.

And then I moved away for a few years, and came back to visit, and found the quality at 50% of what it had been. I don't know if it's changed ownership or what, but corners are definitely being cut. It's still one of the only options in Cambria, but I think I would have opted for some scones if I had known my croissant would be chewy..on the outside.