Cafe Astoria brings color to Grand

by Sarafina Dillon sports editor

Cafe Astoria, located in St. Paul offers a wide variety of foods, including crepes, sandwiches and salads.

The shop, which is on Grand Avenue, is surrounded by other busy shops and boutiques. The actual building, while small, is decadent in its beauty with its older architectural style. However, due to its location, there are few places to park which makes it a challenge for some visitors.

Right when walking into the building, guests are greeted with beautiful brick walls, the smell of delicious coffee and a friendly staff. Needless to say, I was immediately struck with a great feel for the place. One thing that certainly added to the down-to-earth experience was how the cafe owner went around to all the tables and spoke with customers. She asked if she could assist them, how their food was and if she could improve their experience. To me, this really showed how customers are cared for at Cafe Astoria.

The food and drinks were outstanding. After only a 10 minute wait, I had an açaí bowl and a latte.

The açaí bowl had bananas, strawberries, blackberries and cranberries. At the cafe, there are several kinds of bowls offered, such as: Berry Berry, Manila Mango, Beehive, Peaches and Cream and Eat Your Greens. All of these bowls are, at most, $10.

The latte was exceptional as well. It had rainbow foam on top, which added a unique component to the coffee-drinking experience.

Cafe Astoria also has a “secret menu” section, in which they offer unique forms of drinks, such as the 24K Latte, the Campfire Latte and the Rainbow Matcha latte.

They also offer an incredible selection of pastries, such as croissants, muffins and an assortment of strawberry bakery items.

The cafe doesn’t take reservations, so if it is busy, visitors do have to wait until a spot is open. The food was appropriately priced for the quality and the service was great. For these reasons I would recommend Cafe Astoria to anyone who likes a good adventure.

Final Verdict: 5/5

Q: How and when did your passion for swimming start?

A: I started swimming since I was two with my brother but when I was old enough I joined a team with him and found that I was good at it and liked doing it.

Q: What is your favorite thing about swimming?

A: My favorite thing about swimming is being able to see how much better I get with trackable numbers and the teams that I’ve been on because they helped me branch out and make great friends who push me.

Q: What is the most difficult part of swimming?

A: The most difficult part I would say would be the mental aspect of having to get up early, jumping in the cold water, showing up to practice even when you don’t feel like it and overcoming times where you don’t do as well as you want.

Q: What goals do you have for the rest of your swim career?

A: A goal I have for the sport is to really enjoy the whole process and the training seasons and not just look forward to the big meets and championships. Also to beat Justin in 100 breast.

Q: Do you plan to go further with your sport?

A: I most likely won’t choose a university based their swim team but the ones that I’m interested in I am definitely looking into college swimming.