La Baguette Music Cafe — Restaurant in Ashland

Neighborhood fixture, stopped by a few times in the last two years. Reminds me of Santa Fe or Taos back in the day. They have the best bagels in Ashland. I think if they were interested in making money they could crank out bagels and provide for all of Southern Oregon. Their stuffed bagels are good but just the plain bagel is the best for me, great chew and flavor. The thing is... I don't think the owner is really interested in money. I think he paid off his mortgage, lives debt free, employs a handful of like minded people, lives to play music and talk with people on his funky little outdoor seating area. I don't know any of this to be facts but this is what I have observed and surmised the last couple years. This is as opposite of a chain bakery/coffee shop as it gets. If this sounds like your kind of place I highly recommend, even if you are just passing through. If you are in a hurry, uptight and crave the same-old same-old, this is not for you. Also, walk or ride your bike. Limited parking, A street through the "Railroad district" is the most congested in Ashland. My favorite is the olive and cream...

Wow, I'm here now. I just took the first sip of my Americana... Fantastic! I really dig the bohemian vibe and open kitchen concept. They appear to have live music at times, unfortunately not this morning. The woman operating the cash register has some sort of cool slavic accent (I guess it could be Albanian, which is not actually Slavic but Illyrian). I got the Vegan burrito, wait a moment I am going to take my first bite. The taste is great, it is not as hot as I would generally expect from burrito and it is a little smaller than usual as well. There is a large vegetarian selection and they offer fresh juices. They open doors at 7:30 but don't have the full menu available until 8. There is a beautiful outdoor sitting area for when it's warm. It is surrounded by various potted plants, someone involved with the business obviously has a green thumb. This restaurant is a couple blocks off the main strip of Ashland near the co-op. So it's not as busy as some of the spots right in the center of the action. This place definitely matches what I look for, and I think you may...

My kids worked there for a couple years. The owner Merrill paid them minimum wage to come in at 5am, withheld double what he should have been for taxes yet said he was withholding regularly on their W2s, and would pay out of his personal bank account every time. They never received their W2s this year, which were to have been mailed out by January 31st per the law. When I called, he yelled at me saying they never filled out a form in the beginning with their information, which they did and he’s required to have them do. When I stated I can give him the address, though it’s been the same for 14 years, so he can mail them, he said he’s not going to send and they can come pick them up. He said he “doesn’t care” that employers are required to send by law and was yelling to the point where I asked why he was so upset? I said we’ll have the IRS request them from him. He didn’t pay their friend her last paycheck because he “didn’t feel she deserved it”. The man is a thief and stealing from...