Vida33 Latin bistro — Restaurant in Milwaukie

What a pleasant surprise! I finally made time to stop and am happy to have found this bright spot right along my commute.

I greatly prefer local indie coffee shops as more interesting and usually a better value that keeps local dollars local, featuring original art and flavors, less pretentious/expensive, creative options, and hopefully not over-roasted/bitter coffee...and I'm pleased.

The house blend is my barometer. If the sample is good, I'll order. If not, I'll move on. Thiers is locally roasted, dark and smooth, just the way I like it, so I ordered a large. They remembered to leave room for cream. The condiment bar is stocked with flavorful additions and there are a variety of non-dairy milks and add-ons available.

I also ordered a breakfast scramble, which is a fresh, gluten-free, and surprisingly satisfying option to the delicious looking pastries I've had to learn to live without; Fluffy eggs, sautéed (but not soggy)veggies, creamy ripe avocado...and siracha and more available on the condiment bar. Yum!

The menu has the usual suspects and other choices reasonably priced, with plenty of carbs and bacon (for those who can) plus fresh Kombucha, and all the usual hot and cold variations, plus a good variety of teas and herbal iced teas and smoothies I look forward to trying, in particular this month's Tiramisu Latte : )

My second barometer is the Service, which was fast, friendly, accommodating, and accurate, and the third the envionment, which is clean, welcoming, with free wifi, without the loud music, so its supportive to working and socializing.

I will be back and bring...

Vida 33 is the new, refreshed cafe after Spring Creek changed owners. I was nervous this would mean my favorite local coffee shop would become something I wouldn't enjoy, but that hasn't been the case! The new owners clearly care about keeping what made the place special to regulars while bringing new, higher-quality offerings to Milwaukie. The coffee is still fantastic, but now there's a wider variety of food that's definitely elevated from before. I love the latin flare while still feeling like classic cafe food. AND they just launched a dinner service! If you haven't tried their more upscale dinner offerings, you should! The only thing I'd like to see are more vegetarian options on the menu.

Review from 2017 (formerly Spring Creek): Love this place. I come here at least once a week for a coffee treat. The baristas are always so friendly and make a real effort to get to know the regulars. They also always make my drink (which is a very specific drink order) just right. Their breakfast and lunch sandwiches are okay, but they do always prepare everything very quickly, so it's nice to pick something up when you're on the run. There are lots of places to sit inside, including both tables and chairs and more comfortable living-room-like furniture. This is also a lovely place to stop by when the Milwaukie farmer's market is in full swing. This place is not as hip as many of the other coffee shops in the Portland area, but I think it's a more comfortable place to hang out and is...

I’ve REALLY liked this place. I feel bad for reporting back a three on food quality, because I want them to succeed, but the mislabeling of the breakfast wrap as GF and not specifying is GF optional is not okay.

I’ve been eating this wrap for a while now and didn’t realize it was the culprit for making me so sick. I’m highly allergic to folic acid in enriched flour. Being pregnant, I thought the sickness was just from my hormones… but it turns out it is the reason why I started puking on Friday after eating it Friday morning and have been miserable and puking since! (It’s Tuesday, and this is after finally getting my puking to stop the Sunday before). I’ve been continuously poisoning myself every couple of weeks by ordering this!!

You HAVE to label your food properly. I saw the ingredients in their tortillas and all of it, beyond the enriched flour is BAD. I’ve included it here for reference. So many artificial ingredients and even food coloring. They seem to have such a healthy menu but they’ve really skimped on...