Thank You, Portland

two year anniversary dinner

As of yesterday, our little cafe turned two years old. Thank you to everyone who has kept us in business and furthermore kept us and our dogs fed and clothed. We appreciate your support and pinch ourselves more than ya'll will ever know.

Shall we see what's changed since way back when?

Like the years previous, we still have issues with the cafe bathroom- we'll leave it at that.

We're still hungry for more hours of sleep...and more time together when we're NOT discussing the cafe.

We STILL don't have a sandwich board out front.

I've pretty much given up on spatulas. Period.

And you know what? Until somebody figures out how to invent a better system for reloading cash register tape, me and that machine are destined to have a problem; particularly when the damn thing decides to run out of paper in the middle of a Sunday rush.

And yet some things have changed...


Two years ago we were eating frozen pizza for dinner on our anniversary.

Last year it was burritos from Santa Cruz Taqueria.

But last night we were fed by some of our very nearest and dearest in the world. People who have instinctively proven that they know best how to nourish not only our bellies, but our souls. We love you, Dove Vivi Family. We may have starved many moons ago if it were not for your deep dish, chocolate chip cookies, and draft.

It should also be known that I rarely suffer from panic attacks any more. In fact, when I see a noticeable line forming outside I cannot help but grin and feel grateful to keep such awesome company, both inside and outside of that door.

two years ago, right before soft-opening

That door, that door, that door. We've painted it red nearly four or five times just trying to keep the Lombard St. dirt from staining it. Seriously, we often fret late at night about whether or not it bothers our customers as much as it bother us, having a door that's smudged with residual shrapnel of a highly trafficked street. And yet it seems that good people keep coming in and out of that door on a daily basis, being it you kind souls, or the people that dedicate their time at the cafe towards helping us serve you, and even the delivery guys for our local vendors. There is an undeniably positive vibe that has manifested itself in our space and while we have no idea how it got there, we are pleased to have the opportunity to experience it and share it with all of you.

We are now better at rolling with the punches and accepting our accomplishments instead of scrutinizing them. You know, like running out of a product isn't cause enough to torture ourselves with shame and search the internet for scathing reviews. Rather, being so busy that you run out of product is, as we often repeat to our customers, "a good problem to have."

In short, after two solid years doing this gig we are humbled by the fact that we even have a front door of a successfully operating business to compulsively obsess over.

Last year I said, "the point is that one year ago we opened the front door and we haven't looked back." Now that we are one year older (and hopefully wiser) I can say that we have looked back- several times in fact. Our lives have been completely turned upside down since we opened that door. Pandora's box, as they say. But we're not trying to worry about any of that now. No, we're staying focused on what lies ahead, what exciting things and new friends await us. Not to mention that fact that we're addicted to the roller coaster ride, for better or worse.

And to those of you who have been along for the long (and sometimes bumpy) ride: what really can we say? Thus far you have seen us in our best of times as well as our worst. None of this would be possible without you and the daily reality check that we're two of the luckiest people in the world to do what we do, and have your support, encouragement, and wisdom along the way.

Cheers, Friends.

Here's to many, many more. XO

photo courtesy of Our Labor of Love