Iowa City
My spouse and I go to this place almost every weekend. It is our favorite place for breakfast, they have the best coffee in town, and they are awesome. They are located in the Court St. Parking Ramp, at the corner of Court & Dubuque, next to the Greyhound Station.
On the breakfast menu, you can get either waffles or french toast. It doesn't sound like much of a choice, but there are several kinds of each. We almost always go for the waffles- and my top 3 favorite choices are the Texas Omelet Waffle with regular (non-vegan) cheese and warmed salsa. You have to ask for it that way, otherwise they'll give you cold salsa and it will make the whole waffle cold, which isn't pleasant. The Cheesy Apple Walnut Waffle is as good as it sounds, a great balance of cheese, chopped apples and chopped walnuts mixed in with the waffle batter and cooked to perfection. And there is the Apple Sage Waffle that is amazing. My sister-in-law called the amount of food "perfect". Just check out their website to view their menu!
The coffee, like I said, is the best in town. It is all the things coffee should be: shade grown, organic, fair trade (hence the name of the place) and TASTY! Coffee snobs will be satisfied.
The atmosphere is also excellent. They not only have plants everywhere, they have signs to tell you that if you have any extra plants, or if you are moving- they will be happy to take them off your hands! There is just something about being surrounded by the smell of coffee, lots of live plants and sunshine, and all the hippest people of Iowa City (except for a few that might be over at Lou Henri's or hiking in Hickory Hills).
The tile work on the floor is interesting, there are two comfy couches to sit on while waiting for your coffee & food, lots of board games and magazines to browse, and artwork on the walls to enjoy. Also, the color of the women's bathroom is a really amazing shade of blue.
The one negative thing is the wait. If you go often enough you know when to avoid the crowd (10-11 on Saturday, for example). But if you don't mind waiting, or expect it- bring a book and enjoy the lovely atmosphere while having patience for the busy workers.
Environmentally- all the plates and cups are reusable. They are an environmentally-friendly place for sure- If they had a compost bin for the disposable napkins and the paper towels in the bathroom, they would get an A+ from me.
UPDATE:
Fair Grounds used to be owned by a woman named Christine and now it's owned by a man named Steve. The menu has changed a bit, in addition to the amazing waffles and french toast, they have expanded the menu to include tasty breakfast burritos and more, even with meat! They are also featuring more specialty limited types of coffee to keep the local coffee snobs satisfied, and they got their liquor license in 2012 and will be serving Irish coffee in the morning and craft brews in the evening. There still can be a wait, mainly because everything is made after it's ordered, they aren't reheating frozen crap in this place! One time they messed up our order and were very apologetic, and to make up for our wait, they gave us a biscotti and several tiny cupcakes of various flavors:
It's places like Fair Grounds that make Iowa City stand out as one of the awesomest cities in the USA. If you are traveling through, stopping here will leave a tasteful memory of our hip little portion of the midwest. If you live here, and you aren't going to Fair Grounds every weekend, you obviously have issues and should seek help.
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