I love, love, love MaMere's. Very few places welcome you without anyone needing to say a word, where you walk in and you almost feel like you're coming home. You get the warm personal welcome as well, but this is a house that seems to love having visitors. The place is gorgeous, the breakfasts fabulous, the pampering layered and the hosts like family. Monmouth encapsulates both the peaceful and the fun college town, without overdoing either, and has a lot of local flavor too. Independence is just down the road, should you want more selections. There are several decent restaurants in the area, which is a nice bonus.
Across the street is a large public park where events seem to happen regularly (I've twice seen bands playing in the gazebo), or where you can relax and/or play. You're amidst Oregon wine country and all that that entails and the US's 2nd largest living Christmas tree is a short walk away. I don't usually care about such things, but I love big trees and I hate dead Christmas trees, so I like that. I can never get my butt in gear, but I believe they have a couple of bicycles you can use and the popular HWY 99 West bike touring route is nearby.
Last time I was there, our group had a fun visit to Wild Carrot Herbals, a thriving small business with a super-cool setup amidst an organic farm, where they grow most of the ingredients they need to make creams, balms, oils, soaps, bath bombs, etc, and my wife loves their products too.
We try and book Starry Night when we want to be pampered, but my favorite room is the Louisiana Lair, the room in the roof, above it all, a great place to write or hide out. It has a lovely bathroom where you can relax in the bath and look out of the skylight window at the stars above. A fridge and microwave enable the hermit in me.
Romance and relaxation both thrive at MaMere's. There are several places downstairs to hang out. I always go there intending to do more, but then I settle in to that comfortable spot, like a dog on a favorite old couch, and I just relax, despite myself. Damn, we need to get back there soon. I totally need it, and I miss those ladies.
Pros: pampering, great food, great ambiance, relaxing, comfortable
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