Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What the hell is a small, good thing?
A: I mean, it’s kind of a restaurant, kind of a coffee shop, kind of a food truck, kind of a bakery and sometimes any one of 100 other things. It’s a community space, a networking node, an aspiring art collective, and it’s a cozy cave filled with things I love, like books and music and art and plants and food that makes you happy.
The shop name comes from a short story by the American writer Raymond Carver, coincidentally called “A small, good thing” from his book “Cathedral.” It’s not a cheerful story, but it’s a hopeful one, about the simple ways people can help each other feel less isolated, less alone, through food and coffee and basic community. Read it, and you’ll see. There’s extra credit.
Here it is:
https://www.sevanoland.com/uploads/1/1/8/0/118081022/a-small-good-thing.pdf
A: What are your hours?
Q: Good question. It changes day to day, week to week, based on what we’re cooking, what’s going on in the area, and a variety of other human concerns. This place is a solo venture, currently, and Ideally, we’re open on Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings, from around 6pm til 11pm. Then I’ll cook breakfast on Saturday and Sunday, most weeks. Sometimes I cook on Sunday nights, but if I run out of food, then sometimes not.
I understand the general frustration and rage that some of the local populace feels about this decision. You want to know EXACTLY when and what is happening, even if (and especially if,) you have no plan of stopping in. I’m sorry. The hours fit the circumstances of my life, and I’m not budging. Current hours are always available on social media (Instagram and Facebook.)
Q: Who are you? ARE YOU FROM HERE?
A: I AM NOT FROM HERE. I’m from the distant lands of 3 hours north, in Rochester NY. I lived in the Lehigh Valley for about 15 years, and grew up exploring in the Poconos, where my family is originally from. I am sorry I’m not from exactly this town. Cars and highways really opened the world up in the 1920’s and people move around now.
I’ve been a cook, on and off, for my entire life. My first job was cooking breakfast at a Friendly’s at 16, and it’s always been a profession I come back to. I’ve cooked at 100 year old Italian family restaurants, shitty bars, Irish pubs in Boston, fine dining establishments, not so fine dining establishments, and a fish shack in the Outer Banks. And more that I forget.
Beyond that, I’ve been a microbiologist, a Marine, a nightclub bouncer, a Veterinary technician, a personal trainer, a sailboat captain, a manual laborer, a traveling hobo, and an alcoholic. And here we are, making cookies.
Q: What the hell is going on with your social media?
A: I don’t know. I just write about whatever I’m thinking about or working on or worrying about. I’ve been writing for the faceless internet since the livejournals and public blogs of the early 2000’s and I just never stopped. I like to talk to people that way, and writing is effective free therapy. Plus it’s a great way to make connections with folks and remember that most of our experiences are universal, good and bad.
Q: How the hell are you still in business?
A: I don’t know. A combination of low overhead, the low cost of my own free labor, and the endless kindness of strangers. And a bunch of folks seem to actually like what we’re doing and keep coming back. It’s just stubbornness too, which is another resource that is in high supply and free.
Q: What’s the phone number for the store? Can I order by phone?
A: Absolutely not. Never. I love y’all, but No.
https://a-small-good-thing.square.site/#6
We do preorders most weekends, for pickup, and you can see the options in the store on the website. We also do delivery to students, staff and faculty at Susquehanna University every few weeks. Check the social media!
