There’s a working-class sensibility to Clark County’s St. Johns corridor.
This six-mile industrial road runs from the outskirts of downtown Vancouver to Five Corners. You’re probably one of thousands of people in any given day who have hurtled down this arterial, maybe on your way elsewhere, maybe to breakfast at Carol’s Corner Cafe — a worthy if well-known stop.
Or maybe you’re just heading home. Census data suggests the surrounding neighborhoods are among the more affordable in Clark County, with median housing values ranging from $155,400 to $259,400 southwest of Interstate 205. (Median housing value in Clark County is about $329,000.)
But set against the backdrop of auto body repair shops, building supply centers and, increasingly, large complexes of apartments and townhomes, St. Johns is home to a community of family-owned businesses. These hidden gems of Clark County are worth visiting.
Don Juan Corner Cafe
Address: 4306 N.E. St. Johns Road.
Hours: Tuesday through Saturday, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., Sunday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Closed Monday.
Juan Olguin Sr. long dreamed of starting a restaurant highlighting the flavors of his childhood in the Puebla state of Mexico.
Four years ago, that dream became a reality in the form of Don Juan Corner Cafe. Olguin Sr.’s son, Juan Olguin Jr., and Jr.’s girlfriend, Mariella Soto, run this hole-in-the-wall joint, slinging traditional Mexican fare and American breakfasts.
“He wants to sell the kind of food you can’t find in this area,” said Soto, translating for both Olguins. “Authentic Mexican food.”
The true stars of the menu here are the weekend offerings. Check out the lamb barbacoa; birria, a stew with either beef or goat; and menudo, a spicy soup made with tripe, or beef stomach. It’s the ultimate hangover cure.
Then there’s the 27-ingredient mole, a luscious sauce with a kick from the six different chiles and a sweetness from the nuts, chocolate and overripe plantains in the mix. Olguin Sr. grinned as he opened the blackened peel of a plantain, revealing the sweet, nearly melted fruit inside.
Olguin Sr. starts working as early as midnight or 1 a.m. to start cooking, grilling and preparing for the rush of customers. The mole can steep two or three days, and the slate of smoked and charbroiled meats can cook for hours. It’s a lot of work, but it’s been his life since he was a child. Olguin Sr.’s mother was also a restaurateur, with plenty of kitchen hands to help; Olguin Sr. had 14 brothers and sisters.
“I don’t know how he keeps all his energy,” Soto said. “We (she and Olguin Jr.) are the lazy ones.”
Lazy is a stretch. Olguin Jr.’s got classic American fare covered, making fluffy pancakes and crisp hash browns to appease a less adventurous palate. Soto, with help from Olguin Jr., works the floor at the restaurant, dishing out hot coffee and cerveza.
Does the 58-year-old patriarch of the restaurant ever plan on slowing down?
“Si, cuando estoy muerto,” he said with a grin. Translated, “Yes, when I die.”
Weekend breakfasts are busy here, and with Jr. and Soto typically the only ones serving, you may be in for a bit of a wait. But if Sr.’s habit of starting up the grill at midnight on weekends is any indication, some things are worth the wait.
Amazing Cakes
Address: 4903 N.E. St. Johns Road.
Hours: 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday. Closed Sunday and Monday.
No one is unhappy in a bakery. That’s Amazing Cakes’ co-owner April Cortez’s philosophy, anyway.
This tiny bakery is the brainchild of Cortez, 42, and her business partner and best friend, Laura Hewes, 55. It’s a second career for both women, but one born of love for the craft and a deep personal friendship.
“We’re chosen family,” Cortez said.
Cortez and Hewes are among the last graduates of the Clark College baking program before the curriculum was overhauled and incorporated in the Tod and Maxine McClaskey Culinary Institute. They met in the baking program and noticed a natural chemistry, both personally and professionally.
“Whatever I can’t do, she can do, whatever she can’t do, I can do,” Hewes said. “What we can’t do, we learn together.”
The pair say their use of real butter and natural flavors set them apart, and their willingness to take on a challenge. They’re “all self-taught” on the decorating side of matters, but take on increasingly complicated made-to-order wedding and birthday cakes, along with cookies and other treats.
Now they’re starting to see repeat customers — the bakery was filled with the sweet smell of vanilla recently as they prepared a simple white cake for a customer whose wife fell in love with the flavor three years ago.
“We love our customers and we want them to be our family,” Cortez said.
Cortez grew up off of St. Johns, and said the growth along the corridor is only making it better.
“We’ve seen a dynamic change of younger people coming into the neighborhood,” she said.
Amazing Cakes keeps all its cupcakes and treats in a cold case since all their frosting is made with real butter. So be patient, the two advise, and let your treats come up to room temperature before diving in.
Donut Nook
Address: 4403 N.E. St. Johns Road.
Hours: Monday through Thursday, 5:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Friday, 5:30 to 1:30 p.m., Saturday and Sunday, 6 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
No herbs or liqueurs are in the offerings at Donut Nook. But if you’re into wood paneling, seasonally-inappropriate holiday decor and a cheap, melt-in-your-mouth apple fritter, this is your spot.
Phil Pomeroy opened this Vancouver institution about 43 years ago after managing a Skippers Fish and Chips.
“I needed a job, so I bought one,” Pomeroy said.
He hasn’t changed much about the Nook since then.
“We’re rather retro,” Pomeroy said.
The equipment’s the same. The decor feels like grandma’s living room. In his spare time, Pomeroy’s a photographer and hiker, so the walls are lined with photos from the Columbia River Gorge and coast.
And, for some reason, there’s a Halloween spider wearing a St. Patrick’s Day top hat and holding paper four-leaf clovers in his eight hands hanging from the ceiling.
“People seem to like it,” he said. “I’m not after the Starbucks clientele. We’re more family-oriented and senior-citizen oriented.”
Pomeroy estimates they prepare about 2,000 doughnuts by hand every day. All the frostings are made from scratch. They also deliver to businesses in the area.
The maple bars and apple fritters go fast, but don’t overlook the buttermilk bars and old-fashioneds.
As for those other guys, “they have a niche market and they’re welcome to it,” Pomeroy said.
“Mine is your standard, old-style doughnut handmade fresh every day,” he said.
Thrifty Feed & Garden
Address: 4207 N.E. St. Johns Road, #000.
Hours: Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Sunday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Rick Balsiger, a longtime gardener, was worried for a time that growing vegetables was a hobby now past.
Then came the backyard and patio farmers.
Balsiger manages Thrifty Feed & Garden, a locally-owned home and garden store with a little bit of everything. Want top-shelf cat food? They’ve got it. Heirloom tomato starts? Sure. Chickens and everything you need to get started raising them? Chicks are in now.
Growth along the St. Johns corridor has been good for this business, Balsiger said. There aren’t so many people coming in wanting horse and cattle feed, sure, but plenty of families are looking to start a patio garden or build a raised bed in their backyard.
“We’re seeing a nice resurgence of younger people wanting to grow their own stuff, have a couple of chickens,” he said.
There’s been a local hardware business in the building since the end of World War II, he said, and the current family has owned the building for 21 years. Most customers are coming in looking for the kinds of things you can’t find at a big-box store, including the hospitality.
“We always carry stuff out to the car,” he said. And “if you come in and ask questions, you’re probably going to get an answer.”
“Hopefully correctly,” he joked.
Once & Again
Address: 7811 N.E. St. Johns Road.
Hours: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Wednesday, Friday and Saturday. 12 to 5 p.m. Sunday. Closed Thursday.
It’s a new owner and a new vibe for Once & Again, a long-standing antique store at one of St. Johns’ busiest intersections. Greg Frodsham bought this little antique store a little more than a year ago after 12 years in hotel management and construction.
Frodsham lives in Vancouver now but spent a year working near Sisters, Ore., remodeling and reopening The Suttle Lodge & Boathouse. Refurbishing furniture was a hobby for him, ranging from midcentury modern pieces, record players and some smaller pieces.
When he saw the store was up for sale in January 2018, he closed his construction business and snapped it up.
“The last few owners were kind of going more for a thrift store sort of vibe,” he said. “We’re being more judicious around just focusing more on furniture and a little bit of decor.”
The two-story store is filled with furniture, much of it midcentury or even Victorian. Pieces are clean and in good condition, and sorted by type for easy browsing.
Most of the knickknacks and small wares are gone, but there’s a corner devoted to local artisans. Right now there are refurbished pieces of furniture, reclaimed wood converted into clocks and enough succulent planters to make even your most student-loan hardened millennial smile.
“We’re evolving and trying different things,” he said.
