community
february7
Worth the Trip: Good Things to Eat in St. Helens
By Scott Laird
Olde Towne St. Helens has a
great new place to grab something to eat.
“Good Things,” located at 291
S. First Street in the heart of the St. Hel-
ens Olde Towne shopping district offers
sweets, treats and yummy eats in a fun,
casual and extremely friendly atmo-
sphere.
Open Tuesday through Sunday
from 7:00 AM to 3:30 PM, Good Things
is a great place to stop by and get coffee
and a baked good early in the morning.
They also offer their biscuits and gravy
all day long . This is quickly become
their specialty and may soon be consid-
ered world famous!
Lunch is great time to drop in
for the daily rice bowl, their also famous
hot dogs, a bowl of chili or soup or a
cold sandwich. And then it’s time for
dessert! Fresh baked cookies, slices of
something to do part-
son motor cycle, which
time, San and Roger
came from an actual
purchased a hot dog
photo. The Campbells
cart and starting setting
think they have deter-
up during the summer
mined that the man in
in Olde Towne, selling
the photo was a police
hot dogs during special
officer in St. Helens
events like “13 Nights
named Perry who was
on the River.” Over
killed in the line of duty.
the next few years they
The mural is still a work
expanded their hours
in progress.
to weekends and their
San takes care
business just continued
of the baking and sweet
to grow. “It was phe-
stuff and Roger does
nomenal,” says San,
the savory cooking, ex-
“and we thought, ‘it’s
cept for those biscuits,
time to move indoors.’”
which San gives Roger
Roger and Sandra Campbell are
The Campbells the owners of Good Things in full credit for. “Those
found the empty build-
are a real big seller and
Olde Towne St. Helens.
ing they now occupy
he just has the knack for
and started from scratch. They opened making big fluffy biscuits that are gor-
for business on November 3rd and San geous,” says San. Their hot dogs are
says business has been even better than made by Cloverdale, which San proudly
A mural of the St. Helens waterfront circa 1918
covers an entire wall at Good Things.
pie and other delicious choices are al-
ways available.
“We wanted a place where we
could make homemade things, from
scratch and in small batches so every-
thing is fresh, says co-owner Sandra
Campbell. “We’re just cooking and bak-
ing things that we like to eat.”
Good Things is the brainchild of
Sandra and Roger Campbell. San, as
Sandra likes to be called, explains that
the couple owned a burger restaurant in
Lakeside, Oregon on the southern coast
for many years before they got the sailing
bug. San says they sold the restaurant,
their house and bought a 36’ sailboat.
They spent time traveling up and down
the Columbia River and ended up in St.
Helens before heading up to Alaska for
what was supposed to be a summer trip
which ended up lasting four years.
The Campbells arrived back in
St. Helens in 2008 and settled on their
boat at the local marina. Looking for
expected.
Their success is probably based
as much on the high quality of their
food and baked goods as on the couples
friendly nature and welcoming spirit.
Everyone who enters is greeted like an
old friend stopping by for a visit and a
snack. “We really haven’t advertised,
it’s just been all word of mouth, which
I think is the best,” says San. “It will
either make or break you. If you are do-
ing a good job then people are going to
know about it and that’s what you want.”
San says she and Roger love the
feel of the old building with its high ceil-
ings and have adopted a 1920’s theme.
They have added a huge mural by lo-
cal artist and friend of the Campbell’s,
Antonia Doggett, that spans one entire
wall. The colorful scene depicts the St.
Helens waterfront circa 1918. Accord-
ing to San, the waterfront docks burned
down in the 1950’s. The scene on the
wall shows a man riding a 1918 Hender-
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boasts are the hot dogs that the Seattle
Mariners now sell at Safeco Field.
“They are a high quality hot dog,” says
San. “The Seattle Mariners are carrying
our hot dogs, but we had them first.” she
says with a chuckle. San says they also
serve Alpenrose ice cream and says they
will carry more flavors in the summer.
She also says they expect to expand their
hours and plan to try doing some BBQ
and some other ideas they are working
2013
9
on. “We want to keep things interesting
and always be trying new things,” she
says.
San says they make all their side
salads from scratch. The chili is a recipe
from their son, who they hope will join
them this summer to help with running
things. San says she will bake items to
order if someone has a special request for
pies or other items. “Just about anything
someone wants, I’m willing to make
it for them,” says San. Right now she
features cherry, pecan, apple, coconut
creme, chocolate crème, peach, pump-
kin pie and more. There are always six
kinds of cookies available as well.
San and Roger Campbell have a
created a great place to find a homemade
snack or meal or a tasty dessert. They lot
of good things to eat and a fun place to
eat them. Good Things is worth the trip
to Olde Towne St. Helens.
Good Things is located at 291 S. First
Street in Olde Towne St. Helens. You can
reach San or Roger Campbell at 503-
369-6154.
