Everybody’s business

See you tamale
A Chico legend is looking to move on to new things. Karen Goodwin reveals that she hopes to sell her business, Today’s Traditions Vegetarian Cuisine, Inc.

Goodwin became famous among local vegetarians (and just plain lovers of good food) with her Today’s Tamales and the meat-free dishes served at Café Sandino, the restaurant at 817 Main St. now occupied by JP’s Fish and Chop house (how’s that for irony?).

Her lease on Dominic Drive is up in October, Goodwin said, “and I have decided to pursue other interests.”

“It has been a journey these past 22 years, from tamales to faux meat to cookies, but I am ready for a change,” she continued. “I would love to see someone step into the facility that I have put so much into setting up, so that’s why I want to list it [for sale]. As far as continuing Today’s Tamales, I’m unsure. They may get reincarnated someday.”

Autos, academics—same difference
Sometimes unions confuse me. Like who seeks to represent whom. After years of getting short shrift, about 4,500 student employees in the California State University system—instructional student assistants, teaching associates and graduate assistants—will finally be represented by organized labor. And who will be speaking on behalf of the student scholars? The United Automobile Workers, of course.

Apparently, the UAW has taken a cue from banks and other big businesses and merged, combining the former California Alliance of Academic Employees/ International Union and the United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America.

At any rate, the CSU has agreed to bargain for a contract with the UAW as soon as it’s sure the majority of workers are on board and the unit is certified by the Public Employment Relations Board (PERB).

British invasion
Downtown Chico is such a hotbed of business changes I had to search my brain (and our archives) to remember the name of the CD store that used to be located at 218 Broadway. (It was Aftershock; before that, Sundance.)

But that’s the past. The new occupant is Brambley Cottage, which moved there Aug. 4 after five years in the Garden Walk Mall.

“I’ve actually needed a larger store for a couple of years,” said owner Anne Ennis, who is surprised how much business traffic being on a main road has generated.

Brambley Cottage sells products imported from or reminiscent of Great Britain—everything from bedding and apparel to English candies. Ennis herself is from County Durham in the United Kingdom.

Scrappy Dog lives
I want to give a shout out to Scrappy Dog, the late-night hot-dog cart that has become a household name in Chico. However, contrary to what was stated in the News & Review’s annual Goin’ Chico issue, the name has not faded into the generic. The original Scrappy Dog—born in 1991—lives on, even though it has changed hands over the years.

Jacob Boehm first worked for the original owner in 1993, and in October 1999 he bought the business. While there are now several hot dog stands to choose from in town, if it’s the original Scrappy Dog you crave, head to Main Street in front of Mr. Lucky every weekend night from 11 p.m. to 2:30 a.m.