STRATTANVILLE, Pa. (EYT) – The small business card for Mauthe’s Country Corner lists ice cream, flowers, and crafts; however, there is so much more when you go into the tiny Strattanville store.
(PICTURED ABOVE: Margaret Brocious, owner of Mauthe’s Country Corner.)
Once you talk to owner Margaret Brocious, you know that there is a lot more going on in this popular rustic community center.
“I started Mauthe’s Country Corner back in 2016,” Margaret said. “It started as a little produce stand, and I added a greenhouse to it that year, and it has grown every year.”
She was raised across from her business and comes from a family that has been in businesses all of their lives, so the decision to open her store in 2016 was almost second nature.
“My grandfather was always in business with my mom, and this corner was Mauthe’s Corner. This is named after my grandparents, Bill and Margaret Mauthe. He owned the buses and land. They had five different businesses, and he passed 25 years ago.”
Margaret’s parents, James and Barbara George, run the buses now for Mauthe’s Busing Inc. She and her dad drive the school buses full time, and that explains why the store opens mid-morning when she gets back from driving the bus. Both her mom and dad help at the store.
Adding on
“Every year we’ve added on, and my second year I got my license for just to do hoagies, but nothing deep-fried – just your simple little fast food, like nachos and cheese pretzels and cheese, just simple.
“The next step was ice cream. The Dugout went out of business that year, and I went and talked to Randy and Cindy Bell, who I’ve known all my life, and they kind of guided me.
“I went with a different brand of ice cream, and I got an ice cream machine. We started soft serve ice cream, and we’ve got everything from roundups (like a blizzard), I have flavor bursts, different flavors, and a full menu of soft serve.
“The year after that, I added deep-fried foods. So, we do everything from pizza to wings to wedgies.
“Last year, we enclosed an area under an awning for a little side dining, like a little café. That’s what I wanted — just something rustic.”
Her friend Greg Peffer does all of her construction work, and she told him she only wanted rough-cut lumber and nothing fancy.
She is happy and proud of what she has accomplished, but she isn’t planning any more additions.
“I got the original building from Terry Theiss. Mennonites build them for him, and that’s how this all started with just one original building. I added on the kitchen part back there. This cafe was just like an awning and overhang.
“My best friend Sharon Booth also joined me when she wanted to relocate her hair salon.”
Business is booming, and cars are often double-parked, and she’s even expanding her hours. In the meantime, she also caters for weddings and other events, school fundraising projects, adding fresh produce, and whatever people want.
Her cheerful, positive attitude may also come from where she was raised. In past years, her mom and dad produced a well-known Christmas lighting extravaganza around their property on Seven Hills Road. People would drive from near and far to look at the lights.
“My mom and dad started out when I was little. I was probably like eight or nine years old, and that’s what we did. People would come from all over, and we had a lady walk in here yesterday and talked about it.
“Mom and dad are in their seventies now and no longer do it, and it’s harder because you’re up on a lot of ladders, and there’s a lot of extension cords.”
Nevertheless, Margaret sells Christmas trees from her store during the season, still spreading the spirit of Christmas.
Copyright © 2024 EYT Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved. Any copying, redistribution or retransmission of the contents of this service without the express written consent of EYT Media Group, Inc. is expressly prohibited.
