While some establishments that shall not be named are only serving customers expensive food and drink in cheap, single-use containers with plastic forks, others are making an effort. I would rather give attention to who is doing it right than provide free advertisement for places that aren’t.

Bloom Bake Shop on Pratt Street is one that’s much closer to being sustainable than most in the area. For starters, they do the simple thing of providing customers with real, grown up plates and mugs when staying there for snacking. And that’s encouraged: the seating area is comfortable and presented as a place where people are welcome. There is no code for the restroom, nor a key to fetch for it from a cashier. Treating visitors with respect and dignity means something.

Staff don’t bat a lash if you bring your own travel mug. Yes, this has created major confusion elsewhere — both in years past and within the last month, as giving up the single-use coffee cup was the change I committed to during Plastic Free July. It should not be big enough of a deal to write about, but they’re really cool about things like putting iced drinks in mugs (they don’t have glasses yet*) or using less intense packaging for to-go bakery items. They stop and listen to what customers are asking for, saying, not treating visitors like a problem to send off as soon as possible. 

Maybe it’s the presence of living plants everywhere that serves as a reminder — how we treat each other, how we treat resources, how we treat the Earth. They use locally roasted coffee. Chose a storefront on a pedestrianized street that’s within a five minute walk of the major stops for almost every downtown area bus. So far, they communicate on social media basics like when they are open, so people do not waste time and resources on a trip that ends with no scones in hand.

They aren’t making any particular claims about sustainability, at least as far as I’ve seen, but this is exactly the type of place I have faith in because all signs point to owners/managers who actually care about what their patrons want, even if it’s not the most expedient thing for either them or us.

Unrelated: their shop’s music selection is delightful.

*I realize that people think cold liquids always go in glass and hot liquids always go in ceramic, but when I’m at home I use ceramic for any temperature and think nothing of it. I also eat ice cream out of a ceramic bowl at home. I’m sure someone will tell me why I’m doing it wrong.

Climate Possibilities is a new series about climate mitigation, along with resilience, resistance, and restoration. It’s about human habitat preservation. It’s about loving nature and planet Earth, and demanding the kind of change that gives future generations the opportunity for vibrant lives. Doomers will be eaten alive, figuratively. All photographs are taken in Hartford, Connecticut unless stated otherwise.