Ink Tea Stone Leaf

It was the “Library of Black Excellence” that first drew Ariele and me to Epilogue Kitchen, an award winning restaurant in Salem, Oregon. I love things that double as libraries, and more generally places that celebrate books and their ability to propagate wisdom and ideas. That Epilogue placed itself in service of noble ideas and the telling of important truths about American history and matters weighing heavily on our community made it all the more attractive a place to try out. I have enough books at home that I didn’t need to check something out very often, but I did find a few things on the wall that called out to me.

What kept us coming back nearly every Monday for two years was the exceptional quality of the food and service, as well as the weekly trivia contest at which we routinely excelled. It wasn’t the cheapest food in town, but I can think of plenty of other places that cost more; on the whole we found that there was nothing about this place we did not care for. Our weekly Epilogue date has been a treasured feature of our marriage thus far. We gladly followed them when they moved out of their downtown location last year, confident that even in a smaller, shared space, they would still deliver the wonderful experience we had grown to appreciate.

I follow Epilogue’s Instagram account, and if I had been paying more attention to their stories then the news we received this past Monday might not have been as much of a shock. Well, I should say it would have still been a shock, but it would have shocked me earlier, and I would have been at home, where I might have been more comfortable. We learned that trivia night at Epilogue was coming to a close, because Epilogue itself was coming to a close, likely by the end of the month. We seem to have been the only people in the room who hadn’t gotten the memo. We did not even understand all the implications of what we had heard until we were lying in bed that night. It was hard to sleep after that.

The sad truth is that despite its quality and nobility, Epilogue and its staff have not had an easy time of things. The Library of Black Excellence, and the outspokenly progressive political stances taken by its founder, have also attracted the negative attention of seemingly every unreconstructed troglodyte in the Willamette valley. The move to a smaller, less prominent location was partly about managing the rising costs that have afflicted the entire restaurant industry in recent years, but partly about finding a reprieve from the harassment and vandalism that had become part of existing every day in downtown Salem. Now it seems that the move was not enough, and what can you do about that?

People who know Epilogue understand what an important part it had to play in our city, and what a welcoming place it has been to people of all sorts. People who know me and my wife understand that it was an incredibly special place for us. More than just about any business in Salem, it was one that we’ve been enormously proud and pleased to support. We’ll always be grateful for the atmosphere, the food, and the fun that we have had there. It’s just incredibly frustrating that we couldn’t love it enough to keep it around forever.

That’s not our fault, of course. I won’t even say it’s the fault of a city that failed to appreciate what it had while it was vital. Why blame a city for the bad attitudes of bad actors? Still, in times of increasing political repression and the stifling of voices for inclusion and social justice, the impending loss of Epilogue hurts all the more personally than all the bad news that reaches us through mass media. This was the place we went every week to love each other and share in good things with our people. It deserved far better than this.

We went back there yesterday evening, in order to express our gratitude to the staff, and avail ourselves of their weekly promotional discount for folks who work in education (as we do). As it happens, we are also celebrating our fourth wedding anniversary this week, a coincidence of timing that is all the more poignant. I tried a new cocktail, and ordered a sandwich I had been meaning to try all summer. There were no trivia questions to answer, but it was still a beautiful time. Not all the familiar faces we knew were on duty, but Ariele had written them a thank-you card that we enclosed with the check, so they should all have a chance to see. It’s a small thing, but it’s sincere.

We will find a way to occupy ourselves on Monday evenings, re-balance our meal-planning schedule, and continue to honor what Epilogue stands for and what it has meant to us by reading, participating, and not giving up on a difficult world. I hope we haven’t been there for the last time, and that this isn’t the last word on a remarkable cause.

UPDATE (September 23rd, 2025): I think it’s worth adding a little something about how things have been since Epilogue closed, and focus on the upside, since I don’t want things to be too depressing here all the time.

First of all, Trivia Night continues on the same night, at the same time, and in the same location as before, only it isn’t Epilogue anymore; it’s Prismatic Coffee, the business Epilogue had shared its walls and roofs with since January of this year. They still serve drinks and even food, but of course they aren’t the same drinks and food. I have seen a lot of familiar faces there, however, on both sides of the counter.

The Library of Black Excellence is still there as well. I have no idea whether Prismatic is still loaning these books out, or if they serve more of a decorative purpose than before. It might be worth looking into.

Epilogue itself hasn’t quite kicked the bucket either. They still host a community dinner in the Prismatic space every Sunday. We haven’t been there yet, but I understand you need a reservation. I imagine we will try to get one soon.