Restaurant Downtown on Main Street

¶ … restaurant downtown on Main Street called Joe's Grub. The place is small and old and because it's downtown, it does not stay busy all the time. It's what they call a hole in the wall and unless you know it's there, you might miss it because it blends with the stores located on either sides of it. The only sign is what they have painted on their window that faces the street. It's one of those places that have food that you might find in any little restaurant in most downtown areas. Items like burgers, fries, meatloaf, mashed potatoes, fluffy rolls with tons of butter, and sweet corn on the cob in the summer. Joe's is open for lunch and early dinner. In other words, they close at 7 p.m. Their location and their hours bring in a host of interesting customers, including me. I go there often because I have an apartment just a few blocks from there. I can walk to Joe's in any kind of weather and I can sit for hours on end, as they don't seem to mind me being there.

My favorite table in Joe's is fixed between an old bookcase and the front window. The bookcase is situated far enough from the window that only one table will fit between the bookcase and the window. The table only sits two and I can go there, sit with my back against the bookcase and look out the window. The table is perfect for taking my laptop in and writing or surfing the net. The table is a bit uneven and every two weeks or so, I have to place a folded napkin under one leg to fix it. The chairs are wooden and that is the only really bad thing about sitting at the table for an extended amount of time. At this table, I can hardly hear the small radio that plays in the kitchen. I know that on the other side of the bookcase the cashiers check people out, so I hear the register open and close all the time. The cashier is one of three people -- the owner's wife, or two younger girls. One of the girls is working on her creative career; she is a painter and prefers to have her evenings open for art shows. She has a whiney voice that can break my concentration when she laughs. She is pretty for a girl that has pink and blue streaks in her shoulder-length, over-processed hair. Her name is Elizabeth but the regulars call her Liza. The other younger cashier is a single mom that lives close to Joe's. Her name is Melanie and she always looks tired and worried. She is quieter than Liza and rarely laughs. The owner's wife is a tall woman with fiery red hair. She is covered with freckles and she is extremely serious. Her name is Lynn and the funniest things happen when she and her husband are trying to communicate with each other while she is in the restaurant and he is in the kitchen. The yelling can get distracting and sometimes plain outrageous. But it's always about orders, which makes it seem okay.

One of the best things about this place is the way things seem to blend into the background when facing the window. I can work and I can also look outside. Across the street is a bank and next door to that, a church. On the other side of the bank is a laundromat, which provides me an incredible amount of inspiration if I am working on character descriptions. The parking lot is also visible, so I get to see people taking their laundry in and out of the building. Some people use baskets and others use pillowcases, garbage bags, and even boxes. All kinds of people wash their clothes there. I see people ranging from bikers to mothers with children. The city changes when it rains, at least from this perspective. The buildings simply do not look good against the grey. Some views are stunning with dark clouds looming overhead but not this place. The buildings across the two-way street are simply too close for comfort and rain falling only seems to make me feel claustrophobic. Winter can be dreary, too. While winter is bad everywhere, it is worse here because the effect of the weather are within close proximity of the window. In fact, the window is always more neglected in the winter. The bottom is always spotted and the windowsill is littered with dead moths. In addition, cold air seeps in, making coffee a necessity.

The place always smells like something greasy but good. When you open the door, the handle even has that greasy feel to it and the rush of air that hits you in the face is thick, warm and filled with the aroma that can only be equated to a greasy kitchen. The smell is nice and welcoming and I find that it's best on rainy days -- especially rainy days in the winter. The smell of burgers and french fries frying is always in combination with the strange aroma of coffee. They do not make specialty coffee, which is probably why they do not have more morning customers. No latte machine and no cappuccino drinks. Just straight coffee and you add the sugar and cream from your own table. The cashiers will keep your cup filled, however.