Anna's Kitchen is an old red farm house turned into a restaurant. I grew up helping my aunt and uncle in their restaurant. It is one of my favorite places. The round tables are covered with tablecloths made from Anna's aprons, some red and white checks, and some blue and white checks. The windows have matching curtains. In the center of each table is a miniature old-fashioned lantern that my uncle made by hand of iron and painted in silver and gold. Every lantern is filled with fresh flowers from Anna's garden.

In the corner of the dining room, there is a record player with a grinder handle that you twist to start the music. When Anna bought the restaurant, the old record player was there. She keeps a stack of records for customers to play. Outside, in front of the restaurant, stands a tall scarecrow, made by my uncle. The scarecrow is dressed in old clothes, and near it is a pot of mums. On the side of the restaurant is a little river. When the sun shines, you can see the colored leaves.

In front of the restaurant is a little garden. Anna plants flowers and herbs that grow with the shade or with the sun. She mixes
different shades of red or white that will look nice with the tablecloths and curtains. The herbs are plants she can hang and dry for seasoning the food. It's convenient to live right there because if she runs out of vegetables, she can run right over to the garden.

You can smell Anna's food into the street. The food smells delicious. It consists of Anna's specialty apple pie and her pumpkin
soup, made of pumpkin cooked until smooth, with nutmeg, cinnamon sugar, and whipped cream on top. Anna is plump because she likes to taste her own cooking. She wears homemade clothes, blue and white or red and white old-fashioned dresses. On top of her checked apron, she wears a white muslin one. In her apron pocket is a white muslin handkerchief embroidered "A" for Anna.

Anna always greets the customers. When customers come by and see her in the garden, they'll say, "Hi Anna, how are you doing today?" She'll answer, "I'm just fine. Why don't you come on in and have some warm apple pie, my special of the day." When people come to Anna's Kitchen, they don't want to leave. It feels like they're at home.

When I was sixteen and desperately needed a job, I naturally thought of my aunt's restaurant. Besides waiting on tables, cleaning tables, and doing dishes, I also enjoyed making decorations. In the fall, the tables are colorful with brown, orange, and red leaves, placed with pine cones and gourds in a basket. Christmas time is Anna's favorite, so she decorates the dining room to the hilt. We wrap up boxes with colored paper and ribbon and put them on the wall.

That's also when Anna makes her rum balls, over one thousand of them. She uses a secret recipe, and it packs a punch. I also remember times that she'd give me coffee and a little dandelion wine, saying, "It never hurts." There was always a huge oatmeal cookie to go with it.

Anna doesn't advertise her restaurant because when she tries, they always get something wrong. Plenty of people find out by word of mouth. Anna's is the town's best kept little secret. Loyal customers congregate by Anna's smile and the smell of fresh coffee. I can almost taste her apple pie now. I love Anna's restaurant.