The Brownstone Café, which
sits in the center of Middletown, Pennsylvania, always does a brisk business and
serves as a gathering place for locals. The restaurant is always busy, it is a
question of will we have to wait for a table. It is good for serving uncomplicated,
but good food with friendly service. Located in a former bank, the building
retains many of the accoutrements of its former tenant, including the safe and
tellers’ windows. The music is appropriate for the clientele, for example, a
week prior to Christmas, Merle Haggard’s “Santa Claus and Popcorn” was barely
heard above the din of conversation.
The locals who frequent the
Brownstone can be interesting. An elderly man sitting behind me was engaging
our server in a prolonged conversation about her background. She remarked that
she had moved to Middletown about eight years prior with her boyfriend. It was
difficult to hear the entire conversation, but the man eventually asked if her
parents knew she was living with her boyfriend. She noted that she had been
with her boyfriend for eight years, so yes, they were well aware of her
living situation, in a assertive yet not quite caustic tone. A couple seated
behind Angie were engaged in odd conversations as well, with the woman complaining
that her male companion had gotten her drunk the night before. She had
previously worked at the restaurant and had, at some point, left her purse, prompting
the manager to comment, “some things never change.” At yet another table, a
young couple were feeding each other, perhaps in the spirit of the season like
a budget conscious holiday movie.
Walking through town on a
cold and cloudy afternoon, the lights at Hoffer Park did not seem to dispel the
gloom of winter. Likewise, the sign inviting people to take the Santa Train
from the M&H Railroad was not tempting either. The overcast skies and the
damp cold, mixed with a persistent wind made being outside less than appealing.
