Minutes with An Entrepreneur (Inspiring)

When I walked out of my condo and down the steps to head to the bus, the raindrops were fogging up my eyeglasses. I took off my eyeglasses and managed to walk a few yards with blurry vision. The driver Margaret saw me and opened the door. We greeted each other and I put  my wrinkled dollar bills through the payment slot. It was a cold and wet January day and I was on my way to the picturesque town of Northport.

The drive along the bay was pleasant. At last I arrived in Northport. I thanked the driver and admired the large Christmas tree in the center of town. It certainly was magnificent. Feeling a bit hungry, I decided to hold off on eating and stop at a few stores before heading to the public library to do some research. An hour passed by and I decided to get a bite to eat. I knew of four places to get something to eat, the supermarket, a gasoline station that served pizza and Indian food, a bar/restaurant with a bowling alley that had a diverse menu, and a coffee cafe specializing in sandwiches. I stopped at all four places and decided not to eat at any of them.

As they say "everything happens for a reason." There was a new cafe in town that I didn't know about until I passed by and was curious to go inside. The place was absolutely enchanting and there were no customers inside, just the owner and chef, Laura and her assistant who was behind the counter at the register. I was greeted warmly by the two of them and soon we started chatting. For half an hour, I felt at home as I held a conversation with Laura and learned all about how and why she started her cafe. There were so many fascinating things I learned from this hard-working woman who was a wife, mother, and an amazing entrepreneur. Much of the decor came from former businesses in the community and they were quite nifty. I was impressed with the gingerbread houses on display that were leftover from a contest, the movie nights hosted by Laura behind the cafe that, and all the unique knick knacks all around the cafe. Laura's cafe is the only establishment in town that allows the general public to use her restrooms since the only other place is the town hall with limited open hours. How kind is that to allow people to use your restroom without even being a customer? 

Laura told me that how from a young age she liked to cook and bake and that her grandfather encouraged her to go after her dreams. There was such warmth in her cafe and the menu was amazing. Everything from burgers and award winning soups, to sandwiches, salads, bbq ribs, fish & chips, chicken, poutine, pizza, and more. She also had an  array of beverages and mouthwatering unique desserts, and all the food is made from scratch too.

I sat down at a table to talk more with Laura. She wasn't busy yet so she didn't mind talking. Even though I've been to Northport many times, Laura shared things about the town I didn't even know about. I was so impressed by her caring personality, focus, motivation, and knowledge. I felt like it was time to finally order something to eat but I realized my bus was coming soon so I opted for some decaf coffee and one of her ready made desserts, a coconut macaroon made like a brownie. Wow, that brownie shaped vegan, gluten free coconut macaroon was delicious. The phone rang, somebody ordered some burgers so Laura was off to the kitchen to prepare a carry out order for a customer. 

Next time I'm in Northport I'll look forward to returning to the cafe for a full meal and some more minutes to talk with Laura, the awesome entrepreneur who knows how to run a restaurant with perfection. How wonderful it is to be inspired by someone who made their vision a reality.