ENUMCLAW, Wash. - To some people a job is just a job. To others it is more like a family. So, what happens when that family is in serious risk of going under?
Workers at a beloved King County restaurant are finding out.
Enumclaw's Krain Corner restaurant is the sort of place that puts the "home" in home cooking. It's a place where kids' drawings and prom pictures decorate the walls. It's a spot where even when the restaurant had to unexpectedly close for some repair work - a waitress showed up and cooked for her regulars herself.
"This place is like family," said Dave Barber, a customer since 1996.
"The Krain," as it's known, has served its community for 93 years - but since November business has taken a detour. Receipts are down more than 60 percent and the restaurant can no longer pay its taxes.
"We're robbing Peter to pay Paul right now. It's scary," said owner Karen Hatch, who ran the restaurant with her husband for two decades before his death a year and a half ago. "It just doesn't seem real."
The economy has taken a heavy toll on The Krain, but a bridge closure project over the Green River is also having a mighty impact. The bridge has been shut down since November, and is running about a month behind schedule. It's creating a sort of "perfect storm" at the restaurant. The staff there is doing all they can to weather it. Workers, many of them single moms, have started sharing shifts to keep their friends from being laid off.
When one waitress was about to lose her small antique business because she couldn't pay the rent, Karen Hutch opened up a room at the restaurant to keep her going. They officially call it their "endless, erratic garage sale."
Community groups are also helping out. A group of retired pilots who meet at the restaurant weekly are spreading the word about The Krain through their e-mails and web pages. They're frustrated with a system that allows such good people to struggle.
"Where's the bailout for The Krain?" said one customer.
Department of Transportation officials say the bridge project should be done by the 4th of July. The folks at The Krain simply hope they can hold on that long.
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