AMERICANWAY
MAY 15 2007
H U N G E R F I X
28
EvEN though
this isn’t a story about the
dizzying fluctuations of a freelance writ-
er’s bank statement — the market on that
maudlin poem has long since been tapped,
from themomentman first put pen to pa-
per— letme just say thisone, andonlyone,
thing: Sometimes life is sweet; other times
we can’t eat.
We’ve all seen the signs claiming “Will
work for food.” It’s a cliché born of the
downtrodden and thrust into the main-
streamon street corners andat traffic stops
inmajor cities around theworld every sin-
gleday. I’mnot positive, but I’mpretty sure
that someone along theChamps-Élysées in
Paris is holding a sign right now that says
“Travaillerai pour me nourrir” and that
someone along Avenida Paulista in São
Paulo is holding one that says “Trabalharei
por comida.”
Butthehomelessaren’ttheonlyoneswho
coulduse abreakongetting sustenance ev-
ery sooften. Therehavebeenplentyof days
when I’vewished for a freemeal, and, given
the often substantial free time we writ-
ers have between assignments, I wouldn’t
mind slinging some suds or knocking out a
few dishes in exchange for a little chicken
cordonbleu. If I lived inSaltLakeCityor in
Denver, I coulddo just that.
thE SAME
(So ALL MAY EAt) CAFÉ
sits
along the Colfax Corridor, near downtown
Denver, between the Capitol Hill and City
Park West neighborhoods. It’s an area
known for its odds and ends in terms of
peopleandestablishments.Thesigndoesn’t
look likemuch: a green awning that simply
states “Café.”But like the restaurant’smotto
(“Wonderfully Different”) implies, when
you take a closer peek inside, you’ll find
anythingbut a standardgreasy spoon.
At first, the place seems perfectly nor-
mal. There are seven tables. The walls are
adornedwithnaturephotographsbya local
artist; they’re framed and hung among se-
lectedquotesfromJohnF.Kennedy,Mahat-
maGandhi, and evenBarbaraBush. (Okay,
that’s admittedly an odd mix, but still.) A
WillWork forFood
It’s a new twist on restaurant dining: no-price
menus. Youmight need some (moderate)
dishwashing skills, though.
ByKevinRaub
PHOTOGRAPHBYPHILLIPESPARZA
