Packed like sardines in a restaurant!

Yes folks, once again I’m at my field site ready to talk to you about all the interesting people dining along with me this afternoon.

Let me start with what it look like outside the restaurant; looking through the big glass windows on the east side of the building, the afternoon traffic can be seen bustling. Since my boss called of work today it’s the first time I’m able to be at my field site in the afternoon. The restaurant is full to the brim.  

On the table in front of the counter there were four men. They all wore western style shirts, long blue or black jeans pants and wore sombreros. They all seem to be hands workers or are engaged in manual labor jobs. They spoke very loudly as if trying to display their masculinity, it somewhat reminds me of the way men in my country speak. They spoke about their weekend plans and meeting up in the evening after work to have a drink.

A Hispanic lady who seems to be in her forties walks in and tells Wayne the waiter she is here to pick up her order. Him and her converse for like five minutes as she waits for the food. She orders a medium size cup of horchata and pays for the food.

A Caucasian man who I believe is in his fifties walks in and approaches the counter. He wore a double pocket plaid style shirts and long jeans like the guys I mentioned earlier. What kind of scared me about this guy was that he carried an exposed nine millimeter hand gun around his waist along with a knife. I didn’t look at him much because I’m not I gun fanatic.

On the table beside me were two women. We’ll call them Lisa and Sue. They wore formal attires which leads me to believe that they work at some sort of business. They were both having gorditas , minute maid and coke respectively. Both spoke in English and were discussing women stuff to be precise.

The drive thru seemed to be as busy as the restaurant as well. There was a long line of cars outside.

On another table was a couple who seem to be regulars at the restaurant. They sat across from each other and seemed to be flirting and making fun of each other. Both seem to be in their late twenties. The guy gets up and walks over to the counter for their orders. He makes fun of Wayne the waiter while he was at it, and tells him to add extra pepper sauce on his food. They spoke in Spanish to each other.

What was a bit different about the customers in the restaurant was that this older demographic of people who are present at lunch time rarely glanced at their phones.

Two tables away from me were a family of five. They were the only nuclear family in the restaurant. The family consisted of mom, dad, the eldest child who was a boy and two younger girls. The eldest son seems to be around 8 years old and the two girls five and four years old respectively.    This family seemed to be having the most fun in the restaurant. They were in good spirits sharing both jokes and also food with each other. Their table was filled with a variety of different dishes and drinks.

It was time for me to leave so I emptied my trey and headed back home. What an enjoyable Friday afternoon.