Interview 4: Ann

Description: Ann is a 42-year-old woman. She is Chinese American and describes herself as middle class. She is a small business owner of a sushi restaurant in St. Louis. She is a striking woman who walks with purpose and isn’t afraid to stare you in the eyes for extended periods of time.

The bolded text is my dialogue and everything else is the interviewee's.

What does community mean to you?

To me, community means those who support me and who I support in return. [Support in what way?]  Financially, at least partly. As a restaurant owner, I’m not expecting my friends and family to pay full price, but if they never come into my store I would take that to heart. [Why do you think that is?]  When you run a restaurant, unless you are in a very very well-off place, it is a full-time job. I am in my place of business for almost 14 hours a day almost every day of the week. It is more than just a job. It is an extension of where you live. And when the people closest to you don’t come and partake in that space- I just think it’s different. It’s an extension of me and they should want to participate in that.

Where did you find community during quarantine?/Did you find it at all?

Everything became pretty hard with the lockdowns and the new sanitation conditions. It’s hard enough to keep a food business open during the best of times. But it did let me know what people were there for me. I had lots of friends do curbside pickup orders when we were trying to get in the swing of things and leave generous tips. I remembered how much all the empty tables depress me. Our first year being open was pretty slow after the initial rush. I think has been the emptiest things have been since those days. 

What did these community moments look like?

Our loyal customers and friends who keep up with our website saw all our posts about how it is better for us to order through our own site and drivers instead of delivery services. That gives us more freedom and our profits aren’t eaten into- Ha! A pun. Knowing people are keeping up with us and listening to what we need even when we don’t see those people face to face was very reaffirming. 

Did you have different expectations on those moments than you would have pre-pandemic?

Yes. I didn’t say as much to them, but my friends and family began paying their full bill without me having to ask. That was very kind of them and was taken to heart!

Will community look different for you after the pandemic is over?

Hopefully, it will look as close as it can to life before the pandemic.