"For some people, like it or not, that's their reality," said Ellis, 36. The Kentucky native said he started selling drugs after he dropped out of college. We all care about what we’re doing.Fourteen years ago, Brandon Ellis hit rock bottom.Įllis, then in his early 20s, was facing felony drug charges, he said, with the possibility of spending significant time behind bars. “This business was a risk getting into, but the people who work here have made it very easy for me. “You’ve got to have a passion for it,” she said. The Chatterbox has come a long way, but Mindak believes it can keep getting better. The Twinkie dessert is another brainchild of customers, said Mindak, who always has her ears open to new ideas. “By the time you get done eating it, you feel like you’ve eaten a dozen doughnuts.” “It’s very rich, like eating a cream doughnut,” Mindak said. Now, Chatterbox offers sandwiches, salads and a couple of unique desserts. While all of the usual suspects are available for breakfast - two eggs, a plate-sized pancake, sausage patty, two pieces of bacon, hash browns and a biscuit go for $5.25 - lunch used to consist of just burgers and hot dogs. That task is becoming a bit more difficult as the Chatterbox continues to expand its menu. “A lot of people who come in, I can have their drink ready for them by the time they sit down,” England said.
Since Mindak took over, England has watched the crowds grow and the regulars show up a little more often. Angel England worked at Chatterbox for the old owners. The waitresses know what they’re doing, too. Lunch cook Lisa Manders has 20 years of kitchen experience. Gil Armstrong, the breakfast cook, has worked with food for 14 years. Anyone can hang up a shirt as long as they sign it, Mindak said.īehind the kitchen doors, experience reigns supreme. Above the sign and around the ceiling, dozens of T-shirts from local contractors, businesses and a few sports teams hang up as a form of advertisement.
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“They showed us how to make homemade biscuits.”Ībove the kitchen, a sign reminds patrons that everything is cooked to order. “The customers taught us how to make cornbread,” she said. Four years in, the Bethlehem resident still doesn’t have a trace of a Southern accent. Mindak ran a successful bakery and deli in Illinois, but she didn’t know much about Southern cooking. When they found work was hard to come by, they took their future in their own hands and bought the downtown eatery. Mindak and her family moved to Georgia about four years ago with their life savings and a prayer. “We listen to our customers and learn from them.” “We work really hard to keep up our good reputation,” said Sandy Mindak, an Illinois transplant who bought the café last year. The longtime staple in town has changed locations and owners, but the restaurant still fills up for breakfast and lunch. Much like the café in Garrison Keillor’s narratives during “Prairie Home Companion,” many Winder residents start their days and take their breaks at the Chatterbox Café on East Athens Street.
Homemade biscuits have that kind of effect. Then the food arrives, and the conversations quiet down. A few mothers complain about how their kids don’t listen and hide school work from them. A few guys discuss Georgia football and Mark Richt.
Two middle-age women talk about their mamas’ health.
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Couples, co-workers and old friends fill the tables as sunlight fills the restaurant through the old storefront windows.Ĭhatter bounces off the bright walls and hardwood floor and drowns out the TV in the corner. WINDER - The Chatterbox Café lives up to its name during breakfast hours.
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