JACKSON, MI-- An unfilled chef position is forcing Anna’s Porch Café to close permanently.
The café at 401 N. Mechanic St. inside Anna’s Gifts and Home Décor, will close May 15, after seeing generations of Jackson families at its tables in its 23 years in business.
Chef John Jones is leaving the restaurant after 10 years to start a new chapter in his life, owner Anna Kusterer said. She advertised for a new chef, but had no luck.
“We would have stayed open, but nobody responded,” Kusterer said.
Issues with hiring are not unique to Anna’s Porch Café, as restaurants across Michigan are struggling to find staff.
“I just figured, well, maybe this is a sign it’s time for me to retire,” Kusterer said.
The pandemic has been difficult for her business, Kusterer said. Both the restaurant and store have been largely run by her, her boyfriend, her son Jason and Jones and his wife.
Anna’s Gifts and Home Décor has also struggled, as the pandemic has moved shopping online. It will remain open, however, after the café closes, Kusterer said.
The café and the store have been a huge part of Kusterer’s life, as the store has been open longer-- 36 years, she said.
Kusterer recalls her son and daughter walking to the store after school, where they would sit down on a small couch, enjoy a snack and wait for Kusterer to finish work. When she started out, her son was 8 years old. Now he helps run the store.
Kusterer decided to open the café after another Jackson breakfast café closed. Through the years, her customers-turned-friends have supported her financially, as well as personally, she said.
“When my husband passed away three and a half years ago I probably wouldn’t have made it without my morning crowd,” she said.
Those she sits with in the morning are the same people she invites over for breakfast on her day off. They’re not just customers, they’re friends she will really miss, Kusterer said.
After Kusterer announced the cafe’s closure in a post to Facebook on May 7, the restaurant received an outpouring of support on social media and in person.
The next weekend was so busy that the café was running out of prep food by noon on Saturday. In the aftermath, she decided to give her chef a break by closing May 9-10, while planning to reopen Tuesday, May 11 for the rest of the final week.
“If people come out they’ve got to be very, very patient,” Kusterer said. “Everybody wants their last sandwich, their last tomato soup, their last crab salad, and we’ll try to accommodate people but they will have to be very patient.”
Customers expressed the café closing as a huge loss to the Jackson community via Facebook comments. Many also reminisced about good times spent there with their family, friends and colleagues.
“I have enjoyed many meals with friends at your café,” one customer wrote. “It will be such a loss to the community. Thank you for all you have done for Jackson.”
Kusterer wants to stay strong, but comments like that from her customers have brought tears. She not only wants to thank her customers, but her long-time waitress Susie Drew.
Drew worked at another Jackson restaurant before it closed and has been with Kusterer throughout the restaurant’s 23 years.
“Everybody knows her, and she knows everybody by name. She asks about their kids,” Kusterer said.
While Anna’s Gifts and Home Décor will remain open, closing the restaurant has been very difficult, Kusterer said.
“I’ve been trying to figure out how I could keep it going and I just can’t,” Kusterer said. “I think I’ve done good for 23 years. I think I’ve done good for 36 years. But somehow you feel like a little failure too and I know I’m not.”
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‘Nobody responded.’ Unanswered job listing forces Anna’s Porch Café to close after 23 years - MLive.com
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