Once again, a Monroe icon has its cafe
By Leslie Moriarty
Herald Writer
MONROE — They lovingly call themselves two fat ladies and a tall, skinny blonde.
But really they are three energetic women who own and operate the Red Barn, the Acoustic Connections Cafe and Fried Red Potatoes catering.
"We’re like family," said Paula Andrew, owner of the catering business. "And we can bicker like family, too. Sometimes that’s what the locals come in for. Just to see us argue."
That’s not the only reason, however, as the Red Barn has been there since 1904. Although it has changed through the years, the barn on U.S. 2 at the east end of town is considered historic by most. Today, it serves as a quick stop for gasoline and groceries.
"Everybody knows the Red Barn," said owner Heidi Gomes, who with her husband, Don, have had the business for 10 years.
Recently, a new cafe opened inside the Red Barn. That cafe, Acoustic Connections, serves pastries and sandwiches daily and offers music on Friday and Saturday evenings.
It was the brainstorm of Lori Andulsky, who previously worked at the Red Barn as a bakery manager.
"We moved away to Minnesota for a few years," she said. "There was a small cafe there near where we lived. I thought to myself if I ever get the chance, I want to have a place like that."
The chance came her way after she moved back to Monroe and learned that Fried Red Potatoes, the cafe that was operating in the Red Barn, had closed.
After wearing down, operating the cafe and a catering business, Andrew decided to close Fried Red Potatoes last May and carry on her cooking as a catering business only. She used the kitchen, but the cafe sat empty until Andulsky opened Acoustic Connections this fall.
"It seemed like just the right thing," Andulsky said. "Food and music connect people. What I’m trying to do is offer a warm atmosphere where that can happen."
She makes all her breads and pastries from scratch and prepares fresh homemade soups every day, too. Favorites are her clam chowder and dark Bavarian bread.
She hopes, too, to be able to reopen the grill and offer the Red Barn Burger. And she wants local musicians, comedians and even those with original poetry to sign up for upcoming weekend slots.
Meanwhile, Andrew, who began in the restaurant business by owning the local Toshi’s Teriyaki, caters the rotary and chamber meetings, weddings, meetings at Valley General Hospital and at the Everett Clinic.
Her specialty, no doubt, is her garlic prime rib.
"It’s one of the things I’m known for," she said. "But everything I do is a special recipe, and I don’t open cans. Everything is fresh."
Closing the cafe portion of her business last year was a hard decision, Andrew said.
"But I was working myself into the ground, and I was stressed out," she said. "Even Heidi told me I couldn’t go on like that much longer."
When she closed the cafe, she decided to do catering under the same name.
"The first time my husband made me Fried Red Potatoes, I asked him what they were," she said. "That was 20 years ago, and I knew the minute I heard it, that that was what I would name my business when the day came to open one."
She even ordered a clock with the name printed on the face, just to encourage her to keep dreaming of owning a restaurant.
While the catering is keeping Andrew’s dream alive, and while the cafe is keeping Andulsky’s dream blooming, Gomes wonders how she ended up owning a big red barn on a busy corner in a small Western Washington town.
"The real reason I’m here is the community," she said. "We are customer oriented. We want to have what people need.
"And you can get just about anything here from gas in your car, to stamps to even a homemade donut that’s 10 times better than those Krispy Kremes."
You can call Herald Writer Leslie Moriarty at 425-339-3436
or send e-mail to moriarty@heraldnet.com.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
