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MA: Going back to the Tokyo Cafe, what, what was the atmosphere like in the cafe when you were working? What was the atmosphere like?

SE: Oh, let's see. It was, the boss was a Issei man, and his wife was the head waitress. And there was another Japanese Issei lady working there. And I being the only young one, why, I don't know, I was, lots of customers wanted me to wait on them. And I know it made the Issei lady unhappy sometimes, and also they all, I always got the better tips, because, yeah, they, men did tip the young girls more. [Laughs] So I always had a pocket full of money. But the one, one bad thing was my boss was not good at paying, and I never got a real salary, 'cause he knew I was getting money from tips. So...

MA: Who were some of the other waiters and waitresses? Were they also Niseis?

SE: No. For a short time, they had another Nisei girl, but she was really part-time. And then, see, the lady was the boss's mistress, and her son was one of the waiters, and so... yeah, that was all they needed.

MA: So in terms of the clientele there, so it sounds like it was pretty racially...

SE: Diverse, uh-huh.

MA: Diverse. So was it a pretty jovial atmosphere?

SE: I think so, yes.

MA: And I think a lot of it is, was, well, because I knew the, many of the customers, and then with my brother being in there, too, why, it was quite open, and it was fun to go to work. You know, I didn't dread going to work. Some, some days it was long, but as a whole...

MA: So can you describe maybe the neighborhood around the cafe and around the hotel? What businesses were there?

SE: Well, on Jackson Street there was a Japanese shoe store, and then there were two, you know, the Higo Ten Cent store, and then they had another Jackson Street Ten Cent store. I don't know, they seemed like they didn't have any exciting business, but then it, that big, big ten cent store, I think the people owned the whole building and everything, so I guess to them it wasn't that important to be busy. But the Issei lady that was working there, she worked there for many years.

MA: At Higo Ten Cent store?

SE: Yeah, uh-huh.

MA: There was also the Jackson Street Cafe. Was that a pretty popular one?

SE: Oh, yes, that was very popular. It was popular... you know, the clientele was entirely different.

MA: How so?

SE: See, because the Tokyo Cafe had the blacks, and the people from the streets there, but Jackson Cafe was a little bit high-class, and they had Japanese businessmen going there.

MA: So you could see a real difference between the two.

SE: Oh, yeah, they're a little different, uh-huh.

MA: So your brother worked for China Cab, right?

SE: Uh-huh.

MA: Who were the other drivers that he would work with in the cab company?

SE: Well, he had some... they had some Chinese men, and then they had this one, I don't remember if he worked then. I don't know, his last name is Nakamura, they called him "Rhino." Have you heard of him?

MA: So Rhino was also a driver?

SE: Uh-huh. And then on the corner they had the Arizumi Drugstore, and it was a Japanese, the owner was a young girl. But she was older than my oldest brother, so she was quite old. And then her brother helped her at the drugstore. But my brother, my brother and this Joe Arizumi, they were gamblers, and sort of, you know, I think people in the neighborhood looked down on them as street kids, like.

MA: And maybe Tokyo Cafe was a hangout for them?

SE: Yes. Well, the drugstore was, too.

MA: Oh, the drugstore. What was, I guess, what was the nightlife like, I mean, around when it would be evening time, were there a lot of people walking around?

SE: I think so, yes, uh-huh. It was a noisy area. I think the restaurants were busy, but I worked 'til five o'clock or six o'clock, five o'clock, I think, but I didn't work the dinner shift, so I started in the morning, nine to five more or less.

MA: And how long did you work at the Tokyo Cafe?

SE: Goodness, I don't know how many years.

MA: So you started in maybe 1938 or '39?

SE: Probably. So it wasn't really that long, huh?

MA: Couple years?

SE: Probably so.

<End Segment 14> - Copyright © 2006 Densho. All Rights Reserved.