Donna's

Written by duckyGnome

Donna's differs from other taverns in the populous city of Solar the capital of the Kingdom of Solar in that this one is ran by an elderly widow with a silver tongue for lashing idiot patrons and paying customers alike. It is clear from the layer of dust that frequents most ledges and crevices of this establishment that the lady does not get around as well as she once did in the past. She can be seen many a days behind the bar serving up whiskeys, cocktails, and beers as if they were water. On most occassions one could even see a beverage of her own in the back on a ledge, the skewered cherries soaking up whatever amber liqour resides in the glass.
There isn't much to speak of for seating, a small quartet of tables that seat three or four crowd the middle of the main room, off to the side one would see two boothes, both of which are normally preoccupied by the local's younger denizens not of age yet to slide up to the bar and place orders, instead they are there to keep quiet and out of sight, their guardians are likely not far off at the bar. The rest of the room is occupied by the large bar that curves around, encasing the barkeep on one side, side entrances on both sides provide the elder keep her exit points.

The Building

Once a building designed to store grains it is an older styled silo, square flattish base that sits a story and a half tall with a four story cylinder rising out of the middle of the base's top. The outside is faded red paint chipping in the glaring rays of the sun and weathered in places to the grays of aged wood from the various elements that the tavern encounters. It lain in decay for several decades before a family bought it and used it as a storage unit for the locals in the area, many of the locals were poverished and much of the silo's cylindrical tower is likely to be littered with items of some kind of worth to someone. Sometime during the decades of storage facilitation the family decided to once again close shop leaving many without their belongings, Donna and her late husband James came to purchase the silo and turned it into a bar.
Like most older buildings built in the early years of the Kingdom of Solar this one has a basement that spreads out the dimensions of the building that sits there, this basement is well furnished and clearly holds the secrets to Donna's life before and during the establishment's existence as a tavern. It is clear that the basement is the current home of Donna.
The first two "stories" of the silo were retrofitted to basic rooms, four in total with centralized bath in the middle. These two floors are the only ones rented out to people looking to room for a night. The rest of the floors above remain as storage, many of them crammed from floor to ceiling with old items from previous storage unit renters that have never returned to pick up their goods.
The area surrounding the silo turned tavern is pretty sparse, clearly Donna hasn't paid anyone to come around and feed the threadbare grass front, the back is home to a lean-to that acts as a stable for the few horses that do require a night's stay -- just don't expect the staff to wait on your steed that's your own damn problem there. A trough runs the front right of the building, nothing of particular note on that.

Barkeep and Staff

Donna's staff is fairly skeletal, unlike most of the other larger and upper crust venues, this establishment caters to the locals and those travellers who just need a place to stay that is comfortable and inviting. Kind of like grandma's home... If grandma's home served the neighborhood drunks with booze and bread crusts. On a good day a visitor might see a grandchild or two running empties out back, or trying to wipe down the tables and chairs of the establishment. Most days though the bar is just manned by Donna herself. There is suppose to be a chef out in the kitchen but he is usually found at the bar himself enjoying some kind of beverage.
Jimmy is one of two grand kids that is most likely to be found around the bar, usually he is seen trying to pull crates of heavy bottles, mugs, and/or tankards to the back kitchen so that they can be cleaned and replaced behind the bar. The mop of brown hair on his head falls repeatedly in front of his equally brown colored eyes. Even with the glasses he wears the scrawny boy is clearly seen squinting. If one was to watch him it is clear his mind wanders, his face twitches and he makes odd squeaking noises as he works. If you ask him what he had ambitions for in the future be prepared to be either bombarded with all kinds of outlandishly lofty goals or a grunt of 'I dunno', really depends on his mood at the time. Jimmy is not a tall kid and he looks to be a few years younger than he truly is.
Janice is the other grand kid usually seen around the bar, unlike Jimmy she is about average height and weight for her age. Her brown hair isn't nearly as moppish or dark, instead it falls to around shoulder length in loose waves and curls. Her eyes are a green and she could tell you her future would consist of helping others, or much like Jimmy an equally unconvincing 'I dunno.' Janice is the one usually seen bringing the bread crusts or other meals out that might be ordered. Most times though its Janice one would see dusting and cleaning tables, chairs, ledges, etc of dust.
Bert is the hefty man found at the bar enjoying himself an ale or grog, whichever is available that day. His dark hair is curly, his facial hair matches his hair color but comes in sparse. If one was to approach the man from behind they would see the swirl of a balding spot in the dead middle of his crown, clearly herditary as one could see the same swirl on the back of Jimmy's head. Bert looks a lot like Donna, and it becomes evident as one watches the interactions between the two that Bert is Donna's son, apparently though not her only child though, the other two are mentioned by name only and never appear at the tavern though.
Donna is an older lady, well over a half century but don't tell her that. She doesn't need to be reminded that her body is getting frailer everyday. She could be seen counting coins faster than most younger barkeeps in the city, a swish of her thumb against her flat tongue provides the only lubrication she needs as she flings coins into piles and stacks. The way she holds the coins it is clear this lady knows her way around a card table. Her black hair is kept in curls and isn't afraid to admit she goes to a hair dresser up the round every couple of weeks to keep it as dark and well kept as she has it. Her dark complexion is not at taunt as it once would have been as a child, the jowls of age are clearing represented and Donna has no care to hide them. Her eyes flash with a youth long since gone, they echo the greens of Janice's.
Donna though is entirely willing to serve you a drink though and smile and laugh. She truly is everyone's grandma.

Wares and Fees

The accomodations at Donna's isn't perfect, its not high lavish or squalid pits, they are average but well used. As there are only eight total rooms the establishment has done what they can to accomodate groups. Each room can bunk up to four people, six if they have shorter members that are not afraid to squeeze in.
Room: 25gp per night
Storage: 1gp per day paid at the end of the Season

Meal of the Day (standard portion): 1cp
Meal of the Day (larger kin): 2cp

Beverage (standard drinks): 2cp
Beverage (mixed drink): 3cp
Beverage (import): 1sp
Beverage (grog -- brewed in house): 1cp

The Building
Barkeep and Staff
Wares and Fees

Type

Pub / Tavern / Restaurant