Plaza Patatta – A Secret Hatch

By Nanda Roep

Illustrated by Silvester

Translated by Anneliet Bannier

Who is Who

This inquisitive young lady is the family’s oldest child. That means that she is entitled to the best room and that she always gets the largest portion of fries. Doesn’t it? Anyway, that’s what she thinks… She is an excellent skater and she thinks her own jokes are hilarious. Her name is Luna.

This little girl is the second and also the youngest child of the family. She is the smallest, which means that she is the favorite. Yep, that’s the way it is. Anyway, that’s what she thinks! Her big sister doesn’t scare her at all with her stupid pranks, because this smarty pants always sees right through her. Her name is Lisa.

This big bossomed lady is Mrs. Richardson – Mommy Marian. She is the pride of the family, because Marian is an opera singer. Not an ordinary one, oh no, she is a real star, performing all over the world. That means that she is away a lot, but that doesn’t matter, because her daughters Luna and Lisa are old and wise enough to look after themselves.

And this is their favorite: Daddy Howard Richardson. The only man in the house. Since his wife is so famous, he does not have to work. Instead he likes to go windsurfing, horseback riding, likes to build stuff, play on his Gamestation, as well as working on his many secret inventions. He calls his daughters ‘cutie-buns’ – but really, he shouldn’t be doing that, should he? Anyway, his girls don’t seem to mind too much…

The four of them recently moved to Woodford. They are living in a large farm house on a big piece of land. And they are going to throw a big party there.

1. A Strange Noise

How come they get to live in such a big house?

Well, sometimes you just need to be a little lucky. They inherited it unexpectedly. A lawyer came to the door telling them that Howard Richardson (Daddy, that is) had a great aunt. When she passed away, all her possessions were left to her great nephew, her only family. He got, as the notary called it, her ‘colossal’ farm, situated at the edge of the forest near Woodford.

‘Woodford?’ Daddy was surprised. ‘That’s were my parents used to take me for our vacations.’

Mommy was home from her tour that day. She was so happy, she kept shouting and dancing for joy. We are going to move. We are going to move!’ she sang with her strong operatic voice.

For weeks Daddy had been thinking about what he was going to do with the farm. It was so big. The barn had been empty for years, but he did not want to put in dairy cows. ‘With cows you always have to get up really early,’ he said. So he thought of something else.

‘I’ll turn the barn into a garage!’ he said at first. ‘We can park old, classic cars there. And I will wax them all day!’

But the next morning he said dreamily: ’There is enough room to build a theater!’

And not long after that: ‘I’ll turn it into an amusement park!With real trains and boats!’

But when the moving van pulled up, he knew what he was going to do. ‘It will be a restaurant,’ he suddenly said. ‘I will start a children’s restaurant, so my cutie-butts will like it too.’

‘Hooray,’ Mommy sang from China. She heard the news over the phone. ‘What a fun idea!’

But Luna frowned. ‘Hey Dad?’ She cleared her throat a few times before asking: ‘You can’t cook, remember?’ There was a reason why their freezer was filled with pizza. Every week the fridge was stuffed with instant meals. And every now and then grandma Richardson would come to cook for them. She would mutter that it was unheard of, a man taking care of his daughters all by himself. Grandma thought that Marian should have given up her singing career so her son could start his own business. ‘It is unheard of,’ she would often say. Luna and Lisa usually answered that their mother wasn’t unheard of but instead was heard a lot. Grandma just didn’t think that was funny.

When Mommy was home, they would eat fries. Because she loved fries. With two corn dogs each, because she could not get them when she was away.

Daddy laughed at Luna’s concerns. ‘Maybe I am not such a good cook right now, but I can learn. And what I am really good at, is throwing parties! That’s the first thing I am going to do. To celebrate the opening of our restaurant.’

‘Great!’ Lisa clapped her hands.

Daddy gave her a hug. ‘All the children in Woodford are invited. So they can get to know you. There are bound to be some cute boys, haha!’

Giggling, Lisa punched him. He knows she thinks boys are stupid.

‘But Dad…’ Luna frowned. ‘You really cannot open a restaurant when you can’t cook.’

‘Oh, anyone can cook. I’m a fast learner, I’m sure. It will be wonderful in Plaza Patatta.’

‘What?’ the girls shouted at the same time.

Daddy laughed. ‘It’s a name Mommy invented when she was in Italy, and really craved our fries. Plaza Patatta means ‘the place where there are fries’. It is spelled with a ‘z’, but you pronounce it ‘plasa’.’

‘Funny,’ Lisa nodded. ‘Plaza Patatta. Sounds good.’

Luna still looked worried.

In the moving van on their way to Woodford, Daddy started thinking of his first dish.

‘How about lasagne with peanut butter?’ he asked.

Even the driver of the van made a disgusted face.

Lisa started giggling again. But Luna sighed. ‘If the children in Woodford hated the food, they would never let me hear the end of it.’

It’s spring break now and Daddy is busy preparing. In a few days the restaurant will open. All of Woodford is invited. Luna is sitting in her room with Lisa, she is worried. She hasn’t seen any balloons or streamers yet. Just dust and wood shavings. What if the restaurant isn’t finished on time?

That is what she is thinking about when suddenly she hears a strange noise…

2. You’re Scaring Me!

‘Quiet! Do you hear that?’

Lisa shakes her head. She is leafing through an old comic book. ‘I don’t hear anything.’

But Luna holds her breath. She is listening attentively. ‘It is…’ she whispers, ‘as if someone is scratching on the wall outside. No, as if someone is scratching on the floor from underneath it.’

‘Don’t say such scary things!’ Lisa gives her sister a shove. ‘It’s just Dad!’ She starts to walk down the stairs. 'Let’s find out what he is doing.’

There is no banister yet, so it’s a little dangerous. Dad sanded the steps, so now they are very slippery. He will have to paint them and make sure they are not so slippery. But that can wait, because the party will be held downstairs only.

*

'Hey Dad!’ Luna calls. ‘What are you doing?’

Daddy is sitting on the floor wearing overalls. He is scribbling something on a piece of paper.

‘Hey darlings. What do you think of a hot sandwich with salmon, broccoli and ketchup?’

‘Are you kidding?’

‘No no. For the opening. It has to be a little fancy, doesn’t it?’

‘Yuck.’

‘Not good?’

‘No!’