It was lunchtime at Paseo City Market when a group of young, college-age women walked into the restaurant.
The owner, Marissa, greeted them warmly, and the two women immediately began discussing what they had in store for them.
For the past year, Marisa had been working at the restaurant and her co-workers were happy to welcome her back to their neighborhood.
The restaurant was always full and always bustling, with customers arriving every five minutes.
The food was good, the drinks were good, and Marissa said she liked the decor of the place.
Then Marissa noticed a new customer entering the restaurant, and she turned around and saw a man dressed in all black and wearing a white T-shirt and jeans.
It was the man from the neighborhood, she recalled thinking.
The man told Marissa that he needed a place to stay and wanted to know what to do.
It would be a good place for him to eat, she said.
The two women got in touch with Marissa’s husband, who had recently moved to Kansas City from California.
Marissa asked him if he would be willing to rent her a room for a few days.
The next morning, she drove her husband to the city to meet with the landlord.
He said he was a realtor who had worked with Marisa in the past, and he could provide her with a room that would be in good condition for her to move in.
He also asked if she could bring her children.
Marisa and her husband said yes, and on the way home they talked about what they wanted to eat and how to get it.
The landlord said he would send a bill for rent and the couple could have a meal before moving in.
It seemed to Marissa and her wife that the owner was the landlord of their dreams.
Marissas family had always lived in the neighborhood and had been regulars there for years.
They had been so happy when the owner returned, Marissa said, and they could not wait to move into the new home.
The new owners of the house, she and her family said, seemed to care about the neighborhood as much as they did about the restaurant that served them and their family.
And they made it clear that they were very happy about the opportunity to move back in with the people they loved.
They also offered the couple a lot of room and food for their guests.
“I just feel so grateful,” Marissa Marissa told USA Today.
She said she is grateful that she and the other women from her neighborhood were welcomed back.
The women, who have been coming back to Paseos home market for a couple of years, said they have never been more excited about coming back and getting back to the neighborhood.
“It feels like we’re a part of something,” Marisa said.
“We are a part [of] this community.”
The neighborhood, for the most part, is happy with the new owner, according to Marissah Marissa.
“The people are welcoming, the food is good, it’s clean,” she said, noting that the restaurant is clean and looks like it was designed by a professional chef.
The owners of Paseas Ponce Market and the Union Market said they are thankful for the support and kindness of their community.
The men have not yet commented on the incident.
Mariskas landlord, Mark L. Schubert, told USA TODAY that he was proud of the community and appreciates the positive response.
“They are welcome to come to Ponce and enjoy their time here,” he said.
He added that he is looking forward to seeing the owners of all of the markets in Kansas City, Kansas, in the coming weeks.
For more information about the new owners, see: Pasees Ponce, Kansas City to welcome more family and community members to Pases home market, by Marissa Ponce-Marrillen, USA Today, February 18, 2018.
Maris owners plan to stay in Ponce The new owner of Ponce Markets Ponce markets plans to stay at the new property for at least a couple more months.
In the meantime, the family has already made arrangements for the new landlord to stay on the property for as long as they can.
“There is a lot going on with the owner,” Marissis son, Aaron, said.
It’s a shame that the family was never able to come back, Aaron said, but that he hopes to come home someday.
“For me, it was always about moving forward and staying in Kansas, and I really want to come see Ponce again,” Aaron Marisses said.
Ponce’s Ponce family plans to move to Kansas.
For updates on this story, check out the Kansas City Star, the Kansas Gazette, the KCET News, and USA Today at the bottom of this story.