Floating Free

In true restaurant form, I have suddenly left BOTH of my jobs. I gave two weeks' notice at The Restaurant, with the watertight excuse that I will be heading off to Bordeaux to stomp grapes all summer. I had planned to stay on at The Bistro until I leave, especially since I'm moving just 5 blocks away on Thursday but with the sunny weather today and the fact that The Bistro has chosen to remain open tomorrow (Memorial Day) and I'm scheduled had a lot to do with my knee-jerk decision to leave.

It's not just the weather, though. I only went to work at The Bistro because the chef is amazing and my best guy pal is the head waiter. I didn't realize that it was an elephant graveyard for old, bitter waiters, and I'm just not there yet. The owners tell me they "really like the energy I bring to the place," and offered me more shifts a few weeks back, which I graciously declined. What really made me want to leave is an episode that happened on Thursday night. I was happily covering shifts this week (which meant I worked doubles all week) for a waiter on vacation, because I'm a nice person and a team player, and another waiter broke one of his fingers so there were just two of us.

I was the closer, which meant I came in at 6:30 and was supposed to stay until we stop seating (at 11pm). However, all of my tables were wrapped up and gone by 9:30 and I was absolutely exhausted. I asked the other waiter if he would mind closing, since he'd just been triple-sat and would be there until eleven, no question, anyway. His response, "Fuck no! I've been here since 4pm setting up this restaurant and I'm not closing!"

Not, "No, Restaurant Girl, I really don't want to stay that late. I'm pretty tired myself and you are the closer, after all."

Also, he'd been there since 5, not 4. And I know from personal experience that what he really did was put down about four knives, complain about having to be at work, eat most of the family meal before anyone else even saw what it was, and head over to the drugstore for a soda pop.

I would have closed for him had the situation been reversed. So, it's Carnaval, and I'm heading over to the Mission with some girlfriends, some roller skates, and a bottle of champagne to celebrate!