A day Rough Habits in the life of Sports Bar & Cafe
It’s 10am; the door unlocks, the alarm is turned off, staff roll in to clean from the night before.
11am arrives; it’s time to open the doors to the public. But today isn’t any old day – it’s Pub Crawl!
With so much to do, the check list begins; close the street, bring in the truck, Portaloos arrive, Ingrams drop off the bins, fencing goes up, as does the marquee.
One look skywards sees the clouds roll in; not what we need! Out of all the days, why today? As the first shower passes, a heavier one follows.
2pm has come so fast, we’re not ready. A quick run around to get tarps has us in a panic.
3pm; the band sets up, plays a few cover songs, and all of a sudden the first bike arrives.
Security take your place, bar staff ready, we are go!
Like the running of the bulls, a horde of people files in one by one, dressed certainly not to impress but simply enjoying one of Hawera’s trademark days.
As the eclectic gathering of people rushes through, the lines at the bar grow; it looks more like a scene at an ACDC concert than a side street in Hawera.
5pm; The Chosen Few start and the place is rocking. As the showers ease, Regent Street is now a giant dance floor, the light fades, and one look around sees at least 1000 people having a great time.
8pm; the police have arrived – party over! As the band keeps playing, the party goers are none the wiser that this will be the last time they will witness anything like this again.
They travelled from all over the world to be a part of one of Hawera’s most iconic events.
As the doors shut for the night, the streets are cleaned and the stories have already started to be told; yet another chapter in the book of Rough Habits has been written.
Experience is the key to Rough Habits’ success – with keeping staff turnover to a minimum, it has allowed people to feel welcome and appreciated and a big part of why they keep coming back.
Adrienne Cudby’s 35 years in the industry makes her one of the most experienced hosts in Hawera. Mary’s 20 years, Lisa and Brent with 12 years, and Nicola, Fallon and
Margaret all having done more than five years – it just shows a level of commitment that can’t be beat.
To the thousands of people who have come through the doors, we thank each and every one who has been a part of the journey and helped share in the story so far.
Although the ending is yet to be written, we look forward to experiencing the high and lows and all that is to come in the years ahead.