Character can't be taught

We had agreed to meet after work for a drink. I hadn't seen my friend in a while and we wanted to catch up. In days gone by, I used to get off work at 2 a.m. and “meeting up” after work had a whole different meaning. These days, with my current employment, I leave at a much more reasonable hour. My grandmother used to say, “Nothing good happens after midnight,” and she might have been right. But “good” and “fun” can often be polar opposites.

There were two bars about a block away from each other. One was crowded and one wasn't.

Since we were there to chat, we opted for the slower one — the much slower one. I arrived first and sat down at the empty bar. Well, not entirely empty, there was one guy at the very far end. Besides the couple at a table canoodling, it was just the four of us.

I say “just” the four of us because there were no bartenders behind the bar. I sat there for a few minutes before what I assumed was the back storage room door loudly unlocked and both of the bartenders came out.

One of the bartenders walked down to the other end of the bar, to that lone guy. The other walked right by me to begin washing glasses.

I once had a chef tell me that his customers were “lucky to have him cooking for them.”

“Can I get a beer?” I asked, after it was apparent that no one was going to ask me.

“Uh, sure,” he said.

I selected what turned out to be a canned beer. The bartender popped it open, set it down in front of me and began to walk away.

“I'm sorry, but can I get a glass?” I asked.

He plopped one down on the bar and began to walk away again.

“Can I get a cold one?” I asked after feeling the warmness of a glass right out of the dishwasher.

He seemed to be in an awful hurry to go down to the other end of the bar.

We've all been in that coffee shop, bar or restaurant where the staff are having a good time with each other — a really good time. Having worked in the service business for as long as I have, I can tell you that is all fine. But you also have to do your job. And the best way to do both is to involve the customer in the fun.