Waiter to the Rich and Shameless: Confessions of a Five-Star Beverly Hills Server by Paul Hartford

Author:Paul Hartford
Language: eng
Format: mobi, azw, epub
Publisher: Hillhurst Literary
Published: 2014-12-11T06:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 12

THE HANGOVER

One good thing about a restaurant being run by a bunch of penny-pinching schmucks who won’t pay overtime is that you can always count on getting two days off every week. They do that not out of consideration, but solely to avoid paying time and a half. Mr. P was always thoughtful about scheduling our two days off in a row. And with all the pent-up stress we’d been accumulating, Jens and I try to make the most of our weekly vacations.

Jens contacted the Maloof brothers, whom he had served many times, and booked us into their hotel in Vegas, the Palms. They gave us a great deal on a suite. It was the week of the Nightclub and Bar convention and we procured tickets to the trade show through our liquor suppliers. We ended up being invited to every sponsored party having to do with the show. When we arrived, we found the convention center set up as a playground for sinners and we promptly deployed ourselves. With free booze everywhere, extreme bartending shows, and gorgeous brand models like Victoria Silvstedt at the Patron booth, we could hardly contain ourselves. Speaking to her in my best Swedish, I tried to scam my way into hooking up with her but all I ended up with was a Patron business card. The place was like a great big orgy of tasting booths featuring different kinds of booze and wine, lighting systems, DJ and karaoke set ups, plastic ice cubes that blink inside your glass; you name it, it was there. Anything to lure you into this great escape from reality and we were all in. To say we were like sailors on shore leave would be an insult to sailors. We were more like pit bulls let off the chain, hungry for whatever Las Vegas had to offer.

After the convention center closed for the night, we headed over to the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino for the Bacardi brand party. Bacardi owns Dewar’s, Grey Goose, and seventeen other brands, and what a party it was! I think Lynyrd Skynyrd played in a new lineup but I can’t remember. Tons of free booze and gift bags filled with swag at every table. Jens and I were already buzzed and completely electrified by the crazy level of adrenaline in the air. The Cricket Room’s classic elegance was a world away from the raucous Wild West atmosphere of Vegas – exactly what we wanted – and not a word about work had been mentioned since the previous night. We needed the escape desperately. We sure as hell work hard, so we took the opportunity to play as hard as hell. It was the only way we could let out all the accumulated stress, tension, and frustration that the Cricket Room laid on us day after day. I considered it a key to my survival.

My confidence soared as my eyes fixated on a vivacious long-haired blonde in a tight, full-length, burnt orange dress.

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