Erik Behind the Bar

When you work the early shift at a neighborhood bar, time can pass pretty slowly. On just such an afternoon at McGrath's, Drew (a good friend) and I were chatting when he happened to notice a cribbage board, tucked away in one of the shelves of the back-bar. I mentioned that my mother had taught me to play, and that I spent hours and hours in my childhood playing the game with my sister and parents. It was the same with him, and so, for old time's sake, we decided to play a game.

It was so much fun, that we made it a regular thing, and we began to keep score of our game totals. As of this writing, he's beating me twenty-seven games to eight. I have decided that this is due to his excessive skill at the game, rather than my lack thereof.

In any case, Drew's brother (Eric, not to be confused with me, Erik) came into the pub one day and found us playing. So when I got busy, around 4:30pm, it was brother against brother on the cribbage board!

As more and more patrons noticed our game, we realized that we had enough players to run a small tournament! We scheduled the first one for Thursday, December 20th, 2007. We had seven people, and it was a blast! I looked up how to run a double-elimination tournament, so each player is guaranteed at least two games. We had so much fun that it has become a weekly event at McGrath's. We even managed to make it through the holidays without missing a week!

So if you play Cribbage, or even if you don't, I'd like to invite you, dear reader, out to McGrath's this coming Thursday, January 17th, 2008, for our fifth weekly tournament! Don't worry if you can't make it on such short notice: it looks like we'll be having cribbage tournaments for quite some time to come! We begin at 7:00 pm. See you there!

I've been given a shift at The Hobnob! I've been filling in at the place off and on for almost a month, and I guess I've finally made the cut! It's a little pub on Park Street, with American Tapas on the menu and more board games than you can shake a stick at. As usual, I decided to shoot for a job at this bar because it is one of my favorite places to hang out.

This will be my first regular experience with food service and I couldn't have finer teachers. The owner and his wife each have years of experience in the restaurant and bar industries, so I'm sure to learn a ton of vital information.

Thanks Allison for being so patient with me while I was in training. Nicole, you are an inspiration behind the bar! Amy, I really appreciate the feedback: Keep it coming! Thanks Krystal, for the sunshine and dishes. You make me feel like part of the family. Thanks Alicia for being such a team player. Most importantly, thanks to Mike for taking a chance on a guy with less than six months' experience!

I'll be working Saturdays and Sundays, from 10am to 5pm. That means you can come out and enjoy the best Eggs Benedict in the world at our Champagne Brunch (10am to 230pm, Sat and Sun), and sip on some of our brilliant signature cocktails! Wish me luck!