The TV show 'The Bear' shows the hardship and trauma of working in restaurants, but Season 2 also shows why restaurant people love what they do.
One snowy night last February, as I was eating dinner at Le Select, a buzzy French restaurant in Chicago, the volume in the room filled with chefs and restaurant industry people suddenly spiked. I looked up to see the cast ofsettling into a banquette.
Once again, I was sitting upright and unblinking and on the verge of tears, but this time from joy. I've had that same opportunity to give someone a meal they'll remember forever. Years ago, I was a host at Carlucci, a somewhat upscale Italian restaurant in Chicago that attracted a roomful of celebrities and stylish people each night. We were accustomed to having Harrison Ford and Paul Newman in when they were filming a movie in town.
It was one of the pleasures of my working life to mark them as VIPs on the books, and then escort them to the best table in the restaurant: number 52, the booth across from the fireplace that divided our two dining rooms. I seated them, then returned a minute later with two glasses of sparkling wine. "Oh no, we didn't ..." the guy started to protest, and I knew he was already worried about the bill.
Tony cut me off. “Chandra, are you kidding me?! This couple is not going to pay for anything!” There it was — that instinctual joy and knee-jerk reaction a restaurant person has when they find out they can create a memorable experience for a guest. I called John, told him he was set with a reservation and not to worry, even though I knew he had no idea what to expect.
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