My daughter reminded me Tuesday afternoon that she had a volleyball-team party Tuesday night at Lovers Pizza, Casa Linda—as always we weren’t terribly prepared. Neither was the well-intending party planner who didn’t make a reservation for the team of ten-year-old girls and their parents — about thirty people altogether. As someone with close ties to the restaurant business, I cringed that the unsuspecting staff had to scramble to put together a table that took up the better part of the venue.
The staff quickly pulled together a kids’ table and a parents’ table smiling all the while. About halfway through the order taking, one parent requested separate checks. Separate checks are truly a bane of a waiter’s job. What’s worse mind you, the children and parents were at separate tables which made things more confusing. But the waiter didn’t flinch. (Sure, he probably cursed us under his breath all the way to the kitchen, but his showed no sign of irritation.) He was extremely patient with the girls who were … well, being little girls. They tugged at his sleeve while he was taking orders and asked him for refills on their caffeinated sodas … and he impressively took it all in stride. The food came out quickly for such a large order and it looked really good too. All I had was a dinner salad because I drank a double espresso at Starbucks before dinner (Yes, I’m aware my Starbucks boycott of last week failed. There just isn’t a White Rock Coffee at every corner) — the house dressing was very good. The portions on all the food that came out were pretty darn big, and no one complained, which means they liked it because most of ‘em will let you know if they don’t like something — just ask the referees. The rest of the staff pitched in, refilling drinks and delivering food. The waiter brought out all the checks and from what I could tell got it all right. I just hope everyone else at the table appreciated the service and rewarded him with a fat tip.
Thanks Lovers Pizza, for being such good sports.
