Enjoy & Report

As you can imagine, I am frequently asked what is the greatest part of this website… What do I love about working clubs for this website… Most people assume it’s the free drinks or the access or the interaction with various staff (whom I write about)… But, what I love about this website is the silent obvious… I get to report what you don’t see…

Typically, Lodge Bar Happy Hours are repressed… Do not misunderstand… their promotions superstars are amazing and the drink and food specials are outstanding… Yet, the calm of happy hour always sharply contrasts the frenetic crush of midnight… Maybe its showing up between the hours of five and nine p.m. that repress people… Maybe its people don’t want to drink right after work… Whatever the reason… Happy hours are never impressive…

Until Friday… Maybe it was the free gas card giveaways… Maybe it was the weather… Whatever the reason… The Free Gas Happy Hour was impressive… From the moment I arrived, every table and both bars rattled with the energy which is Lodge Bar’s signature… From the three people discussing the New Kids on the Block concert to the bunny, clad in a lace black blouse and jeans, dancing to the amazement of her friends, Free Gas Friday featured a myriad of moments which captured my attention…

Also (and always) capturing my attention was the Lodge Bar employees, which on this night, included most of the favorites… I will talk about them in a moment… However, I must mention General Manager Pat (who I’ve never mentioned before and I apologize for that)… Simply stated, he is one of the best management people in this industry… While I know I’ve discussed several venue executives and their excellence, Pat is unique… He is one of the most deliberative, intelligent, and reasonable people I deal with…

Among the most gorgeous I deal with are Alexa and Crown Princess Kadi, both of whom were present this evening… I never type this… but the greatest part of adoring Alexa and Kadi is watching them work… There is a simple elegance when Alexa smiles at customers… There is a precise perfection as Kadi turns a requested cocktail into a cocktail… I never discuss the work, because everyone comprehends the work… Still, the vision is magnificent…

The scattered randomness of Free Gas Friday was also marvelous… From the table Alexa kept carrying cocktails toward (and I’m not talking one or two, with the other half dozen people drinking beer, I am talking trays of cocktails) to the random dancing in places nowhere near the dance floor, the two hours I spent were a reinforcement of my answer…

It’s not the free alcohol or covers… It’s not the interaction with staff or the e-mail from fans who love the work… It’s the collections of small moments… How Kadi mixes a drink… How Pat smiles when he talks about his impending fatherhood… How a random bunny puckers her lips as she dances with her friends… And how those friends cheer, when they realize they finally got one of the ten trivia questions correct…