September 11: The Park Bar Bartender

Without explicitly stating it, myself and two other girls from my ballet class have fallen into a bit of a routine on Sundays: a grueling 2 hour class at the City Center studio near Columbus Circle, followed by the Park Bar in Union Square from after class, to potentially all evening.

Aside from having fun ourselves and getting to know each other, we now know the bartender pretty well! Being the only people in there 4p when we arrive, he's talkative and great fun. A few weeks in, and he's officially my favorite bartender, on par with Eddie back at Hula's in San Diego.

He's officially been upgraded, and made Favorite Person of the Day because of today. While Jen had to make a trip to Connecticut after class, Suzie and I kept tradition alive and headed into Park Bar. As we sat down, the bartender started by placing ice waters in front of us, so thoughtful as we were all sweaty from dance class! Knowing our favorite Bloody Maria drinks, he starts to make them, sets them in front of us, and doesn't stop there. He had been trading drink shots for hummus and chips from the Sabra Hummus sample vehicle just outside, and gives us dishes of hummus and pita chips, and it still doesn't stop there. Emerging from the back, he tosses us each a Fiber One nutrition bar to "replace our nutrients lost from ballet", and then sets a stack of gossip and fashion magazines in front of us.

At one point you think, he's good at knowing how to get his tips. At this point you just think, good Lord, you are my favorite person of the day!