Only in Pittsburgh: Wetback Wednesdays? SERIOUSLY?

Only in Pittsburgh does this kind of thing happen. This is why I love Pittsburgh but will never live there again.

From Sit-Ins to Put-Downs: Why Dining Out Matters

Whether you

*swing through the drive-through at McDonald’s for a Royale with Cheese,

*Hit the buffet at Random Quasi-Asian (middle of the strip mall next to the Beauty Supply and the impromptu H&R Block office)Super Buffet

*Hit down for your fix of random pre-fabricated Applebee/Friday’s/Bennigan’s

*Take a stroll down memory land for what USED to be fine dining for common folk, Red Lobster or Olive Garden

*Or if you, like me, get your anti chain restaurant on with any number of singular dining experiences

*Or if you get your white tablecloth sommelier and chef’s table on

We all like to get our eat on and let someone else cook and clean.

In the 21st century, with more and more two income households, the notion of a traditional family dinner is virtually impossible.

With every advance in technology and alteration in personal priorities, dining out is becoming less and less of a luxury.

Add to that the simply jawdropping number of choices and you have a completely different industry from 20 years ago.

The explosion of the restaurant industry has opened up opportunities and challenges in the Black community.  With each passing year, it becomes apparent that while it is clear that the Black dining market is growing, the level of respect that it commands is not growing at the same pace.

Think for a moment about how much you spend every month on food that you don’t have to prepare and you will rapidly understand how much dining Out matters.

From Sit-Ins to Put-Downs: Black Folk and Restaurants (prologue)

with the inadvertent urging of Christina, I will be spending the remainder of my 16 days of the 32 Days of Black History Month addressing the relationship between Black folk and Restaurants.  Consider this Day 17.
I am a waiter.

A DAMN good one.

Good enough to go dollar for dollar with the average American and trump them on most days.

About 85% of the time, I am at peace with how I make my money.  For a man with an ample serving of God-given talent, I am often considered by others what is popularly referred to as under-employed.

My Take:  I am a master craftsman in a Skilled service profession who performs at an elite level and is compensated at the 90th percentile of those in my field.

At the end of the day, the Money is pretty good, and I genuinely love what i do.

I am going on 20 years in an apron.  From random spots no one ever heard of, to 4-star spots under award-winning/book-writing/national tv-show appearing,/reality show winning culinary geniuses, to well established regional and national chains, to strip joints, to music awards after parties, to national campaign fundraisers, to more lobbyist dinners than you can shake a W-2 at.

I have broken up fights over bills and run down folk trying to skate on bills and got robbed for some of my bills.
waited on such Bills as Duke, Cosby, and Bennett

Waited on John Mayer, Kerry,  and Lewis

Never waited on Denzel or Michael, but I waited on BOTH of their wives.

Waited on Tom Hanks AND the guy he portrayed in Apollo 13

I waited on Bill Gates (mind you this was more than a few Billion Dollars ago…Think right after Windows 95) and slipped food out of the restaurant to hit off the homeless dude who lived down by the parking lot where I parked.

I walked up to a table of 4 where the shortest person was 6′10″. (Thompson,Mourning,Ewing,Mutombo)

If I never wait tables again in LIFE…I got enough stories, theories, and experiences for 10 full movies.

But what is MOST important to me is the peculiar relationship between Black People and the restaurant industry.

(caution: there will be generalizations….bear in mind this is not ALLLLL Black people, but a significant number…perhaps a majority, perhaps not, but always a significant portion)

I have almost always worked in places that have a significant Black clientele.  Usually that clientele exists because of the cuisine that is served.

Black folk LOVE to eat, but they love to eat what THEY want, the WAY they want, HOW they want.

The Restaurant industry thrives on the APPEARANCE of “the customer is always right” but LIVES AND DIES on getting as much as they can while giving as little as they can.

Restaurants have service and hospitality as their foundation.

Short of having someone wash your ass, or getting hair or nails done there is no more intimate act than the act of serving someone food.

There is an inherent subordination that takes place when your job revolves around putting on an apron and running to and fro for strangers.

Add in the dynamic of race and privilege and you have an intriguing sociological dynamic.

Toss in on top of that a compensation structure that is 95% VOLUNTARY and hinges almost entirely cultural expectations, the whim of the person who receives the service and their perception of said service, and you REALLY have something to talk about.

As someone who loves Black people with the passion of his own Kin, I am very protective and watchful of how it is that Black People are treated and served where I work.  As the senior server on my staff and the head trainer,  I am in the prime position to affect how my coworkers handle themselves when dealing with customers.  For the rest of the week, I will be addressing the challenges that have affected the restaurant industry and the Black Folk who work in and patronize said establishments.

IF you have particular questions or comments that you would like for me to address in this series Kindly hit me on email @ Inkognegro07 @ gmail.com

Day Fifteen of Black History Month: Grunt Work

While my comrades in the 32 Days of Black History Month are over there posting up all manner of Magnificence, I was apronned up, slinging around food for gratuity. I used to be slightly embarrassed, to have gone from medium range Capitol Hill Peon to full time waiter in just a few years, but my reality is far more complicated than that. My reality is that I am a professional. A highly skilled and reasonably compensated professional at that. I defy any of you who dine out with any regularity to search your memory bank and not have at least ONE subpar dining experience within the last 30 to 45 days. Combine that with the fact that I make slightly less than Mrs. Ink the Pedagogue (a crime in and of itself) and you have what makes for a fairly decent way to make a living.

It was my return to the restaurant plantation that prevented me from being as prolific as I had enjoyed during my time recuperating. Now that I am back in the flow, I will do my best to get caught up.

In that spirit, I would like to honor A. Philip Randolph, civil rights activist and labor organizer, who devoted his life to representing those who serve for a living.

(here is a link to the enire Conversation with Mr.Randolph)

“Justice is never given; it is exacted and the struggle must be continuous for freedom is never a final fact, but a continuing evolving process to higher and higher levels of human, social, economic, political and religious relationship.” (Randolph)