Wacky Waiter

I love enthusiastic waitstaff.

Tonight I ate at the DuClaws in Bowie, Maryland. Although I am not an official member of their club, my sister & her husband are. So I often join them on new beer release nights. Now I confess I am also not a huge beer fan, but I do like to try new things. So I find the festivities of new beer night to be enjoyable. It is more fun when the staff seems to be enjoying themselves too.

I was sure they were tonight. The new release was a sweet, dark beer called “Twisted Kilt.” As we walked in, we saw a waiter, who I will call Wallace, wearing an authentic kilt. He was bold enough to have painted his face a savage blue. I immediately thought of a folk song I know about Scottsmen and their kilts, but was trying not to be a lecherous divorcee.

Our waitress also seemed to be from the British Isles, a blonde named Molly. She was just the right amount of friendly and casual without being too personal or chatty. Her accent indicated that her possible Irish heritage came via New York. I'll go to a restaurant with bad food for friendly service, but not vice versa. Fortunately for me, both were good tonight. The high alcohol content didn't hurt either.

It turns out that William Wallace was our “food runner” tonight. When I was a waitress, I carried my own food. This is a newer trend. Of course, we had to comment on the individulatiy of his work attire this evening. Bravehart indicated that he was a bit apprehensive about the face paint since he wasn't working in the bar where face paint is apparently more acceptable. However, he reasoned, since he wasn't an official waiter, just a food runner, he thought he might get away with it. My brother-in-law suggested that if Management hassled him, he should just yell out, “Freedom!” When questioned further, he did hint that he hadn't gone the last mile with the true Scottsman kilt-wearing traditions. I for one was disappointed, but I suppose in a restaurant that was for the best.

I don't know if I'd recognize him without the kilt or the blue face. I'll let you know on the next beer release night.

Oh, and I had the crabcakes. They were quite good, big lumps of meat and not too breaded. I liked the Misfit Red better than either the Kangaroo Love or the Twisted Kilt. I've always had a soft spot for misfits.