Bye bye brunch

Fall officially started less than two weeks ago, and I couldn't be happier. It's not the cooler weather, the colors changing in the leaves, or the first few weeks of football -- it's because brunch is over.

Every summer, the restaurant is open for brunch during the farmers' market once a week. And during that summer, I am turning and burning the tables on our patio during the first part of the day, and then returning to a more fine dining style during the evening.

The whole thing wouldn't be so bad if it weren't for a few factors: closing the night before then returning within eight hours; and everyone thinking brunch is a synonym for a buffet.

I know hotels, casinos, and even the Manor help instill this idea in people's minds: brunch = buffet. And when guests are handed a menu with prices listed, that should help distinguish an a la carte brunch from a buffet. One morning I went in circles with a gentlemen four times before his date had to intervene and help me explain how a menu works. He just kept asking me, over and over, "but where's the brunch?"

Working in the hospitality industry is challenging, and can be rewarding, but it's moments like these that make me wonder how I'm able to hold my tongue. I don't know why, but brunch appears to attract a lot of socially challenged individuals, and amplify moronic behavior. It could be the lack of caffeine in the morning, the bottomless mimosas, or a combination of the two. I have seen people show up with shirts on backwards, annihilate social norms of public displays of affection, call the cops for family spats, and lose all sense of logic. Brunch is definitely not a meal Vulcans would enjoy.

And sometimes throughout the course of the shift, there are pleasant, intelligent guests who give you a glimmer of hope for humanity in all that dark madness. It helps you survive the morning, and keep up the energy to persevere through the evening too.

But now the memory of brunch is drifting away, and the off season brings the necessary break I need to regroup for the winter. And the best part is I have my football filled Sunday mornings back.