As we entered the Italian restaurant, a waiter scurried past us and, without even stopping to do so, made it clear to us that we would definitely not be getting a seat in his domain today. They really didn't need people like us there, the profiler in the host seemed absolutely certain of that.
One could leave now, look for something new, and think nothing of it. But who the hell can do that? For me, something like that is a real fuck-you, arrogant, fucker, hate-the-world moment. Angry because I so obviously didn't meet the local standards for guest-human quality, and also used, I had no choice but to move on with my friends, hoping that no one else was witnessing it. Why am I telling you this? Because recently, as a guest in a Mexican restaurant, I witnessed something similar happening not to me, but to a group of five teenagers. The reason this time was that the apparently only employee, the cook, waiter, and bartender all in one, was chatting with someone outside his restaurant over a Coke and a cigarette. As said teenagers walked purposefully toward the entrance, the employee called out to them that he was on a break and they should come back in thirty minutes. The group then stopped, unsettled, and had to regroup before heading to the nearby Späti (late-food shop). The man then finished smoking, said goodbye to his conversation partner, went back into his shop, and five minutes later was serving newly arrived customers. As an observer, I found the guy incredibly confident, almost enviable, even though he had behaved so badly. However, that's missing from the story about when I arrived at the shop with my friend about ten minutes before the situation just described.
We were greeted with a pleasant chat and each received a free €3.50 beer with our €6.50 taco orders. Just because. Simply because the man was having a really good day and wanted to share it with us. A brief, intimate, world-hugging moment.
