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Party of one: Rep's one-woman show gives the dish on restaurant life

Lindsay Christians  —  9/18/2008 5:43 am

What do the first play of the season at the Madison Repertory Theatre and Sunday brunch at Sardine have in common? It's true they both promise an entertaining diversion for an hour or more, but there is a more subtle similarity.

Madison Rep opens its 40th anniversary season with "Fully Committed," Becky Mode's 1998 one-woman play about the busy life of an aspiring actress named Sam, a harried Midwestern expatriate in New York City. Between auditions, she works the reservations desk at a high-end restaurant, juggling complicated situations, difficult personalities and co-worker drama.

It's a show that anyone who has worked in the restaurant business can relate to.

"You have to be pleasantly aggressive," said Rachael Taylor, a maitre d' who has worked at Sardine since it opened in July 2006. Taylor works full-time at the lakeside restaurant and, like Sam, takes many reservations each week.

"People are very pushy. Here we don't guarantee window tables" -- the most coveted in the restaurant -- "but people are sure when they come in that you promised them that window seat," Taylor said. "Sunday brunch is crazy: babies and high chairs and Bloody Marys and waffles. People are so aggressive at brunch."

"People do like to abuse the host. Some people just walk in angry," said Clara Beyer, a server at Sushi Muramoto at Hilldale. Her co-worker, bartender and former hostess Hilary Olander, agreed.

"At least once they're seated, you don't have to deal with them again," Olander said, referring to her previous experience as a hostess at other restaurants.

There are 37 parts in "Fully Committed," including the chef, the reservations manager, a mobster, a line cook and Naomi Campbell's personal assistant Bruce, all played by Amy J. Carle. Locals saw Carle most recently as Edith Frank in last season's "The Diary of Anne Frank" at the Madison Rep.

Sam, the main character, works in a windowless basement office. Unlike Madison restaurant staffers, the most contact she has with obnoxious or annoying patrons is over the phone.

"Having worked in a few restaurants before myself, you always get the feeling you're not just a waiter to these people, you're almost less than that in their lives," Carle said. "At certain times in the meal you're bothersome to them. At other times you have to be entertaining. Watching the hostesses get them to a place where they're happy to be waiting, happy to be having a drink in the bar a half-hour after their reservation -- they have a gift, hostesses.

"At least in the basement Sam doesn't have to be dressed to the nines and walk around in high heels for six hours."

Local hostesses say they see a variety of attitudes from people looking for a table.

"I think the best is when people walk in and say, 'My cousin's here,'" and then look up expecting to be led to the correct table, said Briana Nava, a hostess at the Great Dane Pub & Brewing Co. on King Street.

"They tell you the water shouldn't be from the tap, and if it is, it should have lemons. We get people hanging out, looking at the list."

"People get really mad at us, but we can't help it," said Lisa Papiernik, Nava's co-worker at the Great Dane. Nava has worked at the downtown brewpub for eight months; Papiernik for about a month.

"We just try to be as friendly but as stern as possible," Nava said. "You say what you have to and look away or turn to another customer. I sometimes get surprised at how rude people can be."

The title of "Fully Committed" refers to the phrase Sam uses when the entire restaurant is booked, as well as a clever nod to the sheer craziness of Sam's job.

"The hardest is the constant stimulation of people coming to your table and the constant turn-down," said Sara Christensen, a UW senior who has worked for 18 months at The Old Fashioned on the Capitol Square. The Old Fashioned does not take reservations, and the downtown gastropub is almost constantly packed for supper.

"This is a calm night," Christensen added, shouting over the dinnertime din as nine people arrived looking for an open table.

Lynn LaReau has worked as a waitress, reservationist and hostess at Quivey's Grove off Verona Road for 28 years. The busiest nights at Quivey's are Fridays during the fish fry.

"It's very demanding, but we usually don't have long waits," she said. "You have to acknowledge people right away. You have to take calls, make drinks, clear the tables, set them up. I can set a four-top down and know what kind of service they're going to want.

"You're like a psychologist. There's all these different personalities."

Sometimes waiters and waitresses can be as challenging as the clientele. Hosts may be blamed for over- or under-booking sections, even sending "mean people" to a certain section on purpose.

"The waitresses -- sometimes you have to please them," said Miranda Vreugdenhil, a hostess at Biaggi's in Middleton. "You keep everything stable. But sometimes there's just nothing you can do."

Watch Sam juggle dozens of reservations in Madison Rep's "Fully Committed," running through the first weekend in October. Then visit one of the local restaurants near the theater -- and if you don't get a table right away, be understanding.

Lindsay Christians  —  9/18/2008 5:43 am