December 23, 2003

That place sucks!

After work today a few people from my department headed out to a nearby sports bar for a drink to celebrate the beginning of the holidays. The big boss even let us go early since the building was practically empty anyway, and anyone wanting IT support late in the afternoon the day before we're all off for a week is a day late and a dollar short anyway, so to speak.

I live in a major metropolitan area, so you would think that there wouldn't be a big problem in choosing a bar to frequent for a beer or two after work. You'd be both right and wrong. There are lots of bars, and lots more restaurants that have bars. But most of them suck, have lousy selection, only a few tables, way too much smoke, etc. We used to go to a Mexican restaurant because they had free chips and salsa and a few beers to choose from, but that place went out of business a few months ago. So now we default to this other bar which is really close to the office. But there's a problem - it's horrible.

First of all, this place is slow even when there is nobody there, as was the case today. The waitress got our order fast, but then didn't come back for 10 minutes. When she did come back, she told me the beer I wanted wasn't cold yet. Another guy in the group ordered Beck on tap (listed under the Draught beers) but was brought a bottle. Another woman in our group had to go back to the bar and give a little lesson on martinis to the bartender, and that's just pathetic.

So, why do we keep going back to this place, when everytime we go we get into a discussion of how much we hate it? I have no idea! It's not my idea to go there. The guy with the bottle of Beck told me that from now on, at the very least, the two of us are not going back there anymore. I think he's hoping it will mean some pressure to go somewhere else next time we want a drink after work. There are other choices, which someone finds something to grumble about, but there can't be another place which all of us find so unpleasant.

Published: December 23, 2003
Editor: stacy