The Driving Force of a Restaurant: Its Staff (and this is an ode to ours)

By Shelu Bhandari

Going over new cheese and dessert menus with Chef Caputo and Dan.

Front of the house at BIN 36 and their extensive wine and food knowledge ...

Before I became a part of the restaurant industry, I was always curious about bartenders and the service staff at fine dining restaurants. They were generally very courteous, charming, and bright. They were hip and knowledgeable and their memories spot on. But, I had lingering questions: did they like telling strangers about food? How did they maintain their cheery personalities after being on their feet most of the day and dealing with the inevitable grumpy customer? How did they stay motivated pursuing a part-time serving career while also pursuing their dreams on the side? And most of all, how did they know so much about every item on the menu?

Muriel Montgomery and Michele Burford.

I figured out it’s not as effortless as they make it seem. Take the BIN 36 menu—it’s broad, and with a ton of detail. First off, the wine: wines from different regions, varietals, and varying vintages. There are 48 wines by the glass, not to mention the highly allocated and more exclusive wines on our bottle list. Then the cheese—another 48 of those to learn, and I'm just thinking about how hard it was to learn the fifty states as a kid—cheeses from all over the world from different animals, with different textures, smells, and of course, tastes.

And finally, the BIN 36 menu: from snacks to charcuterie to entrees. The servers feverishly take notes during menu changes, painstakingly study the menu and attend mandatory wine class every week taught by our in house wine and cheese savant, Jan Henrichsen. The owner, Dan Sachs, recently dropped a pop quiz on the staff and actually graded their answers as well as their performance. If you thought being a server was “taking the easy route to fast cash,” think again. You need a wealth of knowledge about really obscure items. I mean, really, who knows about a "marjolaine cake" or a “banoffee purse?” Well, our staff studies it.

Roberto Izquierdo.

And just like in the movies, every day at 4:30pm, either Jan or Dan sits down with the staff and a representative from the kitchen (either Sous Chef Alec Walker, Chef de Cuisine Willy Hewitt, or Executive Chef John Caputo). The chefs present the off-menu specials and the ingredients and methods of cooking are discussed. The manager on shift carefully matches a wine pairing based on the flavors of the meal and which wine would best finish each bite. Once presented, everyone digs in so that their palette is acclimated with the new dish, complete with its wine pairing. So if you’ve ever wondered how the server is able to describe the potential dining experience of what you may order, it’s because of the routine pre-shift meeting that they attend.

Billy Henderson.

Over my years at BIN, the staff has had relatively low turnover. There have been some staff members that have been here for 10 years or more—Roberto Izquierdo and Sergio Gomez, our breakfast managers and banquet servers. Jimmy Baclig, a BIN 36 bartender favorite, has been taking care of guests and mixing up a ready drink at the bar for years. There are also the part-timers who pursue acting careers like Muriel Montgomery who has a gig at Second City and Billy Fenderson who is always growing a moustache for his latest part in a local play. And the adorable and bubbly Michele Burford, who is also crafted in the gift of party giving, as an event coordinator. Each one of our staff is filled with character and knows the BIN menu like the back of their hand. So, feel free to ask lots of questions on your next visit to BIN 36—our staff is up for the challenge.

Sergio Gomez and Roberto Izquierdo.

That, and you never know if you're talking wine and cheese with the next Vince Vaughn or Kate Winslet...

(Shelu Bhandari writes the checks at BIN, and is that glue that helps hold us all together—and and she likes to drink wine! A perfect fit.)