Waiters

Matsuhisa, 129 N. La Cienega Blvd., Beverly Hills; (310) 659-9639

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Lawry's the Prime Rib

100 N. La Cienega Blvd.
Beverly Hills, CA 90211

Category: Restaurant > American

Region: Beverly Hills

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Philippe the Original

1001 N. Alameda St.
Los Angeles, CA 90012

Category: Restaurant > American

Region: Downtown

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Nobu

903 N. La Cienega Blvd.
West Hollywood, CA 90069

Category: Restaurant > Japanese

Region: West Hollywood

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Matsuhisa

129 N. La Cienega Blvd.
Beverly Hills, CA 90211

Category: Restaurant > Japanese

Region: Beverly Hills

Photos

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More About

• Santa Monica Place
• Martin Bedard
• Nobu Matsuhisa
• Eating Out
• Meat

Emilia GuerecaCafe 50’s

EMILIA GUERECA

From what Emilia Guereca says about waitressing at Cafe 50’s, it sounds like being the merry host, the caterer, the adorable pet, the cute girl that everyone wants to flirt with, all at a fun cocktail party that lasts for nine hours straight. Go home. Sleep. Repeat. "Cakewalk," she says. "You have to be able to make conversation about anything. People are more patient with you when you’ve interacted with them." And so here we are, sitting at the diner’s spic-and-span counter, interacting. What’s it like to work at a very popular, very busy coffee shop where most of the customers are neighborhood regulars? Cheerful ’50s pop spins on the jukebox. "We seem to make more money as ponytailed waitresses," she says, bobbing her head. "When my hair’s down, tips are down." What about the ’50s uniform, a short red dress with flared skirt, white collar and cuffs? She rolls her eyes. "It’s that whole little-girl thing, I guess," she says, feigning exasperation. Emilia is upbeat, high-energy, good-natured — the personality required at Cafe 50’s. Craig Martin, the owner, hovers nearby like a nervous dad. Emilia shoos him away playfully. For every 45 waitress applicants, management hires just one, and often that one doesn’t last. Typical questions on a written Cafe 50’s "server test": Explain the term "86." Explain the term "in the weeds." When serving a slice of pie in front of a customer, in which direction does the tip or point of the pie face?Emilia made the cut. Each server goes through more than 100 tickets per shift. Long story short: She drove to Los Angeles from Chicago to be a singer (alternative rock en español), lived out of her car for three days, then walked into the diner. A year later, she’s training the new recruits. "I come in here like I’m gonna run a marathon," she says. "I’ve got my jog bra, my shoe pads, my thick socks." The waitresses shake the shakes, pour the drinks, toss the salads, assemble the desserts, deliver the checks, cash them out and bus their own tables. Everything short of flipping the burgers. Grabbing a stack of plates from the sideboard, Emilia demos her skills: three plates in left hand, another on the right, with space for one or two more on the left arm. "No biggie," she blushes, "everyone does it." (By the way: "86" means "out of an item"; "in the weeds" is "to be totally swamped"; and the point of the pie faces the customer, with the fork on the plate to the right.) (Cafe 50’s, 11623 Santa Monica Blvd.; (310) 479-1955)