The Interview
Julie Schwartz
By John Koch, Boston Globe
Do some customers expect you to be their therapist?
I back away from that. But it's incredible how much information people volunteer to a perfect stranger. A lot of it is sexual, about infidelity. What I end up doing is listening; often, people work out the problem just by talking to you as you say, "Uh-huh, yeah, OK." I had this guy in recently, writing down big numbers - 1,500, 2,000 - and I made a joke: "Oh, is that how much you're going to tip me?" And he said, "No, I'm collecting gambling debts." I have a big mouth, but in situations like these, listening is what I'm comfortable doing.
How much money can a good urban bartender make?
Up to $65,000 a year - it's easy if you put the effort in. You can make $200 on a Tuesday lunch if people enjoy sitting down at the bar and talking to you. The best year I had was waiting tables at Morton's, about $63,000. Almost all of it is in tips; my hourly wage now is $2.65.
Who are the best tippers?
Traditionally, older businessmen. They're decisive, they order right away, and as long as you get it to them the way they want it - and fast - they're happy to tip you well. We have big tippers leaving $35 on a $65 check or $20 on $5. It's not unusual.
Is it hard work?
Physically, I feel like I'm much older than I am, because it wears on your back and your legs and feet. There's no sitting down or resting. I like to get up early, so it definitely wears on you mentally. I sleep well, and you make sure your bed is the most comfortable place in the world. You're working 10 or 11 hours sometimes, starting at 4 p.m. I usually do five, sometimes six shifts a week. You try to save, but there's so much cash in your wallet. You have to get it out of your hands right away, or else you're buying fondue pots or anything that catches your eye.
Isn't it scary to carry so much cash?
Restaurant people are targets, for that very reason, of late-night muggings. If I'm uncomfortable with the amount of money I made, I leave it overnight in the safe at the restaurant.
What makes a successful bartender?
You have to be extremely detail-oriented. People love to be recognized and to know that you remember their drink, their wife's drink, that they don't like olives but like a twist, that you remember specific things about their job, maybe. They like to know they're not just a face in the crowd. What makes me a good bartender? Energy. I love to have fun: I'll bring as many people at the bar into a conversation as possible - like it's one big party at the bar. People
call me Julie McCoy, from The Love Boat.
Do you play a role? Is there a shtick you lean on?
I always had theater aspirations, and I feel like I'm working onstage. You have a rapt audience, and you ham it up. I sing horribly, but I have fun, and it puts people at ease.
What kind of people are drawn to this work?
Certainly, [people with] the need to please others. So many people that I've talked to within this business feel that they're the failures and embarrassments of the family. These are the older restaurant people, like my age, who have done it long-term. You're creating a family at work. A lot of these people's parents don't have an active role in their life. The people they see every day have become their family. You feel important when you're an integral part of your group.
What made you feel like an outsider?
I opted to leave college. I come from an intellectual family. My parents both teach English as a second language at American University, and they didn't really like or understand what I was doing. Also, growing up in Washington, D.C., my mixed background wasn't as much of an issue as it is here. My mother is Scottish and English, and my father is Portuguese and Senegalese. Some people don't think I look mixed race. I think I do, and people of mixed race can always recognize each other. I have an ethnic look. People who don't pick up on it are the super-white people - it doesn't occur to them. Schwarz is the name of my stepfather. I converted to Judaism, although my mother isn't Jewish. I had a bat mitzvah when I was 18. I learned Hebrew. I changed my name - it was Pereira before.
Is it a struggle to untangle these roots?
Absolutely. I'm still reexamining my religion. I don't know if it was the atmosphere of the temple in Washington I liked or the religion itself. My last name throws people off, which I kind of like - that hidden aspect. When I hear race- or religion-related slurs, I speak out, stand up. Once, a man told me how surprised he was about how many black people vacationed on Martha's Vineyard. My first reaction was: "Well, where do you think black people should be vacationing? What are you saying, that Martha's Vineyard is not where black people should vacation?" You argue them into seeing that what they're saying is ridiculous, but you have a smile on your face the whole time.
What have you learned at work about human nature?
To be much more curious about everyone - as with me, you can't take people at face value.
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