Cheesecake Factory V.I.P.

The waiter said under his breath, "Are you guys looking for a table?" and then shifted his eyes from side to side.
Lewis and I looked at one another and said "um. . .yeah."
"That one there" he pointed to a nearby table with a couple finishing their drinks. "It will be open in a few minutes."
The waiter quickly darted off before we could ask any more questions. It was nine o'clock and Lewis, David and I had arrived at the Cheesecake Factory in Chicago only 10 mins ago. We waited to put our names in for a table and were told the wait was at least 60 mins. We had sighed and decided to clambor our way up to the bar in hopes to to persuade the overwhelmed bartender to get us a drink. Our stomachs were growling and we were regretting our lack of foresight to call and make a reservation.

Then our luck changed.

It was when we were on our way back from the bar that the waiter "propositioned" us about the table. A moment later the couple started to reach for their coats and before they could even push back their chairs Lewis was already sitting opposite them. I followed a little sheepishly, wanting to wait until they were headed away from the table, and then joined lewis.

"Wow", I said "we totally got the hook up" I sat my your-table-is-ready buzzer (that we no longer needed) on our V.I.P table.

Our waiter was fantastic. First we thanked him profusely for the table. He shrugged it of in a cool way, "No problem, no problem." He flirted just a little, not too much and not in a way that is obvious. He offered suggestions on the menu that turned out excellent and then guided us through the all important cheesecake decision offering suggestions based on our tastes and the popularity of various slices.

Turns out his name is Matthew and he is the corporate trainer for the Cheesecake Factory. He travels all over the United States working at a C.F for a period of time before moving onto the next. He'll be in Vegas this summer. I supposed he supplemented his earnings by bestowing the gift of a vacant table to an unsuspecting party who is dreading the long wait. And I assume he is usually rewarded handsomely. Tonight was no exception.

We tipped him mad good.

But he did earn it. We felt like celebrities, or at least feared members of a chicago mob, and of course we avoided the hour wait for the avocado eggrolls.