The drinks that are popular now are very different from those in 1975. Along with some coaching from my ex-roommate, I was confident of my beginning bartending knowledge. Boston Bartender’s Guide with the hope that I would not be stumped by any requests. In the three days I had before I went to work, I memorized nearly all of the most popular drinks in Mr. I thought that this would be no more difficult than any of the experiences I had had in my past.

But I had the courage to face this challenge, as I had done many times throughout my years in the suburbs. I think that most of you who read this story will think that it would be crazy to take a job where you knew from the start that neither of your bosses wanted you there.

Well, I thought for less than a minute and said yes. She explained that I had four days to become a good bartender. It was their hometown and they would be gone for four days. She told me that the two managers were going out of town for a wedding in Fargo, North Dakota. She called to tell me that she was upset and embarrassed with the decision that the mangers had made. Well, I thought that was the end of the story.Ībout a week later I was stunned to receive a phone call from the bookkeeper at the restaurant. I laughed because even at my young age, I had experienced so much discrimination that I wasn’t surprised to face it again. My friend laughed because he never thought of me as being black, but just another upper middle class suburban kid. In Roseville, I was the only black student in my school, and I had been so since I was in the fifth grade. I had grown up in a suburb just like Golden Valley. Immediately my friend and I broke into laughter. Then he said, “It’s because you are black”. Wow! I was really crushed and asked my friend why.

A few days later my friend called me to tell me that I would not be getting the job. I thought that the interview went very well and I looked forward to the news about the job within the next week. I arrived at the restaurant at the appointed hour and was interviewed by the manager and the assistant manager. On that day I was quite nervous, but I had done a lot of public speaking in High School, I was a student leader, and I was always confident of myself. I quickly agreed to come to the Cork and Cleaver for an interview. Tending bar in a restaurant seemed to be the perfect fit for my class schedule. I was excited about this opportunity because at the time, I was a student at the University of Minnesota. The name of the suburb was Golden Valley and the name of the restaurant was the Cork and Cleaver. In the summer of 1975, my ex-college roommate called me and asked me if I wanted his job as a bartender in a restaurant in a small suburb west of Minneapolis.

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