Dinner and fun

Tonight we did our client group dinner in NY. Gustavino's under the 59th street/Queensboro bridge. Cool spot. Bridge was built right when cars were invented, so they had to guess at future sizes and volumes of traffic, and as such it is impressively over engineered.  After, we start an email thread of where we're taking clients who still want to party. A guy says with conviction a particular bar... And as it happens, the 6 people I'm with end up there first. Rarely can I lead a peloton... but maybe here it works. Two couples, couple of us. For clarity this group strictly adheres to the middle aged oil and gas office people in suits look.

We get to the place, and the bouncers are all big brothers. We have a quick look and wonder if this is right - "I'm not really sure if this is our thing". Guy replies come on in and have a drink, and if it ain't yo thing, you can leave, but it's totally fine. Client guy says yeah let's go.

So we walk downstairs, it's jam packed with 400 homies in hip hop glory party, and us. I start a tab at the bar and get our group some drinks. Girl says "we only do the tab for you" implying I have to be the one coming back to order (this is great so it doesn't get abused) but I say "we've got clients so let anyone order". She says "ok, so who's on your tab". I kind of pause, point my thumb over my shoulder, and say "umm, the white people...".

The vodka sodas they poured for the ladies weren't inclusive of much soda... more the NY pour.

There's two girls at the bar next to me, they're nice. They ask "what up with you guys" - I just say we're down with clients from Canada and got recommended to come here. She loosens up my tie for me. There weren't a lot of ties... one was from Buffalo and asked if I'd been to Missisauga (yes, briefly, and Buffalo). Ice broken...

I email the rest (we have like 15 partners and 200 people in total here) and advise that this might not be the place to bring everyone... then fast forward an hour: my email never went out, as we're in a basement with no service. Another 50 show up. The wives start shaking booty (or what 40 year old white girls have anyway, which isn't really booty on the standard in this place) on the dance floor. Everyone warms up, great times had. I settle a pretty inexpensive tab. Everyone was nice. So funny overall.

The attached photo is from another place, which someone wanted to go to on last minute. Ingenuity trumped the giant lineup as someone contacted "their guy" in Vegas who contacted "their guy" here, so in turn it was walk up to the front door and in. It's like a boat - I don't need one (or one of these networks), I just want to know people that have them!