Chapter 26
Chapter Twenty-Six
“ T onight is Zach’s first night on his own,” Mandy said when Emma arrived a few minutes before three.
Zach mostly worked the lunch shift, but Paul had been training him on the evenings too so that Zach could cover for him at least once a week, and Paul could have a full day off.
Paul had said that Zach was eager to pick up evening shifts, so if it went well, Paul might be able to take a second night off now and then.
“Oh good. I knew he was hoping to do that soon. I didn’t realize it was today,” Emma said.
She missed Jason and was looking forward to his return.
Zach was pleasant enough, but there was an edginess about him that made him seem a little prickly at times.
Unlike Jason, who always had an easy smile and loved to joke around with the waitresses.
Mandy’s phone dinged with a text message, and she glanced at it and laughed. “Brooke wants to know if we can order pizza tonight. I was planning to roast a chicken.”
Emma grinned. “Pizza is much easier.”
“True! Okay, I’m off. Have a good night.”
Mandy headed out, and Emma settled behind the front desk and opened her laptop.
She had time before the night rush began to work on marketing and social media for a while.
She went into the kitchen to find out what the evening specials were and was surprised to find the kitchen deserted.
It was kind of an in-between time. The evening cooks would be in at four, and the daytime assistant cook had probably just left.
Maybe Zach had stepped outside for a break.
She walked toward the back of the kitchen and saw Zach sitting on the back step, just outside the door, smoking.
She didn’t want to bother him on his break and went back to the front desk.
She checked again fifteen minutes later and was surprised to see Zach still sitting outside, with a freshly lit cigarette dangling from his lips.
A wave of annoyance rose, and she forced it down.
The restaurant was empty, so it wasn’t like anyone was being ignored.
Instead of leaving though, she walked toward the back door, and when he saw her, Zach put his cigarette out, stood, and ambled back inside.
“Hey there. Did you need something?” There was a slight edge to his voice, almost as if he was annoyed that she had interrupted his break.
“I was just curious if you had decided on the specials yet? I was going to post them on social media possibly.”
“Sure. Yeah, I’ve got a nice Bolognese going and am going to serve it over gnocchi. And we have some fresh swordfish in, and I’m doing that grilled with a red curry sauce over cauliflower puree.”
“Okay. Any chance I could get a small amount of the Bolognese? I love gnocchi, and I can take a picture.”
Zach went behind the line and scooped a generous amount of gnocchi in a bowl and smothered it with the Bolognese sauce and a sprinkling of parmesan cheese. It smelled amazing.
“Thank you.” Emma picked up the bowl and headed out to the front desk with it.
There was still steam coming off it. She took a few pictures and posted it on social media.
It looked amazing, and she eagerly took a bite, expecting it to taste like Paul’s version, which he often ran as a special. But it tasted nothing like his.
It was good. Emma was just surprised that Zach’s version was so different.
It was heavier on the red wine, and it was a bit saltier.
It was still very good though. She finished off the entire bowl, and when she brought it into the kitchen, the rest of the staff had arrived, and they were all busy getting ready for the night ahead.
Customers streamed in, and it seemed like everything was going smoothly.
Emma noticed one of their waitresses, Amy, who was in her early twenties, took a dish back into the kitchen and a few minutes later came back looking upset.
She brought the plate of food to the table and set it down.
When she walked by, Emma called her over.
“Is everything okay, Amy?”
Amy hesitated. “It’s fine now. Connie got the swordfish special and thought it was just going to be the way Paul always makes it, grilled with a dusting of crumbs on top.
I did tell her it had a red curry sauce, but she didn’t expect that it would be covered in the sauce. Zach wasn’t happy about it.”
Emma tried not to smile. She could imagine Zach being annoyed at someone ordering fish that came with curry sauce and then being surprised that the sauce was on the fish. “Did he fix it?”
Amy nodded. “He did. He had a few other orders of swordfish in the broiler and pulled one when it was ready and gave it to me. No sauce. Connie was thrilled.”
“Good. How is everything else going? No other complaints?”
“Well, two people have said the Bolognese tastes different. But it’s a special, so that’s fine. They seemed to like it anyway.”
“Yes, that’s fine. Thank you.” Amy scurried off to the bar to get some drinks, and Emma took a walk through the dining room.
She kept an eye on the front door in case anyone else came in, but the rush had died down.
She went table to table and asked everyone how their dinners were.
She liked to do that whenever time permitted.
The customers loved the attention, and if there were any issues or feedback, she could try to help.
Everyone seemed happy until she reached a table of two, an older couple that came in once or twice a month.
“Mr. and Mrs. Anderson. I hope you’re enjoying everything tonight?” They were creatures of habit and usually ordered the same thing—broiled halibut for her and baked scallops for him.
They exchanged glances, and then Mrs. Anderson spoke.
“We never like to complain, and of course as you can see, we cleaned our plates. But it seemed a bit off tonight. My halibut was dry, and Harry’s scallops were undercooked.
I know a lot of people like them that way, but Harry likes them cooked through, and they’ve always been wonderful here. I’m sure it was just an off night.”
“Oh dear, I’m sorry to hear that,” Emma said. “Please always let your server know if there is an issue. We will always want to make it right. I’d like to send you an after-dinner drink or a dessert on the house.”
“Oh, how nice of you. Harry, will you help me eat a brownie sundae?” Her husband nodded affirmatively.
“Would you like two or another dessert as well?” Emma offered.
“No dear, thank you. One sundae will be plenty for the two of us to share.”
Emma told Stacy, the server for their table, to ring in a sundae but that she would be taking the charge off the bill. “I’ll bring it over to them. Don’t worry about it,” she said.
Stacy had drinks ready to be picked up at the bar. She nodded appreciatively. “Thanks so much, Emma.”
A few minutes later, Emma went into the kitchen to pick up the dessert. Richard was on salads and desserts tonight and was adding the whipped cream as Emma walked over.
“Is that for Stacy’s table?” she asked.
He nodded, and she put the dessert on a small bar tray and added two spoons.
“What’s wrong with it?” Zach snapped at Betty, an older server who he’d just handed a plate of food to.
“They ordered that curry sauce on the side,” she said.
Zach grabbed the order slip and then slammed his hand down on the counter. “I’m going to have to cook a new piece. Tell them it will be a few minutes. I’ll rush it along as best I can.”
Betty spun around and headed toward Emma, who was about to walk out of the kitchen. As soon as they went through the door, Emma pulled her aside.
“Please apologize to your table and offer them a round of drinks on the house.”
“Thanks, Emma. They’ll appreciate that.”
When the last of the customers left and everyone was cleaning up and getting ready to home, Emma went into the kitchen to get a slice of cheesecake to go with the cup of tea she’d just poured.
She didn’t do it every night that she worked, but a few times a week, she liked to indulge her sweet tooth while doing the closing paperwork.
Zach was wiping down the station and nodded when Emma walked in.
“How did the night go?” she asked him.
“Fine,” he said shortly. “I think it was okay.”
“Good. Thanks, Zach. See you tomorrow.” Emma grabbed her slice of cheesecake and added a drizzle of raspberry sauce across the top and a squirt of whipped cream.
She took her dessert and cup of tea to the bar and settled in to enjoy her treat before closing down the front register.
She always enjoyed chatting with Gina at the end of the shift too.
“How did your night go?” she asked as Gina filled her dishwasher with empty glasses.
“It was good, pretty steady all night.”
“Any comments or complaints on anything you served?”
Gina thought for a moment. “Now that you mention it, yeah. I had an order of scallops that were undercooked, but that’s an easy fix.
Oh, and one of my guys got the swordfish special with the sauce on the side.
He said the fish was great, but the sauce was too spicy for him. He was glad he got it on the side.”
Emma nodded. “Anything else? Did you serve any Bolognese specials?”
“Yeah, a few. It went over pretty well. One of the ladies that had it though said it was very different from the last time she came in.”
“Okay, thanks. It was Zach’s first night on his own.”
“He’s just here temporarily, right? Just until Jason comes back?” Gina asked.
“Yes, I think so. Though Paul mentioned he might be open to having him stay on part-time possibly if it works out. He could use an extra sous-chef-level guy who can work lunch or dinner shifts as needed.”
“Hmm. I miss Jason.” Gina didn’t say anything else, but Emma sensed that she hadn’t warmed up to their prickly new cook either.
A moment later, Zach came to the bar and sat a few seats away from Emma. Gina smiled warmly and set a coaster down in front of him. “Ready for your after-shift drink? What can I get you?”
“I’ll have a Tanqueray and tonic, thanks.” He didn’t return her smile and barely glanced Emma’s way. Gina quickly mixed his drink and set it down for him.
“Do you have any family left on the island?” Emma asked, trying to make friendly conversation.
Zach scowled. “No. My uncle died six months ago. So it’s just me now. I’m staying in his place.”
“Oh, I’m sorry to hear that.”
“What other restaurants have you worked at?” Gina asked.
“I’ve worked a bunch of different places.” He rattled off a half dozen names of local restaurants on the island, and they ranged from smaller mom-and-pop places to fine dining. Emma was shocked when he mentioned that he’d worked for a season at the Straight Wharf.
“What was that like? It’s one of Mandy’s favorite restaurants. She was just there the other night.”
Zach made a face. “It’s not mine. It wasn’t a fit. I’m not really a high-end, fine dining kind of guy. Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate really good food, but I’m not into the fussy stuff.”
Gina was still looking at him curiously. “Did you ever work in Boston by any chance? You look so familiar, I wonder if we ever worked together?”
Zach laughed. “I recognized you immediately. I worked at Via Mollo.”
Gina looked surprised. “You did? When?”
“Maybe five or six years ago. It was just for a few months.”
“Oh, was it just a temporary thing then, like this?”
Zach downed the rest of his drink and set the empty glass on the bar. “Something like that. I was just there for a few months.” He stood. “Have a good night.”
“See you tomorrow, Zach.”
He walked back toward the kitchen, and once he was gone, Emma looked at Gina. “You don’t remember working with him?”
She shook her head. “No. I wonder why he left. I’m kind of curious now.
I’m still in touch with some of the people there.
If I hear anything interesting, I’ll let you know.
I didn’t want to say anything negative earlier, but he kind of gives me a weird vibe.
He seems very tightly wound, if you know what I mean? ”
Emma nodded. “I do. He’s a bit intense.”
“So how did the night go?” Paul asked Zach casually when he walked into the kitchen the next day.
It was a quarter to four, and the evening kitchen staff hadn’t arrived yet, but Zach was there, finishing up the lunch shift.
Paul had called Emma that morning to get her take on how he’d done, and she filled him in on how the night went.
“Fine. The specials were popular.” Zach leaned against the stainless steel counter and met Paul’s gaze. “Did you hear otherwise?”
“Not exactly. There were no complaints, well, other than a few people said their scallops were slightly under done. I know a lot of places do them that way. I should have let you know that we don’t.”
“Okay, noted.” Zach sounded slightly amused.
“People liked your Bolognese but several commented that it had a different taste than usual. Did you use the recipe I left for that?”
Zach shrugged. “I’ve been making Bolognese that way for years. Never had a complaint before.”
Paul sighed. “I’m sure it was delicious. But it didn’t taste the same as the last time they had it here. Consistency is important here. It’s what keeps people coming back.”
“Okay. No worries. Anything else?”
“One last thing. Maybe go a little lighter on the heat level if you do a curry sauce again. This is an older crowd, and they tend toward milder tastes.”
“Got it. See you tomorrow then.” Zach headed out the back door, and Paul watched him go.
It wasn’t like he’d done a bad job. Zach was quick, and he was a good cook. Paul was glad to have him there to fill in for Jason. Now that he’d explained how important consistency was, hopefully that would be the end of it and Zach would follow the recipe more closely.