The Burger Joint

Monday was the first full day in the city. We started early, as in leaving our hotel at 6 am to get into the city and in position for the first training session at 8 am...whew, that is an early start on East Coast time!

We had some time in between sessions and had to cross from the west side to the east side, so we opted to visit a few stores, say hi and grab a bite to eat. Eric promised Pete the best burger that he has ever had for lunch , so off we went to The Burger Joint, located behind a giant orange curtain in the swanky Le Parker Meridien. The hotel staff there has GOT to hate this place, as it queues up in a giant line that snakes around the lobby. The only marker for the restaurant is a small neon sign on the wall, although that monster line of people is a big help.

This place to me is a study how to do everything possible to keep customers away...and then experience amazing success as a result. Cash only. If you don't know your order when you get to the front of the line, go to the end. Bossy, hand-written signs stating that if it isn't on the menu, they don't have it. Impatient, rude employees who would as soon hit you then give you a receipt...in my world that would be called a customer complaint, here it is considered part of the experience.

Not being a burger eater, I was thinking that I was going to end up eating fries for lunch because there was NO WAY that I dared to ask for a custom item. Thankfully, there was a piece of notebook paper taped to the back of the register that displayed a menu, including a grilled cheese sandwich, whew!

I ordered quickly, pissed off the cashier by asking for a receipt for my $10 grilled cheese and fries, and got lucky by finding a booth that opened up just as we were looking to sit down. We spent the entire meal marveling at how the owner (we assumed, anyway by the way he was yelling at everyone) gets to do whatever the heck he wants, advertise nowhere and sit back to count the money as people line up each day to throw their cash at him.

We SERIOUSLY need to figure out how to make this magic happen for ourselves!