3D – Opening Day Pt. 5

After the lunch rush, there was a welcomed lull. It lasted for several hours. Jonathan wasn’t used to lulls as Sky High Cafe was always buzzing with activity. However, he remained calm and resolved to observe the activity over the next few days to see if he needed to make adjustments. Around 4:00, another rush began. Jonathan was surprised to see how many people ate dinner so early, but he welcomed them all. Among them was a very special person whom Jonathan did not know was special.

“Good evening! Welcome to Viviana’s! I’m Jonathan, the owner.”

“My name is Ciera Kohler, and your restaurant better live up to its reputation!”

Jonathan thought that was an odd start to their conversation until he realized who she was—a restaurant critic! “Reputation? Already? Our first day must be going better than we imagined, he he.”

“Hmph! You should hope so, Mr. Pruett.”

Aylin, the hostess, showed Ciera to her table and assured her that Savannah would be right with her. While she waited, she stood up and looked around, noting every little thing she saw for the article she would write when she left. Man oh man was she detailed!

“…hallway to the kitchen…artwork…unfinished brick…”

“…fish tank, no fish…”

When she was done taking all of her notes, she put her notepad down and enjoyed Viviana’s just as any other patron would.

This place is really nice!

“Hey, Tiana,” Skyla said. “I just want to give you a heads up that a restaurant critic just came in.”

“Oh joy,” Tiana said sarcastically.

“I know. I don’t want to insult you by asking you to do anything different, but I just thought you’d appreciate knowing.”

“Thank you, Mrs. Pruett. I appreciate not being insulted. However, I think I will slow down and make her order carefully.”

“Thank you, Tiana.”

Meanwhile, Savannah was taking Ciera’s order.

“Good evening. My name is Savannah, and I’ll be taking care of you tonight. May I start you off with something to drink?”

“Aren’t you sweet,” Ciera said.

“Spell your name for me please,” Ciera asked.

“Uhhh…S-A-V-A-N-N-A-H.”

“And your last name?”

“Tucker. T-U-C-K-E-R.”

“Thank you. Ok! Where were we?”

“Your drink order,” Savannah said trying to keep her patience.

“I would like a glass of white nectar. But not just any white nectar. I would like a sweet nectar with just a hint of tanginess at the end. And I want it to be fruity!”

“Fruity?”

“Yes! With hints of other fruits in it! While you’re here, I know what I want to eat, so you may as well take it all down.”

“Yes ma’am. What would you like?”

“A burger! But not just any burger. I would like a burger done medium with melted Monterrey Jack and lettuce, tomato, no condiments on a lightly toasted focaccia bun. And please make sure the cheese is melted.”

“Anything else, ma’am?”

Ciera looked at Savannah and blinked a few times. “No. That will be all.”

Savannah could feel her eyes rolling and turned around to report this order to the kitchen.

Some people just love giving others a hard time…

It was getting late, and Skyla sent a text to her girls. She told them that they would be home soon and to make sure they had completed their homework before they went to bed. Savannah came in with the critic’s order.

“Ok, here’s the order from the queen, and I quote, ‘I would like a glass of white nectar. But not just any white nectar. I would like a sweet nectar with just a hint of tanginess at the end. And I want it to be fruity! A burger! But not just any burger. I would like a burger done medium with melted Monterrey Jack with lettuce, tomato, no condiments on a lightly toasted focaccia bun. And please make sure the cheese is melted.’ End quote.”

“Oh, is that all? She doesn’t want much, does she,” Tiana said.

“Now now, ladies,” Skyla said. “Some people are picky eaters, and this one can make or break our restaurant, so…please keep your heads.”

Meanwhile, Ciera was tweeting about her experience at Viviana’s.

I love pretending to be a hard llama butt. Viviana’s is cool. Check it out!

Skyla figured she should give Tiana some privacy and went to meet this hard nosed critic. “Good evening. I’m Skyla, the…” She started to say ‘the owner’s wife,’ but in light of Jonathan’s impassioned speech that morning and the praise she received in the afternoon, she knew he would want her to identify herself as an owner. “I’m one of the owners. I’m glad you’re dining with us tonight.”

“Why thank you! Everyone is so kind and attentive here! I can’t stand it.”

Just then, Savannah showed up with the meal. “Here you are! Enjoy…and let me know if you need anything.” She didn’t really stick around to see if there was anything she would need. Luckily Skyla was there.

Ciera seemed to be very excited about her meal. Almost like it was the first thing she had to eat all day or something.

“I hope you enjoy, Ms. Kohler.” Skyla left her to enjoy her very particular burger to tell Jonathan all that he had missed. He opened the bar back up again during the dinner rush.

“So, how did it go with the critic?” he asked.

“She’s still here, actually, but she’s eating now. It took her like two whole minutes to make her order!”

They both laughed.

Needless to say, despite Ciera’s serious behavior, she really did have a good time. She told Skyla that she would write a four star review when she got home and she would return soon—not as a critic. Skyla quickly did the math in her head. With a four star review from a critic, they should end the day with a 3.5 star restaurant! However, she wanted to wait and see what the daily report came up with.

Finally, the end of the very long, exciting day came, and everyone was ready to go home. Skyla helped Savannah clean up while Jonathan told all the ladies what a wonderful job they did. When all the work was done, all Jonathan could do was throw himself into Skyla’s arms. They did it!

“I love you, Sky. I couldn’t have done this without you!”

“I love you too, Jonathan. Are you ready to go home?”

He pulled away from her and exhaled a sigh of relief. “Yes. Yes I am!”