AN EXCERPT FROM "THE DOOR WHORE"
Confessions of a Restaurant Diva
My name is Ivy Zingara, I am the door whore, and this is my story.
A door whore is not actually a whore as one would commonly think of the term. In restaurant lingo, it is a derogatory term describing the female who greets you upon entering a fine dining establishment. Of course, most diners would probably view that person as a hostess. If you have ever been employed in a restaurant, you may have heard the expression door whore or perhaps the term bitch up front may be the more common title. Whatever the case, that was me for five years.
Please bear in mind that I was not your run-of-the-mill door whore. Au contraire, I was the ultimate door whore! I owned the establishment. I created it, named it, designed it; controlled the reservation book; hired, fired and trained the staff; and battled with the kitchen whenever necessary. I named my creationSentimento and diligently worked to make it fabulous. It was a dream come true for me and I was more than willing to work the eighty to one hundred hours a week to keep it running efficiently. I have often felt that in many ways, owning a restaurant is much like having a naughty child that demands your constant attention. And like the ocean, you should never turn your back on it.
I maintained my position at the podium regardless of exhaustion, illness or injury for five tumultuous years, as I experienced the quintessential emotional roller coaster ride of a lifetime. The restaurant business is truly a twenty-four/seven operation at least, if you plan to do it correctly.
You must be present all the time and every day, because without fail, there is always a crisis du jour! This may range from something as innocuous as only receiving half your linen order to the more serious problem of running out of fish on Good Friday. Oh yes, and then there's always the potential of something disastrous happening, such as a waiter or chef being incarcerated in New York City on a Friday or Saturday and requesting bail money from you.