Ash you
IF I'M on an early shift, I jump on a bus near my home in Neasden to travel the six miles into work. Otherwise, if I'm working a late shift, which starts at 4pm, I go by car, as I usually don't get to leave until around 3am.
I love my job. Never once during the past 25 years have I not looked forward to coming in to work.
We have five bar staff, including me. There are usually only two of us on duty at any one time, and maybe three during our busiest time, 6-8.30pm. In the morning we set the bar up and get all our mise en place ready for opening at 11am, but we rarely get any customers in before 11.30am.
Lunch trade has changed enormously since I've been here. Customers don't drink as much as they used to. They are more health-conscious and concerned about driving. They are also more focused on getting back to work.
Years ago, we didn't serve any food in the bar, but now people want a quick snack and a little wine. We serve dishes such as chicken satay, deep-fried coconut prawns, grilled veal sausages, cod and chips, and all sorts of sandwiches, Whatever it is, it's got to be quick.
We stay open all afternoon, but business can vary tremendously. On Fridays, we can be rushed off our feet all day. I usually get a chance, though, to escape at about 2pm for a quick bite to eat in the staff canteen.
As bar manager, I have to attend food and beverage meetings and get involved in training, but what I love best is being with the public. Some guests may stay here five or six times a year, so over the years I've got to know some of them very well and they are like friends now. We have regulars who come from all over the world - Cyprus, the Middle East, Hong Kong.
Evening trade is much more consistent than lunch - it's remained very busy over the years. Our speciality is now cigars and single-malt whiskies. People might have stopped smoking cigarettes, but cigars have become fashionable in the past two years. It is a trend that has come from the USA, with the opening there of many cigar bars. We were one of the first three or four specialist cigar bars to get on the bandwagon in this country.
We sell 32 different cigars, ranging in price from £8 to £25. They are kept in a humidor to ensure a constant temperature of 65-75¼F and a constant humidity. Most of them come from Cuba, but we also have a few from the Dominican Republic. We sell about 30 cigars per day.
Our most popular range of cigars is the Cohiba, but we also sell Partagas, Romeo & Julieta, Montecristo, Punch and H Uppman. We even have our own private label. Most of the cigars are bought by men, but more and more women are smoking them these days as well.
Our selection of malt whiskies is extensive - we have a total of 75 single malts available. Our biggest sellers are Glenmorangieand The Macallan. Most customers taketheir whisky neat, maybe with just a dash of water.
Business in the evening is always very busy until around 9pm. Things quieten down as people drift off to dinner, but usually liven up again around 10.30pm as they come back.
A lot of local residents have joined our members' club, which allows them to use the bar until 2am. Other non-residents can't drink after 11pm. Residents, though, can stay as long as they like. Big parties may stay until 4am, but the latest I've been able to get away is 6am - not good if I'm on an early shift that morning.
I have a lot of energy and don't carry any extra weight, so being on my feet all day, and sometimes all night, is not a problem for me. I'm just as active at home - I have threechildren, aged 16, 14 and 10, who keep me very busy. But I do play the occasional round of golf. neref
