Yes, it’s true My first crush was in the back of the house. My first crush was the dishwasher who was promoted to prep cook and then sous chef.

I remember one day we both worked the breakfast and lunch shift and he took me for a ride on his motorcycle. I was stiff and awkward and it’s a miracle I didn’t dump that bike as we rounded the big curve on the road.

There was a certain type of chemistry when I heard the ding calling my food was up. I never found that chemistry on the line again –that flirting. Being sweet on someone behind the line certainly made life easier. There were definitely perks. Forgot to ring in an item? need something on the fly – it was never a problem… but gosh help me if I messed up and had to ask our crusty old chef for a redo.

So thirty years later I’m a little bit better at riding on the back of a bike. And when I go in the back of the house, which I do from time to time, I have to smile and remember.