Be Kind & Unwind
Our hospitality industry workers and service industry workers don't have it easy. They are often on their feet for long shifts, interacting with the public, and ensuring that everyone around them is having a good time.
When it's time to head out, having a post-shift wind down ritual helps them to shake off the rigors of work so it doesn't follow them home.
Some New Orleans bars that are open to all are highly cherished by service industry workers. These bars are open late nights and into the early morning hours, ready to take in the worn-out worker whenever their shift ends and have a cold drink and hot food waiting for them.
The late Igor Margan knew what it took to cater to the hotel workers, restaurant staff, and bartenders who needed a place to unwind after a shift. He opened several notable 24-hour bars and grills, complete with washing machines, including Igor's Check Point Charlie on Esplanade Avenue, Igor's Buddha Belly on Magazine Street, and Igor's Lounge & Game Room on St. Charles Avenue, open since 1974.
Any time you enter the red light-drenched Igor's Lounge, you'll notice a few people enjoying a shot and a beer before heading off to work or just getting off. Bartender and Manager Emily Beck has catered to her service industry peers there for 14 years. "I get here at 10 a.m., so I'll get people coming in that are just getting off from work that will come in and it's their 5 o'clock. They'll come and they'll have their chill out drinks, then they'll go home and go to bed at 11 a.m. or noon. That's just their schedule."
Though habits of the patrons have somewhat changed since the pandemic due to a decrease in Warehouse District/CBD office activity, regulars come in from all walks of life to have a friendly chat and maybe some of Igor's famous food. Beck said, "As a bartender, what you're doing all day is talking to people, trying to make them feel comfortable, make them feel welcome. I need at least 20 minutes to stare at my phone and not think. I feel like a lot of service industry workers are like that, we just need a minute after hosting for eight hours—a decompress point, you could call it."
The French Quarter has always been the hub of revelrous activity, which requires a lot of high-energy staffers. Pounding music, demanding customers, and busy lunch and dinner rushes can take a huge toll on someone day after day. The Jimani, on the corner of Chartres and Iberville, immediately became a service industry spot when it opened in 1971. "We opened six months before the Marriott Hotel was finished. That being said, that's where the service industry bar came into effect, because when my dad was building the place, they were building the Marriott. He'd go across the street and say, 'If you need cold beer today, I need someone to help [fix something at this new bar]. So that's how it started," Jimmy Massacci remembered.
Massacci began tending bar for his parents there at the age of 15, and the family knew that they would always have loyal customers if they catered specifically to the needs of the area's workers. He continued, "The service industry [is made up of] average, everyday American kids. My dad and mom decided we're going to make it like their living room. So when they get out of work, they can come in here and relax and not have to worry about all the stuff you have to deal with when you're working. You need to vent somewhere because maybe you've had a long eight-hour, 10-hour shift. What we do isn't easy all the time."
This work can be even more taxing during large-scale events such as Carnival season. The bars that typically provide respite become raucous due to their locations, quick food, and service industry-friendly prices. "There is no wind down during Mardi Gras—not for me," Beck said matter-of-factly about her bar on the parade route. "I'm either behind the bar or in the back cooking burgers. I guess I go out into the alley and escape humans for a minute."
An earlier Mardi Gras can mean a totally different experience, however. Massacci explained, "The later the Mardi Gras, the more spring break kids. The people who come to the earlier Mardi Gras have a little bit more money and don't want a billion people in the streets."
The tide of customers also ebbs and flows according to wins and losses of beloved sports teams. "People don't realize the potential effect that sports teams have on the service industry person. If the Saints are winning, LSU's winning, it's a good weekend. If they lose, everyone goes home quickly. You can tell how the city goes up and down with that," Massacci said.
From the Alibi, Three Legged Dog, and the Jimani in the French Quarter to Verret's, 45 Tchoup, and Igor's Lounge Uptown, service industry bars are needed refuges for our hard-working hospitality industry employees who keep the good times rolling. Massacci concluded, "There's 3,300 liquor licenses in New Orleans. You can stop anywhere to get a drink. When someone comes to a service industry bar, a late night dive bar like Jimani, there's a purpose. We are the reason why they're supposed to have a better time when they leave."
