The kitchen door opens and Katy walks in with a big smile on her face. She nods toward the dining room. “Tables four, five, and six are almost finished up. I know you like to make your rounds.” I don’t know what I’d do without her. She’s been by my side nonstop the past four days, trying to cheer me up. I had to make her go home yesterday. Her poor fiancé missed her.
I wash my hands and hand Noah the large bowl of balsamic glaze. “Thanks, Katy. I’ll be right out.”
Once in the dining room, I start first with table four which happens to be a middle-aged couple, drinking their coffee. When I walk over, the lady smiles at me and I smile back. “Good evening. Did you two enjoy your dinner?”
The lady gasps and holds her chest. “Are you the owner?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
She reaches out and grabs my wrist. “Oh, honey, your pork chops were out of this world. When we read the reviews, we had to try them. We will definitely be coming back.”
“Thank you so much. I really appreciate it.”
She lets me go and winks. “That August Cahill really knows his stuff. He wrote to say that he highly recommends your place.”
My stomach drops, but I keep a smile on my face. What review is she talking about? “I’m glad,” I reply. “He’s a tough critic.”
The lady nods. “Exactly. He hasn’t let us down yet.”
I wish I could say the same about me. I wish them a goodnight and head over to table five. This time, it’s a family of four. A man, a woman, and two teenage girls.
“Hello. Did you all enjoy your evening?” I ask them.
One of the girls is still eating her orange creamsicle cake and she gives me a thumbs up. “I could eat this every day,” she gushes.
I laugh. “So could I.” My thoughts stray to Adam, but I push them out. I can’t be thinking about him right now. What I really want to see is his damn review. “Was everything else good?” I ask.
The father pats his stomach. “Very satisfying. I used to think my dad made the best pork chops in the world, but I was wrong. You have him beat.”
“Oh goodness. Don’t tell him that or he’ll hate me.”
He waves me off. “He’ll hate me if I don’t tell him to come here.”
This makes me feel good, but I can’t help but wonder. “How did you hear about us?” I question curiously. “Do you live in the Chicago area?”
The girl eating her cake lifts her hand in the air. “We live in Downers Grove.”
The mother giggles and looks up at me. “We’re always looking for good restaurants. When I saw that August Cahill highly recommended this place, we had to check it out. I hear you’re booking two weeks out right now.”
Oh, dear God. She saw his review too. I plaster on a smile. “Yes, ma’am. We’re really fortunate right now. Looks like I owe it all to Mr. Cahill.”
She shakes her head. “I doubt that. You have a wonderful place here. I’m sure you did most of it on your own.”
“Thank you.”
Heart racing, I move to table six and it’s the same thing. They mention August Cahill’s review and that’s why they’re here. Once I’m done talking to everyone, I hurry to the kitchen. Camryn notices my wide eyes and grabs her chest. “No one died, did they?”
“We need to boot up the laptop now,” I say quickly. I run over to my little corner which serves as my office. I have a small desk and on top is my laptop, resting beside numerous notebooks with all my recipes.
Camryn rushes to my side. “What are you looking for?”
I open my computer and turn it on. “August Cahill’s review. Apparently, everyone in the place is here because of it. I want to see what he said.”
“What the hell,” Noah calls out. “I haven’t heard a word about it. It must’ve just posted yesterday or something.” He comes over to us and we all stare at the screen. I type in August Cahill’s name and his blog pops up. When I click on it, the review for Maddy’s Tavern is right there on the first page.
Camryn squeezes my shoulders. “He gave us A+’s on everything. He never does that.”
I want to be happy and scream with joy, but I can’t. My business is booming and it’s all because of his review. Was it the truth? Did he give us the good report because he actually liked the food? I want to be the best restaurant in Chicago, but I don’t want it that way. He can keep his A+’s.
8
Adam
Dear August, Adam or whatever your name may be,
Please remove the review you posted about Maddy’s Tavern. It’s a lame attempt to get back into my good graces and it won’t work.