Hey Jason- Long time, no speak...It sucked from the perspective of an 18 yr. old, whose only other "legit" job up to that point had been working at Marin Joe's. I didn't fully realize it at the time, but working at Joe's was like being wrapped up in a warm blanket, surrounded by loving family, and, of course, great food. The "Old Man", aka Uncle Adolph got upset with me because he didn't like the way I peeled onions, so he canned me. Two days later, I was hired by Victoria Station to work "back of the house" cold prep. Compared to Joe's, this joint was rediculously oppressive, very up-tight, and corporate. They fed the help crappy stews and "cassaroles", litterally made from yesterdays trimmings and waste. At Joe's, I had free reign of anything in the house, either on the menu, or all I could dream up and cook myself. The only exceptions were the really expensive steaks and the cheesecake. You could honestly eat all you wanted, any time you wanted. ( heaven! ) Just don't bug the line cooks during rush. So, after a short trip to reality (Victoria Station), I was done with those monkeys. I showed up at the back door of Joe's, and was welcomed back with open arms. Needless to say, I was a bit more carefull with the onions after that. Another great aspect of Joe's was how I would hang out at the bar after hours. Dinner was done, the bar would be closing soon, so a handful of employees would hunker down, mix cocktails, fire up stogies, and play Liar's Dice till the wee hours. Love is where you find it! Try that at Victoria Station!
I was an original employee of that Victoria's Station. I was on staff on opening night. The place sucked, real bad sucked, so I also have the distinction of being the first employee to quit. I guess you can get away with stuff like that when you're a kid. When the joint was under construction, their signature railroad rolling stock and a steam locomotive were sitting around, waiting for the ground to be graded level. A freind of mine's father, who was a major rail buff, asked the foreman on site if he minded if he removed a few "artifacts" from the cars. Foreman says "help yourself" ( unbelievable! ) So, he snagged lanterns, seats, even the pot-bellied heating stove from the caboose. He said even the desk drawers in the caboose were still stuffed with pencils and paperwork! He managed to get the builder's plaque off the locomotive. Big, heavy, thick cast brass. Around 10" x 12". "Baldwin Locomotive Works", and the year of construction. Unbelievable!
I work in the Wood Island Office Complex in Larkspur ( two office buildings on a hill next to the Ferry Terminal) and remember when it was corporate headquarters for the Victoria Station restaurant chain. It was started by 3 guys from Cornell University who were sports jocks, so they put a full sized basketball court in the basement of the building. There was also a Victoria Station restaurant right across the street on E. Sir Francis Drake Blvd.
