It's the story of a 90s rave concept that moved me out of tech and into the bar business. In bars and restaurants, we like to pretend it's all about margins, menus, and inventory. Let's be clear: If you don't master those things, you won't be open long. However, if that's all you master, you won't be open much longer. I was in the rave scene in the 90s. I didn't really look like your typical raver. At every party I went to I looked more like the son of a state senator who was tagging along with one of his friends to "see what it was all about." I was trying to grow a tech business at the time, but man, I sure did love that scene. I loved the energy, the music, and the people. They were usually outcasts and misfits who found each other through a love of the music but also because they just wanted a space where they didn't have to be around a bunch of assholes. It wasn't about going somewhere to get drunk and try to get laid. It was hippi...
Where logic goes to die and the bar business begins. Observations on the hustle, the jokes we tell to survive it, and why the 'whatnot' is usually the most interesting part. Rick Dobbs is cocktails and chaos. Equal parts.