On March 15th, 2020, the Governor of California, Gavin Newsom, ordered the closure of all wineries, nightclubs, brewpubs, and bars in the state to prevent the spread of Coronavirus. The closure was initially anticipated to be temporary, but it was longer. I’m Traci Ramos, a bartender in San Francisco, and this series follows my story of when I lost my job due to the pandemic. Through interviews with bartenders, servers, owners, and other professionals in the service industry, I’ll shed light on how the pandemic affected the bar and restaurant industry in San Francisco.
Episodes
Friday Feb 24, 2023
Friday Feb 24, 2023
It’s February, and we are in Black History Month, technically still in a pandemic, so wear a mask and get vaxxed.
A shout-out to one of the first renowned African American bartenders Tom Bullock. He bartended at the the St. Louis Country Club. Tom is responsible for about 150 cocktail recipes, and he wrote a guidebook that contained these recipes - the Ideal Bartender, which was Published in 1917. The book has now been republished. Thank you, Tom Bullock, for contributing to the bartending world.
My first international guest, Bonnie Awesu! All the way from London. I met Bonnie when she lived in San Francisco. We both worked at this disgusting restaurant and bar in the Mission neighborhood. The restaurant is Cha Cha Cha - which is no longer there. We reminisce about working together and discussing lockdown in the UK and wage theft.
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Check out my site - Traci Ramos
The Socials;
#blackhistorymonth #tombullock #idealbartender #podcasters #sanfrancisco #london #pandemic #wagetheft #rats #cockroaches #missiondistrict #mannersmatter #sangria #smallplates #friendscatchingup
Sunday Jan 22, 2023
Sunday Jan 22, 2023
Happy New Year!
Happy Dry January - However, there is more of a mindful drinking outlook.
The term mindful drinking is a term that I learned from my guest, Joshua James. Josh owns Ocean Beach Cafe, one block away from the ocean on the Richmond side of Golden Gate Park. Josh uses the term mindful drinker or mindful drinking when he speaks about nonalcoholic beverages and a nonalcoholic lifestyle.
I started hearing about Josh and Ocean Beach Cafe around 2021. There were articles about the first nonalcoholic cafe, bar, and bottle shop in San Francisco. I was intrigued because I wasn't familiar with any establishment with an NA bottle selection and beer selection. So, I finally made it to Ocean Beach Cafe and tried the Good Buzz Daisy NA cocktail. I was impressed; it's good. The cafe has a mellow, relaxed, and friendly vibe. Please go check it out.
https://www.friendshiphousesf.org/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TA1A0MiHqVQ
https://www.oceanbeachcafe.com/
#mindfuldrinking #mindfuldrinker #HeyBartender #Friendshiphouse #Joshthenonalcoholic #dryjanuary #oceanbeachcafe #nativeamerican #TolowaDee-ni #hawaii #newyork #awakebar #ceriabrewing #northcarolina #athleticbarandpopup #sansbar #rehab #pandemic #sanfrancisco #richmonddistrict
Saturday Dec 31, 2022
Saturday Dec 31, 2022
It’s New Year’s Eve 2022.
I hope this past year has been a good one for you all. I hope you’ve been safe and healthy.
For me, I was back behind the bar; it had been almost two years away from bartending for me. It was a little weird slinging behind the stick but overall a good feeling.
I want to thank my guests of 2022 for taking the time to be a part of BoozeNation. Thank you, Fredric, Krystal, Sydney, Scottie Jeanette, Lauren, and Freedom.
For my last episode of 2022, I’m switching gears a bit.
I’m talking to my first DJ on the p-cast.
Phraze Vader
You have to have a solid sound in your bar in your establishment - it’s a make or break for me,
I met DJ Phraze Vader this year when he was spinning at a bar I work at.
I instantly loved his sound. It’s soulful, groovy, and funky with a little bit of old school.
So cool.
In this interview, you’re going to hear a bunch of cackling in the background, which is me laughing because Fraser is pretty funny.
#TooShort, #E40, #SnoopDog, #WarrenG, #DogPound ,#NileRodgers #Chic, #StevieWonder, #sanfrancisco, #oakland, #Charlotte, #DeadPrez, # reggae, #house, #funk, #soul, #dancehall, #ska, #thespecials,
Wednesday Sep 21, 2022
Wednesday Sep 21, 2022
Today's episode is about #TheBear. It's on #Hulu, and so many restaurant and bar industry people have been talking about this show. I have to say I was late to The Bear. Basically, I don't trust anything on TV to get it right. There have been a few movies and a few TV shows here and there about the restaurant industry, and they miss it by a mile. You know every chef is spotless, the kitchen is super clean, no one is dirty, no spills. And that is bullshit. So, I was skeptical of the show. Then I started to see articles in the Atlantic, Bon Appetite, and the New York Times about how #TheBear showed the manic and toxic environment that restaurants can have. And I got hooked on the show and binged it one setting. That's how good I thought this show was and, more importantly, how I thought this show got so much right.
So today, I'm talking to San Francisco Chef Freedom Rains.
Freedom has worked at restaurants such as Boulevard, Incanto, Flour, and Water and now is Executive chef at Amano in Hayes Valley. And we get his take on the show and restaurants in San Francisco.
#alicewaters
#jeremiahtowers
Tuesday Jul 19, 2022
Tuesday Jul 19, 2022
Welcome back; this is BoozeNation The Podcast.
Happy July - which means we are in a post-Roe world right now. I don't know where to begin with about the decision and what it will mean for the future of women in this country. I'm saddened, disgusted and pissed!!!
Having said all that, I will now switch gears and switch this on a positive note. And talk about the highlight of my week. And the highlight of that awful week was my discussion with my next guest, Scottie Jeanette Madden. And usually, I speak with people directly connected to the bar and restaurant industry, bartenders, servers, front of the house, back of the house, all those peeps.
But this episode, I'm doing something a little different because Scottie Jeanette is a television writer, director, and producer. She's also on the board of directors of DTLA proud. She directed the documentary Proud In A Pandemic, which is about the pandemic and how it affected some of the queer bars and queer communities of downtown LA. Now, Scottie Jeanette worked in bars as a bar back, back in the day. So I felt that that gave her a lot of street cred in the bar industry world.
What I appreciated so much about Scottie Jeanette is that she is just so honest about her journey professionally and personally, which showcases her strength and intelligence throughout the interview and beyond the interview as well.
www.zuzubean.com/ted-talk.html
www.dtlaproud.org/proud-in-the-pandemic
Tuesday Jun 21, 2022
Tuesday Jun 21, 2022
Happy Pride and Happy Juneteenth.
And yes, we're still in a pandemic, and on June 2nd of 2022, Alameda county has issued a mask mandate, so please wear masks; I mean, it's the least you can do. Thank you!
My next guest is bar owner Lauren Jamieson owner of Lofi Laboratories, from my old neck of the woods, where I grew up - Modesto. Yes, Lauren is my first guest with an operating business in the Central Valley. And since I started this podcast, I've wondered about the restaurant/bar industry in other parts of California, the States, and the world. And now, after a year of podcasting, I finally get to talk to an owner outside of the city. I want to read a quote from Lauren when we were first talking about the Industry and the podcast.
"I would argue that we are the oldest profession—preparing/offering food & drink. I believe in this Industry, and it is a pleasure to support and promote it in any way."
Cheers!
Instagram - @loficocktails
Thursday Apr 28, 2022
Thursday Apr 28, 2022
My next guest is my first out-of-town guest—Los Angeles resident – Sydney Croskery. Sydney is a server at a five-star hotel in LA, can’t and won’t say which one. She is also an awesome artist who has a show coming up in Santa Monica and we’ve been friends forever. We met way back in the day in San Francisco when life was good and gas was cheap kind of time frame. And we had so much fun with the group of friends that we hung out with, it was seriously a special time in San Francisco. I’m so happy I got to see and experience San Francisco with this certain group of people. And Sydney and I worked together for a brief moment at an Italian restaurant in North Beach. So happy to reunite with Sydney and there may be a couple of times when we get off-topic and start talking about the “olden days” but so what. Also, Sydney and I are both Californians, and you may not be able to tell us apart when we are speaking in the Californian way. But again, too bad.
Instagram - @sydneycroskery
Wednesday Mar 23, 2022
Wednesday Mar 23, 2022
Welcome back to BoozeNation The Podcast!
In honor of Women's History Month - I'm talking to bar manager Krystal Jackson. Krystal is the bar manager of Victory Hall in San Francisco's South of Market neighborhood. We talk about our early days in the restaurant business, what it's like to work in a corporate restaurant, and the lack of diversity of bartenders in San Francisco.
I met Krystal while working at the Hotel Utah Saloon, which is South of Market on 4th and Bryant. Krystal was working across the street at Mestizo, which was a restaurant and, taqueria and bar with a lovely little patio.
Krystal would come into the Utah after her shift, maybe during her shift, and have some well-deserved Jameson. Krystal has such a mellow and calm demeanor, just real chill. I always enjoyed her company and her energy when she was in the bar.
Then the pandemic hit, and everybody went in so many directions that I lost track of my coworkers, neighbors, and customers. So when I was walking in my neighborhood in the Inner Sunset and peeked into Pacific Catch and saw Crystal working there, I was so surprised and happy to see her. Again, I love this reuniting thing!!
Thursday Mar 17, 2022
Thursday Mar 17, 2022
Happy St. Patrick's Day!!!!!
It is a big day for drinkers and a big day for bartenders!!!!!!
Listen up as I give a very brief history of St. Patrick, shout out a few facts about the day and listen to a few of my friends recount their St. Patrick's Day memories.
Also, an Irish proverb is in the episode for my friend EB. Happy St. Patrick's Day EB.
Have fun and drink a lot for me, I won't be going out this year!!
Remember no blood, no vomit!!!
Thursday Jan 27, 2022
Thursday Jan 27, 2022
Happy New Year!!!!
OK, I'm a bit late. So what!
My guest today is sweet Frederic Tarmis!! We chop it up about growing up in Paris, vacationing in Guadeloupe, traveling to Montreal, and crossing the border from Canada.
I met Frederick when I was working at this bar called the Buck, which was on Market Street, it's no longer there, and it was long gone before 2020, so it was not a casualty of the pandemic. Frederic lived above the bar and would come down and hang out and shoot the shit and drink his luscious Belgium beer. He was always so polite and had great manners, and I just really appreciated it. Manners matter! One of the nice things about this podcast is that I've been able to reconnect with people I haven't seen in a while. Even though it was on Zoom, I still felt like we got to catch up in a meaningful way.
Best French accent out there. Merci Frederic