A Night at the Market Cafe

We went out to the Market Cafe in Innsbrook on Wednesday to check out the band since my husband was playing there the following night for the first time. There is a vast difference between playing the Cafe on Wednesday and playing it on Thursday. Namely, people. Wednesday we couldn't find a place to park because there was a show at the Innsbrook Pavilion, and even the Market Cafe was packed. I don't understand that. Why go there instead of the Pavilion?

On Thursday, without a show at the Pavilion, I think we just drew a few tables of people who knew the band somehow and few if any dinner or drinking regulars. You wouldn't go to the Cafe for dinner anyway unless you like dried up hot dogs and wilted salad bars. Parking was plentiful, unfortunately, but fortunately, you don't play for the door, but unfortunately, the Market doesn't pay a lot, but why should they when they couldn't have made that much money on food or beer. We were there five and a half hours and my husband made $45, so that's $8.18 an hour. I love the music business.

When we pulled up, John said, "Well, so much for the easiest load-in ever," because you could pull up right behind the stage, but there's no gate on the back of the fence. No problem. Everything was hoisted over the fence except the new bass amp which I wheeled down the sidewalk and then pushed through the patio maze of chairs. It was like playing Frogger.

The Market sells you a literal bucket of beer, a tin bucket full of ice and whatever. I remember Moondance used to sell you a bucket of Rolling Rock, but the buckets were smaller. These were big buckets, complete with a can opener. You could get a variety pack bucket with all sorts of things in it. That's cool, but I don't drink, so no bucket for me.

We were home about 10, which is great. I hate getting home at 3 a.m., especially on a school night. It was a very pleasant night, and being on an outdoor patio is a nice place to hear music, especially with no neighbors around to call the police.

My next outing probably won't be until September. My husband just booked a gig running sound for a band playing at the Bleu Bistro. Last time I was there, it was the Jewish Mother on Quioccasin, or maybe whatever came after. I've got my fingers crossed for something that isn't bar food. The band is Delilah Jones, a Grateful Dead cover band. I'm definitely going to need something more than chicken fingers and a paper cuplet of honey mustard sauce.