At your service

Jack and Dan’s Bar & Grill at 1226 N. Hamilton has a history worthy of its landmark status.

According to legend, the business began during Prohibition as Louie’s Snappie Service. Customers placed orders over the phone, and – snap! – buckets of suds were dispatched via motorcycle.

Lightweight boxer, coach and future beer distributor Joey August bought Louie’s in the mid-1940s and renamed it, appropriately, Joey’s.

It changed hands again several times – owners included American Legion baseball coach Ernie Pupo – but the moniker remained until 1975, when long-time partners Jack Stockton and Dan Crowley got around to personalizing their pub.

Jack and Dan’s popularity grew along with the NBA career of Stockton’s son John. Sports Illustrated designated the watering hole one of the nation’s best, a reputation confirmed by the occasional pilgrimages of sports celebrities.

Today, Jeff Condill and Kevin MacDonald own the business, which since 2004 has included a full restaurant.

Earlier this month, Jack and Dan’s earned another distinction. The Washington Restaurant Association’s Spokane chapter named its manager, Ed Eschenbacher, bartender of the year.

During a recent interview, “Big Ed” described the challenge of being a fun host while also protecting patrons from their worst instincts.

S-R: Where did you grow up?

Eschenbacher: All over Washington – Port Angeles, Moses Lake, Connell. But I’ve been in Spokane a long time.

S-R: What were your interests as a teenager?

Eschenbacher: Art. Then architecture when I got a little older and realized I wasn’t a very good artist because I wanted things to be exact.

S-R: How about sports?

Eschenbacher: I was pretty good at basketball. I played on the USA Junior National Team in Europe.

S-R: What was your first career?

Eschenbacher: After I finished Spokane Community College’s two-year architecture program, I went to work for a firm downtown. But I only lasted about six months.

S-R: Because?

Eschenbacher: Sitting in a cubicle all day was boring. So I asked some friends who worked at the downtown Onion restaurant if I could host a couple of nights a week – blow up balloons, talk to people. Within a few days I was promoted to food runner, then server, then bartender. I only had two shifts a week, because I was still full time at the architecture firm. But I was making a couple of hundred bucks a night in tips and I liked it more. So I thanked the architecture firm for the opportunity, and off I went.

S-R: Who taught you bartending?

Eschenbacher: My co-workers at the Onion back then – Steve Demuth and Mike Ladyman. Steve liked everything very orderly, and Mike was easygoing. I learned things from each of them.

S-R: What was the toughest lesson?

Eschenbacher: How to cut someone off (who’s had too much to drink). That’s never a fun experience, because you’re trying to be the fun guy, and I was a 22-year-old telling someone older what to do.

S-R: How do you know when it’s time to quit serving someone?

Eschenbacher: Everyone is different. We deal with a lot of students at Jack and Dan’s, and a kid can walk in who just drank a half a bottle of Jack Daniel’s in his dorm room. You give him a Bud Light, 10 minutes later he’s passed out on the floor, and you’re thinking, ‘Wait a minute, that wasn’t from one Bud Light.’ So it’s more about managing the situation as it happens.

S-R: What might you say?

Eschenbacher: We have 18 beers on tap, and some are pretty strong. If a guy slams down two of those in 10 minutes, he’s not drinking for taste. So I may say, “I’m not kicking you out, but let me get you a water. Just hang out for a while, and we’ll see how you’re doing.”

S-R: Do you get a lot of people turning 21?

Eschenbacher: Every day.

S-R: What’s a popular 21st birthday drink?

Eschenbacher: The big one right now is called a Tidal Wave. It’s two shots – not very strong – one blue, one clear. After you pour it, you ask them to close their eyes as you describe a beautiful tropical beach scene. With their eyes still closed, you have them drink the blue shot first, then the clear one. Then they get a pitcher of water tossed in their face. (laugh) It’s very funny, because all their friends know what’s coming – it already happened to them. And the first thing they do afterward is figure out which friend is turning 21 next.

S-R: What makes a good bartender?

Eschenbacher: Organization, multitasking, and what I call it “the reveal.” I can have 10 open cans below the bar, but all the customer sees is a clean bar with a napkin and their drink on top of it. Most professions have their own version of the reveal.

S-R: As bar manager, what are your responsibilities?

Eschenbacher: Scheduling employees. Preparing for special events. Keeping a punch list for the owners, so they know what supplies to order and what needs fixing.

S-R: How has bartending evolved since you started 14 years ago?

Eschenbacher: Technology has affected how many tasks we can handle at once. Before I started at Jack and Dan’s seven years ago, it was cash only. This St. Patrick’s Day, we ran 538 credit cards. Another change is drink flavors. Before, we might have added five ingredients to make something taste like strawberry. Now you just buy strawberry vodka. There’s even chocolate chip cookie dough vodka.

S-R: What do you like most about your job?

Eschenbacher: Interacting with customers. We have a very eclectic clientele – everything from people who own major local companies to college kids eating Top Ramen, all hanging out and getting along. And occasionally we get people like (ESPN analyst) Digger Phelps and (sportscaster) Dick Vitale. When WWE was in town, all the professional wrestlers ended up partying at Jack and Dan’s.

S-R: Who tips best?

Eschenbacher: People who work in the industry. We’re open until 2 a.m., so we get a lot of employees from surrounding restaurants who come in after their shift.

S-R: What’s the hardest part of your job?

Eschenbacher: I have 26 employees, so my phone goes off all day – someone forgot about a final exam or a soccer game. They’re all great people, but balancing their lives can wear me down. It’s like having 26 extra kids.

S-R: Are you the one who fills in when someone doesn’t show?

Eschenbacher: A lot of times.

S-R: How many hours a week do you work?

Eschenbacher: Probably 45 to 50 on the clock. But if we have a big banquet, I stop by to make sure everyone knows what they’re doing. And when I’m home answering text messages and juggling schedules, I’m not clocked in.

S-R: How long can you keep up the pace?

Eschenbacher: My wife and I talk about that. I’m usually in bed by 2:30 or 3, then up by 6 to get our two daughters ready for school. I try to take a nap after I drop them off at school, but the lack of sleep takes a toll.

S-R: What qualities do you look for in employees?

Eschenbacher: Honesty, and how they handle the interview. Are they making eye contact? Are they speaking clearly? A lot of young people who apply aren’t used to talking face to face. But you can’t do this job from your cellphone.