OK Here in the U.S. it was Mother's Day, a day to show our mothers, if they are still living, how we love them. For restaurant magicians it is THE DAY, the busiest day of the year and where we can make some serious tips.

I have 2 restaurants every Sunday and pjut in over 8 hours today. I made, on tips alone, over $100 per hour PLUS my fee from the restaurant. BTW NEVER, repeat, NEVER work a restaurant without charging a fee unless it is a one shot audition. Not bad to make over $1200 in one day. Yes I am tired and yes I am bragging but you should know that if you follow advice and perform magic, you can make a living at it.

Peter

Paddy, when you go to a typical table what effects do you perform?

I am thinking about picking up a restaurant gig this summer (just one, though--too old to be away from home and family that much) and I have been working on my "possible" routines pretty heavy for nearly a year. I can do Andrews' Table Hopping Cup and Balls (and Vernon's Classic routine--not great for a restaurant), sponge ball, and a bazillion card effects (I have two of Harris' AOA volumes, 4 Ammar ETMCM, Secrets of Brother John Hamman, Some Skinner, Vernon, Sankey, etc.) I am not real flourishy, but the stuff I do is good. Right now the heavy-duty work I do is in front of screaming 12 to 14 year old kids in groups from 3 to 20, under pretty extreme conditions. I handle heckling with a smile and I seem to fool most of the people I do effects for,

If I had to list something close to a routine, I would do:

Triumph
That's It (Kills kids and adults)
Las Vegas Leaper (Kids love this)
Several Quick and great Hamman effects
Whack the Pack (Harris)
Sponge Balls
Table Hopping Cups

Not a routine, but some stuff I can do on a moments notice. I have about 20 other affects that I practice regularly. This is not my whole repertoire, but stuff I can do in my sleep.

If I don't do a restaurant, I need to start some real parties. I really took B Magic’s advice and decided to put at least a serious year of work perfecting things before I even thought about doing this. I will visit some of the local ring magicians, who work in restaurants, to see what they do, too.

Any help you could suggest would be appreciated.

Chris, those are perfect!! Plus have some other effects, I use 12 to 18 different effects so that I can change from table to table. I stay 2 to 3 minutes per tab le and then move out.

Peter

I thought this would be true... I bus tables at a restaurant right now, and on Mother's Day we were incredibly busy. I thought to myself... "Working as a magician tonight, I could practically take the rest of the month off!" But the key word is magician, and until I feel I am qualified(though I feel I'm pretty close now, I want to have some pretty solid job security), I'll wait. Thanks for all the advice you give us here Peter. Though you can sometimes be harsh, you tell it like it is, and that's how it needs to be done. I respect that.