Restaurant Walk around is looking a little bare lately so hows about a new subject. What are some of your most awkward moments and were you able to get out of them. I'll start:


Around a month ago I was performing at a table for a Dad, his son, and the dad's very cute and well groomed date (Think Jennifer Anniston here). I had just finished the sponge ball routine and set the balls on my closeup mat at which point the son in a fit of excitement reached across the table at warp speed gunning for a sponge ball, when out of nowhere a chalk full glass of ice water barred his path. The irresistible force did not meet the immovable object as the glass was no match for this young man.The glass was knocked over and across the table and completely emptied onto dad's date's lap! She stood up, soaked (probably a 20 oz. glass) and the stage was silent and very, very awkward. I must admit that probably due to the shock, I had not a single one liner or anything. I was promptly rescued by the waitress who happened to be nearby with a towel. However I did return later to finish their show under much dryer circumstances.


Let the game begin!

I recently did a walkaround gig... two hours for a ton of senior people having a special dinner and show event.

I walked up to one table that beckoned me, particularly one woman that was simply enthralled. I performed my close-up rope routine for her as well as a sadnwich routine. After it was finished, I looked at her with a smile and said "Thank you for your time"... she just stared at me with a dopey grin on her face and gave no response... I repeated myself (it was a loud room and I feared she hadn't heard me the first time)... this time raised my voice a bit so she could clearly hear me (she had no problem talking with me during my set). Again, no response, she just stared at be blankly with that same unchanging grin. Confused, I stood there for another beat or two then finally walked away akwardly.

Was doing spongeballs about . . . i dunno 6months ago? at the regualr restruant i perform at, anyway i asked a man to help me out and hold out both his hands (he had them under the table) he said he cant?, i was confused and said why not?, then he revealed he didnt have any hands like he had lost them some how, we all took it as a joke and when i finished the routine he said if he could make 2 pairs of hands appear, we all laughed, i thanked them and moved on

(i'm winning )

Most awkward people I've had were of course the typical drunk idiots. I was working a wedding basically doing a resturant walk round and decide to try a new routine out which unfortunatly doesnt work out. Oh well! I move on swiftly but to the drunk welsh people its not good enough. The heckling starts to a point where I can't get a word in edgeways and the next table starts to join in.

Not knowing what to do I said thanks and moved to a table near them and decided to get my own back. I have a collection of what I call "screamers" - the tricks that will make anyone scream with delight! I did about 3 or 4 of these to this table in ear shot of the hecklers and I got one of them coming up to me sheepishly apologising.

Thats not too awkward but I thought I'd add it here. My really awkward one is I did a show in an OAP home. I say show it was mainly walkround stuff. I went up to one lady and started chatting to her, pulled out a set of spongeballs and suddenly she grabs hold of my arm and doesnt let go. Alarms start going off everywhere, and staff run to help me, but by this time I'd already broken free. Turns out they had brought residents from their secure unit over to see me, but didn't say. That was awkward knowing that I now had to perform in probably the most dangerous situation i've ever been in

I was doing my second restaurant gig (:D) and everything was going pretty smoothly, until near the end when I approached a table with a mom, a dad, and 2 kids. When I do pen through dollar, I usually show it to them close up for a few seconds, which I find works good for me. All the sudden, this one kid slaps the tip of my gimmicked pen off, and I've got to tell you it was pretty awkward.

Don't wave frail, close up, gimmicks in front of children

I was performing my variation of sponge ball routine in front of a family of 6 (two parents, two kids and two grandparents). After this "warm-up" routine, I was about to move on to my coin routine and one of the kids asked me "do you have just two balls?" (in his honest attempt to figure out the trick)... after three long and awkward seconds, I told him "Yes" then turned to the adults who were grinning ear to ear realizing the humor, "K, next time, I'll cut them in different shapes!"

Luckily, it was totally harmless.

That reminds me of this: I was performing for a very openly Edited man at the restaurant. And I mean flaunting it. Two things quite awkward. First, while I was talking somehow I had some spit fly out of my mouth and it landed on his face, to which he actually rubbed it and said "This is going to be a better birthday than I thought." Then during the spongeball routine he's got the balls in his hand, and you know where I'm going with this. He said something like "your balls are so soft". Let's just say that that ended up being an awkward performance.

That is HILARIOUS!

If only you had a sponge ding- dong.........

this is a very interesting topic

thank you for posting this, casmith518

im enjoying reading these storys, please keep them coming

Okay, step back.

Here is SMALL selection of moments of the awkward kind from many years ago when i worked restaurants.
And this is not including the large amounts of glasses that have been broken and wine on dresses.

1:
A woman calls me over so i wander to her table and she says "Can i pick a card ?" to which i replied with a fan and said "Of course", it was at this point i noticed she was breastfeeding. In the middle of the restaurant. I did not know where to look.

2:
While i do not particularly like performing for children there was an instance where there was a young man (probably about 10 years old) who looked rather bored and depressed so i approach the table where he and his family were sitting. I reach over to shake his hand as i introduce myself, "Hey there, i was wondering if you..." i was cut short by his sudden projectile vomit that shot across the table, wave after wave of stomach content.
My line "Would you like to see a card trick ?" turned into "Would you like to see ..... a physician ?"
His mother said 'sorry' and all i could think of to say was "That's okay, it would have been worse if he did it AFTER my act"

3:
A man calls me over and i whip out my cards ready to go, he reaches into the pack and it is only then that i notice his date. She was bawling her eyes out, big time. Tears flowing uncontrollably.
"I will come back a little later" i said.
"NO, please ? I really want to see a card trick" was his response.
"But this lady is crying, how about i send a bottle of wine over for you, on me."
"No, she's okay, show her one as well"
So i showed him a quick thing and sent over some glasses of champagne.
I started to get the impression this guy was the sort of fellow who will hire a clown at the next funeral he arranges.

4:
A man reaches into my fan of cards and plucks out a card perfectly, "Have a look at it and make sure you remember it"
His wife leans over and says
"He's blind"
How on earth he reached out and picked a card i have no idea.

5:
Working at a casino doing card magic, man purposefuly hits my deck and knocks cards all over the place, "52 pick up!!!!" he laughs.
I laugh too, then look over at security and they drag him out onto the street.

6:
On a regular little tv segment thing i had, i got a beautiful lady from another show on and i perform the Paul Harris classic, "Fizz Master" (if you don't know what this is, you shake up a can of fizzy drink and make the fizz disappear so when you open it, nothing happens. You then open another can which you have not touched and it bursts with fizz.)
Unfortunately for the camera crew and her lovely dress, the trick works too well and they are all soaked to the skin.
"Cut" i said.

7:
At the opening of a new bar, a man who had obviously had a little too much alcohol asks me for a trick. I start to perform "Ash through hand". I used to use flash paper to signal the magic but i look up and see he has a lit cigarette in his mouth. I thought it would be a good idea to light the paper directly from that, so i did. A big flash of flame and he opens his hand and sure enough, it is filled with ash, he is amazed. I look up at him and smile, pleased with his reaction then i notice something.
He had no eyebrows left. Thankfully due to being drunk, he didn't notice.

8:
At a 21st birthday party i was hired to perform at, i brought the birthday girl some flowers (as i tend to do) and heard some girls say "Oh wow, that's so sweet".
For some reason, the night is going so well i can hardly believe it. I approach the bar to get an orange juice and three guys standing together started saying "**** you" and other various intelligently put together expletives.
They walk off obviously still annoyed and giving me sharp glares over their shoulder's. I must have looked a little insulted and worried, thinking i did something wrong because a man walked up to me and said "Don't worry, i heard them complaining about you", i asked 'why' and he said "Because every girl at the table was talking about you and ignoring them."
I had to avoid them for the rest of the night.

9:
A pretty lady sitting at a table watches my magic and enthusiastically responds to the point i become suspicious. She gets up from her table and says "I want to show you something outside !" i follow her and as soon as we exit she plants a massive long kiss on me and gives me her number.
She sits back at her table and, feeling rather happy with myself, i get back to work. Then her HUSBAND walks in and sits with her.
And worst of all, he asked me to show him a trick.

10:
Wedding reception in a classy establishment. I turn up, i do not know the face of the person who hired me so i just get to work figuring i would find him sooner or later. Half an hour in, i get a call, it is the man who hired me asking where i was.
I was performing for the wrong wedding reception in the wrong restaurant.

**************

I could think of more but that will do for now.

m.

I was doing a stage routine for a school about two years ago. I was backstage before the performance, washing my hands. Just as I get some soap, the announcer calls my name! So, hoping my hands will dry, I run out to the stage. I start to perform Strat-O-sphere. So, I take the three balls, about 2 inches in diameter each, and with my hands still slippery and wet, they slip out of my hand and ROLL OUT EVERYWHERE. And so, I spend roughly 3 incredibly awkward minutes walking around the auditorium trying to find 3 plastic balls. The most awkward moments were when I has to reach under the kids' chairs.

I win now?

Never seen you here before?
What part of Sydney do you reside in ?

Incognito,
Those stories are all crazy entertaining!
That one about the wife with the husband was great! Geez. By the end of your career, you had better release a book with all of these in it, so we can all get a good chuckle out of it.

I really need to start working in a restaurant...

I approached a couple and started entertaining it seemed like they were enjoying it. By the end of the set the apparently drunk spouse was rambling on about how her husband doesn't please her anymore. I just tried to talk over her enough to get a good night in and then bolted.