It had been less than fifteen minutes when I heard my first interviewees walking up the stairs, and I silently thanked George for being so efficient with the whole task. As the door opened, I looked up from my desk at the two men standing in my doorway. "If one of you could wait on the chair in the hall, please? It won't be more than a few minutes."
Silently, they did as I asked. Into my office walked my first candidate for a new bartender. "I'm Hannah Abbott, owner of the Leaky Cauldron.
He shook my hand. "Daniel Grein. Pleased to meet you, Miss Abbott."
"Please, sit down," I said, glancing at his resumé. "I see you've been a bartender at various taverns for three years; tell me about that."
"It's a great experience," he started with a smile. "I like—"
"Not about being a bartender," I interrupted. "I'd like to know why you've worked at seven different taverns in such a short space of time.
"I waste a lot of good alcohol," he said easily. "I like to experiment, and sometimes those experiments don't work too well." He laughed. "Actually, a lot of times they're damn disgusting. Anyway, I know this could be a reason not to hire me, seeing as it's the first thing you asked about, so I would like to propose a solution. If I waste your liquors, they come out of my paycheck. You might even get a few genius mixes out of it, if I do say so myself."
This guy seems like he might know something worthwhile, and we haven't changed the drink menu in nearly three years. "Thank you, Daniel. I'd like you to head downstairs and mix something for Vieira; it will be whatever she asks you to make. She'll be evaluating your mixing technique. I'll be in contact with your references and you'll hear from me within the week. Thank you."
"Thank you, Miss Abbott. I look forward to hearing from you."
If the rest my interviews went this well, I could be done before noon. If none of them went this well, at least my decision would be a hell of a lot easier.