BUZZ off, eh!

PlazaBUZZ Bob is going to take a little time away from his blogs... like a week and a half... you can handle it, I know you can.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

810's Weekly Sports Flop

It astounds me every single week how much 810, self-proclaimed sports bar, irritates the hell out of those that come in to watch the games. I've ranted about a similar instance before which you can read here. This weekend totally took the cake...

It started well when I walked in a little bit before noon with all of the games already slotted into the televisions. The first set of games went well and then the insanity started.

For a full half-quarter, none of the 3pm games were being broadcast on any TV anywhere in the bar. Half of the TVs were blank, in fact. There were 5 games in action.

One of the larger big screens is split into four games. I lost count after those 4 games being shown had been moved around 8 times in 30 minutes. For most of that time, there were duplicate games being shown on the big screen. They never broadcast the Falcons/Vikings game on any screen the entire afternoon. When I asked for a TV somewhere to be changed to the Falcons game my server said that her manager was TOO BUSY to make the change (The place was maybe 33% full).

When I asked again and complained about all of the games being moved from TV to TV, my server said that she would have a manager come talk to me and we could figure it out.

NO MANAGER EVER CAME TO CHAT WITH ME.

To top it all off, three of the five afternoon games came down to the last few minutes... the Eagles/Skins, Broncos/Bills and Falcons/Vikings... when those games where in the throes of outcome, they flipped the big screen from a four game split screen to a single game forcing everyone to frantically look for the other games elsewhere. Fortunately, I had the Falcons on my table TV so I only had to search for the Broncos on another TV.

810 absolutely blows as a sports bar. I've been to many in my life and it is absolutely the worst one that I've ever attended.

EVER.

Laugh Your A$$ Off! Literally.

Just met @andienns on Twitter and she recognized the opportunity to have the PlazaBUZZ broadcast an event that is taking place this Friday, 12/19:

FREE LAUGHTER YOGA, 6pm
Plaza Wellspring, 49th & Main in US Bank building
Call 816-931-6533 for more info.

I'd go check it out if I didn't already have a function that evening! So, if you go, then let the BUZZ know how it went!

I Missed Out on FREE Hugs... BLAST!

"Walking the Black Dog" blogged about some peeps giving out FREE HUGS on the Plaza last weekend and I missed it.

Ohhhhh RUE!

Who's Got the Best Fish Tacos?

@alsamuelson wants to know... Fish Tacos at:

• McCormicks?
• Extra Virgin?
• Grand Street?

What say you, BUZZers?

Personally, I'm VERY partial to a lovely little place with an ocean pier view that rests at the end of Newport Avenue in Ocean Beach (OB), San Diego called "South Beach." But, that's just me.

The Reason for Little BUZZ...

I've not been doing much other than writing my book. A few days ago, after basically locking myself in the condo for two weeks, I was chin-scruffy, the dishes were stacked up, the bathroom needed cleaning and the trash was overflowing. I took the weekend off from the book and fixed most of that stuff.

I didn't know what book I was writing until I wrote it. When I finally read it from cover to cover, I realized how to strengthen the themes and bring fluidity to it. I realized what story I wanted to tell.

I'm currently through 100 pages of the rewrite. Book is 250 pages and just short of 80,000 words. I anticipate that it will grow to be no larger than 85,000 words after this rewrite. At that time, those of you on the edit list will be getting an email from the main character, Soupy Heller.

Soupy created a Twitter account last week. He's not active yet, but if you'd like to add him, feel free to follow @soupyheller.

Why Can't I (S)wipe at My Table?

I'm sure y'all heard about the waiter on the Plaza (Brio -- Oooo, That Smell!) let was convicted of credit card theft last week. If not, kansascity.com reports...

"John David Woody, 34, appeared in federal court Thursday on an indictment that a grand jury returned in secret on Nov. 18."

"Prosecutors alleged that while working at the Brio Tuscan Grille in July and August, Woody recorded the names and credit card numbers of five restaurant customers. He then used that information to purchase goods on the Internet, including thousands of dollars worth of DVD boxed sets."

Now America, in other parts of the world they bring the swipey credit card machine thingy to your table so that the card never leaves your sight. We're a country of innovators and we can't prevent this simple crime?

Funny what things we overly-control and what things we don't, ya know?

West Plaza coated in snow

Pictures from West Plaza on this blustery winter day. Yes my dog is wearing a coat.

West Plaza Bernstein Project Update

More info on the construction dealio on the Plaza West side... whatcha gonna get?

From GlobeSt.com's Robert Carr:

Bernstein says, "'My sons and daughters are starting to take over the business, and I want to have a legacy building, something that everyone in the area will be proud of,' he says."

This, my friends, is what will make them proud...

• 205,000 sq ft of office space
• 131 hotel rooms
• 6 levels of underground parking (1000 spaces)
• 9000 sqft restaurant
• 12,000 sqft advertising museum
• 270 seat theater
  
• Bernstein offspring & their ad agency
• TBD retail

That's kinda hot. We should have all of this by the Fall of '09 if work begins this week or next as stated in a PlazaBUZZ post last week (oddly enough, I never gave the FREE used ear plug away). I'm all tingly inside.

Any bets on whether any of this stuff will be local retail? I thought not.

A Quick Plaza History

Excellent article from William Worley and the KC Tribune about the history of the Country Club Plaza:

"What is not quite so clear is whether Nichols himself or his electrical and maintenance engineer, Charlie Pitrat, actually came up with the idea. The distinctive building that today houses M & S Steakhouse was quite remarkable in its early years. From the start, Nichols planned to get all he could out of his commercial buildings at the Plaza. When the Mill Creek Building opened as “the Suydam Building” in 1923, the 2nd floor housed no fewer than five boutique businesses—all operated by women."

A quick read and a must read.