andyfox
11-05-2003, 01:24 AM
A fellow 2+2er and I made plans to meet for lunch today. Last time, we met at Commerce and, though we may have met for lunch, and even sat at the same lunch table, and ordered at the same time, his lunch somehow ended up in the twilight zone. So today we decided to meet at The Bike. I’ll call my buddy Jim because, well, his name is Jim.
The Bike is lovely. Much quieter than Commerce, nicer with nicer people, more rooms between the tables. Rick Nebiolo runs the mid-stakes section and he's a wonderful person and a wonderful manager. The restaurant is way nicer. And the food is much better. And when two people order at the same time, the food generally comes at the same time. It did again today.
Though he’s a fellow 2+2er, Jim and I have rarely played together, despite the fact that he’s delightful company and a joy and a pleasure to be with. We play at different stakes and besides, two many 2+2ers at a table spoil the broth. But we had decided to play together today.
We both got into the ongoing 6-12 table. Since I play at higher stakes, of course I would show them a trick or two or three. Give 'em a lesson, as it were. So the first hand I play I fold the winning hand (pocket kings) on the turn. The second hand I play I make the nuts (a straight) on the river and check behind versus a lone opponent. He says, “two pair,” I say, “good” and when he tables his hand I look at mine and turn it face up, conceding the pot. It is pointed out that I have a straight and I apologize to my opponent as they pass me the pot.
He didn’t accept the apology too gracefully. I suppose I could have pointed out that I had saved him $12 (or possibly $36, since he turned out to be an inveterate thin check-raiser on the river, once putting in 4 bets on the river against two opponents who both obviously had flushes when he had just a set [and, believe me, if it was obvious to me, it was obvious]), but I knew how he felt. It’s almost worse to lose another big bet knowing you’re beat than to save money and then have some idiot take the pot not knowing he’s won it.
Anyway, next hand he flops a set and gets beat by runner-runner and after losing (this is the hand he put in four river bets) another player who was uninvolved in the hand asks to see his cards. Ouch! This makes him quite unhappy, given what had happened the hand before with me, as you can imagine.
There was really only one other person who wasn’t happy in the whole club. This compares favorably with Commerce where, if one of the mid-limit players walked into a party with Adolph Hitler and Osama Bin Laden, people would say, “Ugh, here comes that Commerce player.” This other person was complaining that his tray table, on which food and drinks are served, had disappeared. He asked the porter who took it. The porter, apparently not possessed of psychic powers, said he didn’t know. So the waiter was summoned. Neither did he have a satisfactory answer. So the floorman was dispatched. The floorman said he would get him the desired table pronto.
This man then wanted his free coffee, which had disappeared with the aformenentioned table, brought back to him. But not quite yet. He wanted the table first. And then he wanted to order sand dabs. But after the table. And after the coffee. In due time, the table arrived and this man put three paper cups onto it. Nowonder he needed the table forthwith. Each had a straw. One looked like cola, the other like 7-up or Sprite. I couldn’t tell what was in the third, but the vote would have been for arsenic had a referendum been ordered.
Jim and I wanted to give the porter $20 to take the table away while the guy wasn’t looking, but we then thought the better of it, since neither of us are in prime running condition. Presumptuous of me, I know, to speak for Jim here, but I'm just taking a wild guess.
Meanwhile, Jim manages to lose a pot with pocket Aces on a flop of J-3-3 to an opponent with K-Q. Then we both started to run bad. I got lucky on a couple of hands, including the last one I played (7-6 UTG, yeah, I know) when I rivered a straight and got called in two places (including by a flopped set of 8’s who never raised) and cashed out a modest winner.
Jim couldn’t buy a pot, or not very many anyway, by the time I had to leave, but he was still a delight and a joy and a pleasure. I hope he made a bit of a comeback. When I left, he walked with me to my car, despite the fact that he had the button. That’s the kind of guy he is.
Anyway, if you play at low or medium stakes in L.A., I heartily recommend the Bike. It's a wonderful place to play, much nicer than Commerce, provided you don’t take any tray tables away. And if you get to meet and play with Jim, despite the fact that you won't win much money from him, it will be a delight and a joy and a pleasure. As will talking with Rick.
Thanks for the nice afternoon, guys.
The Bike is lovely. Much quieter than Commerce, nicer with nicer people, more rooms between the tables. Rick Nebiolo runs the mid-stakes section and he's a wonderful person and a wonderful manager. The restaurant is way nicer. And the food is much better. And when two people order at the same time, the food generally comes at the same time. It did again today.
Though he’s a fellow 2+2er, Jim and I have rarely played together, despite the fact that he’s delightful company and a joy and a pleasure to be with. We play at different stakes and besides, two many 2+2ers at a table spoil the broth. But we had decided to play together today.
We both got into the ongoing 6-12 table. Since I play at higher stakes, of course I would show them a trick or two or three. Give 'em a lesson, as it were. So the first hand I play I fold the winning hand (pocket kings) on the turn. The second hand I play I make the nuts (a straight) on the river and check behind versus a lone opponent. He says, “two pair,” I say, “good” and when he tables his hand I look at mine and turn it face up, conceding the pot. It is pointed out that I have a straight and I apologize to my opponent as they pass me the pot.
He didn’t accept the apology too gracefully. I suppose I could have pointed out that I had saved him $12 (or possibly $36, since he turned out to be an inveterate thin check-raiser on the river, once putting in 4 bets on the river against two opponents who both obviously had flushes when he had just a set [and, believe me, if it was obvious to me, it was obvious]), but I knew how he felt. It’s almost worse to lose another big bet knowing you’re beat than to save money and then have some idiot take the pot not knowing he’s won it.
Anyway, next hand he flops a set and gets beat by runner-runner and after losing (this is the hand he put in four river bets) another player who was uninvolved in the hand asks to see his cards. Ouch! This makes him quite unhappy, given what had happened the hand before with me, as you can imagine.
There was really only one other person who wasn’t happy in the whole club. This compares favorably with Commerce where, if one of the mid-limit players walked into a party with Adolph Hitler and Osama Bin Laden, people would say, “Ugh, here comes that Commerce player.” This other person was complaining that his tray table, on which food and drinks are served, had disappeared. He asked the porter who took it. The porter, apparently not possessed of psychic powers, said he didn’t know. So the waiter was summoned. Neither did he have a satisfactory answer. So the floorman was dispatched. The floorman said he would get him the desired table pronto.
This man then wanted his free coffee, which had disappeared with the aformenentioned table, brought back to him. But not quite yet. He wanted the table first. And then he wanted to order sand dabs. But after the table. And after the coffee. In due time, the table arrived and this man put three paper cups onto it. Nowonder he needed the table forthwith. Each had a straw. One looked like cola, the other like 7-up or Sprite. I couldn’t tell what was in the third, but the vote would have been for arsenic had a referendum been ordered.
Jim and I wanted to give the porter $20 to take the table away while the guy wasn’t looking, but we then thought the better of it, since neither of us are in prime running condition. Presumptuous of me, I know, to speak for Jim here, but I'm just taking a wild guess.
Meanwhile, Jim manages to lose a pot with pocket Aces on a flop of J-3-3 to an opponent with K-Q. Then we both started to run bad. I got lucky on a couple of hands, including the last one I played (7-6 UTG, yeah, I know) when I rivered a straight and got called in two places (including by a flopped set of 8’s who never raised) and cashed out a modest winner.
Jim couldn’t buy a pot, or not very many anyway, by the time I had to leave, but he was still a delight and a joy and a pleasure. I hope he made a bit of a comeback. When I left, he walked with me to my car, despite the fact that he had the button. That’s the kind of guy he is.
Anyway, if you play at low or medium stakes in L.A., I heartily recommend the Bike. It's a wonderful place to play, much nicer than Commerce, provided you don’t take any tray tables away. And if you get to meet and play with Jim, despite the fact that you won't win much money from him, it will be a delight and a joy and a pleasure. As will talking with Rick.
Thanks for the nice afternoon, guys.