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Blatherings From The Editor Monthly Seat Lunches Restaurants With SEAT membership pushing 200, there are definitely some things that have to be considered when looking for and scheduling a suitable restaurant for a SEAT lunch gathering. When club membership and the resulting turnout to a SEAT lunch was pretty small, any good restaurant would do. Our growing club membership and lunch participation has changed that for sure. Most restaurants are really pleased when called and asked if the BMW Motorcycle club is welcome to come for a Sunday lunch. The first thing they ask is, “How many people will there be?” Tough question, depends on the weather, other events, rally schedules, holiday weekends, visiting relatives, and so on. Then we get to ask the question, “How many people can you seat and serve on a Sunday morning?” Anything less than 50 means they are probably too small. And even so, we have swamped a few restaurants that could “…handle 50, no problem.” Galleano’s in Benson comes to mind. Rebs, just down the road, got the overflow business that Sunday. Or how about the Crossroads Café in Sonoita that even put their visiting relatives to work and couldn’t handle the number of SEAT members who came. Location is also important. A restaurant out of town, on some good riding roads, is ideal. Small towns or villages on back roads usually have a restaurant or two. Some of these can pack in a pretty hefty Saturday night crowd. Keep in mind that most of those folks are standing up, not the same when it comes to a sit-down meal. Ambience. Finding a restaurant with motorcycle ambience isn’t easy. There are lots of bars that cater to the “ride-to-bars” crowd, but not many restaurants. The Kick Start had to be one of the best motorcycle motif restaurants around. If you haven’t heard, the Kick Start closed its doors. I hope John finds another location to open back up. Good food has to be part of the equation as well. We’re not talking The Ritz here, just good food with good service. The Stage Stop Hotel in Patagonia was a good place to have a lunch…until it took three hours to serve us one Sunday. The cook quit, bummer. One last consideration…what are we and any other SEAT members up to that weekend. For example, the Deming Veteran’s Gathering in November. Makes it very convenient for SEAT members returning from Deming to eat lunch in Benson. The July lunch will be in Globe. If you are going to the MOA National, after lunch just keep on going north…that’s what Wanda and I are planning on doing. So don’t be discouraged if you come to a SEAT lunch and find it a bit crowded. Take the opportunity to talk to and get to know some of your fellow SEAT members while you wait. Rest assured we really do look for restaurants that can sit and serve a bunch of SEAT members. You know of any? Deryle and Wanda, always looking.
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