In reference to a Nov. 25 article about Highwood’s The Alley restaurant rebranding as 210 Restaurant, a recent letter to the editor disparaged free live music as a discouraging trend.
In our case, it is quite the opposite. The music is free to our guests. It is quite expensive to us. The only way for us to provide exceptional quality music is to forge long-term relationships with professional musicians. Professional musicians get paid and get paid well. We cannot attract national and top local acts without taking great care of musicians.
Only on rare occasions is an act not paid. Recently, we were contacted by a jazz group who wanted to be in our rotation. They did an unpaid audition and we loved them. They are booked for dates in January and February as a paid act. For us, the cost of live music is a line item expense, like purchasing food, liquor or flowers. The regular guest hosts of our Sunday night blues showcase, J.B. Ritchie & Joe Moss are in the Chicago Blues Hall of Fame. They don’t play for free!
Several musicians in my regular rotation called me after reading the letter in the Dec. 17 edition and were outraged anyone thought they would play for free. In response to Meredith Colby’s letter, we have been getting it real and will continue to support our brethren. Here’s to seeing you at 210 Restaurant where we pay the musicians so you don’t have to.
Jeffrey Tomchek
Proprietor, 210 Restaurant
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