Jeff Burkhart: It costs nothing to be kind

Frankie Frost/IJ archive

We were done for the evening. The last tables in the dining room were now standing in the foyer saying their goodbyes. Pictures were being taken and backs were being slapped; there was even a hug or two.

I took a moment and popped in the back kitchen to wipe down the last remnants of the last espresso. One thing you can always count on is that the last drink order is highly likely to be the most difficult, or the dirtiest, of the evening — as...