Table-Hopping Magic at Restaurants

Note: Although 2020 hasn't been a good year for restaurants, this is worth sharing for the future when you’re able to perform in settings like this again.

Earlier on in my career, I was a table-hopping magician at a couple of restaurants for nearly three years. Every Friday and Saturday night plus Sunday brunches, I was performing magic to restaurant patrons. A favorite time of mine was performing at the Masterson's Walnut Creek Train Station. If you're from the area, maybe you remember it. For three hours at a time, I enjoyed performing magic up close for dinner guests and bar patrons, up to thirty dinner tables of happy guests each evening, and brunch, too. I had many good lessons during this time for me because I probably performed for 9,000 or so dinner tables and more than 30,000 dinner guests. This experience was foundational in how I learned to handle audiences.

This arena of table-hopping magic is an area that I have spent much of my time performing. Whether you are entertaining in a restaurant, bar, cocktail party, or any similar event, you are performing what I like to call "quick shtick" magic. Most of your magic will be in a strolling setting, and a tabletop may or may not be present. Flexibility and quickness to start and stop (if necessary) are essential. So, you must carefully plan the magic that you have with you for these settings.

Let's talk more about quick shtick (i.e. a gimmick, bit, comic routine, performance style). Quick-time magic and the magician need tricks that can be performed in brief short routines because of the possibility of interruptions or pauses that can occur in these casual performance settings.

Now let's talk about restaurant-style table hopping. The magician is an ambassador of goodwill for the restaurant, the "delightful intruder," performing spellbinding wonders. Your goal is entertaining dinner guests without interrupting the flow of dinner. Remember, restaurants want to have as many dinner guests through their establishment as possible during an evening, so you want to be a happy asset to the establishment by not slowing down the turnover.

When should I be at the dinner table to entertain? Soon after guests have ordered their dinners and menus are taken away is an ideal moment. Now, this is a natural lull in the action, and it's often enough time to amaze the guests. Another opportunity is when guests are waiting for the dessert to be served. That's another break in the action for you. Be mindful of these key moments, especially the dynamic at the table, so that you're enhancing the moment, not making it awkward.

Sometimes, dinners take a long time to arrive at a guest's table, and the magician is a perfect tool to entertain during these unwanted lulls. It is always a good idea to make sure the wait staff knows and understands this benefit. You can increase your value to the restaurant by making their staff aware that you're available to help out in this way. Many times, because of an entertainer's value, the wait staff will earn better dinner tips; this is good for your relationship with the wait staff. You want to be of help to them. Cultivate this relationship.

You may be specifically requested by dinner guests to perform at their table. Special requests such as this are reassuring... you've got a group of dinner guests who are open and ready to enjoy your performance. Remember to visit their table for a quick hello, then be sure to choose the best time to entertain during the flow of dinner. Manage the moment by looking at their entire experience as a whole and how you best fit in.

It's important to note many interruptions take place during your time at the table, so be prepared to make pauses, and quit quickly and gracefully when needed. Be smart about it. Humor is a great way to manage these disruptive moments. From a trick perspective, this is why "quick shtick" is my go-to for these situations. Long magic routines that require a lot of time to perform are definitely not wanted in the restaurant environment. Remember, the key is to not slow the flow... you are augmenting their dinner experience.

So, let's take a closer look at how to approach dinner guests at a table. Let me start by saying I always negotiated with the restaurant to be paid a flat fee for my time entertainment at the restaurant: a specific amount of time, such as three hours a couple of nights a week. I believe it is important to be paid for your time and not work for tips. I don't think it is wise to approach the evening like a hustle. You know going in, and your motivation is that they ask you back again and again. Patrons may often wonder if you are looking for a gratuity and will feel apprehensive to you while you're at the table. I prefer breaking down this barrier to my table-side entertainment and proceed as follows...

When the time is right, I politely introduce myself and say, "Good evening, everyone; I have been requested by the restaurant manager to stop by and provide you with a little spellbinding dinner time entertainment before dinner. Now, this show is on the house and of no extra charge, so you can sit back, relax, and enjoy my table side entertainment." I always begin my magic set by doing something that needs little to no audience interaction, other than just watching and being happily led into a good time.

Magicians have asked me if I formally ask the dinner patrons if they want to see magic when I approach the dinner tables. I have always tried not to ask guests this yes/no question; instead, after introducing myself, who I am, and why I'm here at their table, I move right into the magic. If I find resistance from the dinner table, of course, I adjust and maybe abbreviate my performance, or I continue adaptively. From my own experience, I've found that if you ask that yes/no question, some guests opt to say no thank you because you're an unknown.

I always finish my show with a warm, polite message: something like, "Thank you for joining us at the restaurant tonight, and if you enjoyed my entertainment, please let your host know on the way out." It is always best that management knows directly from guests that you greatly benefit the establishment.