24 Mar Getting to know Tokyo Bird: Su – waitress

This week we’re getting to know Su, who you may have met at the door or at your table at Tokyo Bird. Sadly (for us), Su returns back to her native US of A after spending a few months in Sydney. We’ll miss you, Su!

Su, what’s your role at Tokyo Bird?
I’m the waitress/that blonde chick/the Asian girl with the American accent. I try to make sure that thirst is always satiated – all with a smile.

Su from Tokyo Bird

Tell us about your industry experience – how did you get started in the hospitality industry?
NYC is home and NYC is expensive. I’ve always insisted on being financially independent so at some point, I needed two jobs. One involved cutting out people’s hearts and lungs, and the other was working in a yakiniku restaurant. The rest is history.

What’s your alcoholic beverage of choice?
Whenever I’m back home, I have makgeolli (Korean rice wine) and whisky every Thursday night. I can’t wait to go back to good habits.

Suntory Kakubin Whisky at Tokyo Bird, Surry Hills
(Photo by George Hong)

What’s your favourite food item at Tokyo Bird?
The drinks – it’s a bar, no? Have you seen the mini-meal the You May cocktail could be? Jokes aside, if I had to choose something from the food menu it would be the cherry tomato + shiso. I’ll eat just plain shiso – I love shiso!! And I’ll happily eat a fresh tomato like it’s an apple. But overall, I think it makes a great palate cleanser for a kushiyaki meal.

Describe a typical day in the life of Su.
I haven’t had a typical day since 2006. I travel a lot, so my life tends to lack consistency. Having a place in Tokyo Bird for the past few months is the most regular my life has been in the past decade.

What do you like to do outside of Tokyo Bird?
I like to just wander and get lost – preferably somewhere pretty. Oh, and eat. I have this insatiable visual and gustatory curiosity. So an ideal day for me would consist of walking amidst great architecture, a quirky crowd, breathtaking nature or fun art and nibbling in wonder.

What are some of your life goals and ambitions?
I don’t really have those. I used to, and then realized that they didn’t make me happy. I’m not really one of those goal-driven people. I’m more one of those live and live well sorts, whatever that means. So now, I just try to do what feels right and be true to myself.
But perpetual short term goal: DOUGHNUT.

What’s something that most people drinking at Tokyo Bird wouldn’t know about you?
I’m not a natural blonde. OK, really. I’ve summited Mt. Kilimanjaro, white-water rafted down the Nile River, trekked up to Everest Base Camp, fished for piranhas in the Amazon River, hung out with silverback apes in the jungles of Rwanda, trespassed Petra, hitchhiked from Laos to China, and been one of those idiots in the running of the bulls in Pamplona

But I have yet to get a driver’s license. LIFE STUFF: 1, SU: 0