Through the eyes of a Fargo bouncer
Bar ‘doormen’ stand at the ready
Even though a doorman can be personal and make the customers feel welcome, being assertive is necessary.
“ You have to be able to kind of throw your weight around a little bit,” Thompson said. “You have to be able to do whatever it takes at the time,”he said.
The most difficult part of a doorman’s duties is handling customers who shouldn’t be in the bar, Thompson said. If a customer is acting offensively or picking fights with other customers, the doorman has to lead the person outside.
All jobs can have their dirty moments. A doorman can see strange behavior during their job that isn’t normal at other job places.
“ You never seem to get used to cleaning up puke or toilets overflowing,” Thompson said.
One unusual night involved Thompson yelling at the customers because they were standing in two inches of gray water, or toilet water. People continued drinking late into the night oblivious to the idea of what they were actually standing in while Thompson tried to mop up the water.
Every bar has its “regulars,” or people who arrive everyday in the afternoon and stay until early evening. Once in awhile the regulars can get out of hand, Thompson said.
“ They’ve been doing it for 40 years and then think that they own the bar,” he said.
Fighting is a rare thing to see for Roberg. Even though he has worked at Rooters Bar for more than two years, Roberg has only seen one bar fight. The incident involved a rowdy bachelor party that “got out of hand.”
“ It was the only time I had to drag someone out the door,” Roberg said. “Most of the time people do listen to me.”
Thompson has seen more fights at Mick’s Office than can be counted on his hand.
“ I’ve gotten hit a few times,” he said. “There’ve been times when there’re seven fights at separate times in a night.”
Almost 99 percent of the time, a doorman’s job can be entertaining and simple, Thompson said. The rare moments of chaos are just one part of the job a doorman learns to love.