Galaxy Bar at Eka Hotel offers refined service with great ambience

Last time I was at Galaxy Bar at Eka Hotel I had an appalling experience. The barman was not only rude but was an absolute pain.

He took his sweet time to take orders; concentrating instead on some Caucasian tourists across the bar, he was aloof and standoffish.

Naturally, I was incensed because I’m a journalist and we are spoilt, aren’t we? We take bad service personally. We see it as in insult and we feel undignified as professionals. So we get mad and we get even.

That night I put away sleep for an hour and wrote a scathing cry-baby review, spitting on my laptop about how horrible and atrocious the service was and how the barman was a swollen tick. Then I went to sleep breathing hard.

Then I woke up in the morning and sat and re-read my review again and then deleted the “swollen tick” comment and tapered down the vitriol because it was looking somewhat deranged, vindictive and completely cuckoo. What was left of the review after the final edit was that The Galaxy Bar was terrible. I was happy with it.

I e-mailed it to my editor and I went on with my life. I had done my good deed of that week, weeding the world off bad bars and close-eyed barman who deserved public flogging.

Recently, I went back to Eka Hotel and as usual you usually gravitate towards the crime scene, don’t we, fellas? I was dying to see if the barman was still there so that I write another piece of how establishments just don’t listen to lifestyle journalists anymore and how they deserve whatever comes their way. When I got there the barman was gone. There were new faces; the head barman looked like he had worked in Dubai mixing cocktails.

He went about his job in a silent and professional way; said very little, giving even less eye contact but was very adept at what he did. The rest of the waitstaff were swift and friendly. I was chuffed.

That night was busy. I had a couple of drinks before dinner. The bar was packed for a Wednesday. (You see what happens when you root out barman who imagine their are investors?) I also made a discovery; outside seating.

For warmer nights you can actually sit at the balcony that overlooks the park. It’s got large lounge seats, ideal for small intimate groups who want to have some air and maybe smoke. I had a swell night. I ate some fantastic chicken wings. I was happy with the service and the ambience and I appreciated the fact that sometimes things have to get so bad in order for them to get better.