BY THE WAY: WIATERS SPICE UP S. CITY DINER

Usually, I don't pay attention to waiters or waitresses unless they do a lousy job.

But there is one restaurant in St. Louis where the people who wait on tables do a good job and still make one wonder how they ever got hired.

A friend of mine told me about the South City Diner when I paid a visit a few weeks ago. It sounded interesting enough, so we decided to take a chance.

The place, which is open 24 hours a day, has plenty of character and charm. Customers look like they come from every walk of life. Many regular customers seem to have the menu memorized.

Perhaps the Bohemian decor has given the waiters and waitresses reason to believe they can express themselves any way they want.

There are old-fashioned swivel stools permanently planted in front of the counter. The only air conditioning comes from ceiling fans.

You can order breakfast at noon or meat loaf for breakfast. There is a blue-collar look amid soft strokes of elegance. Items like mimosa, which is a combination of champagne and orange juice, give the place a splash of sophistication.

The owner wears his shoulder-length hair in a ponytail. At first glance, he might be mistaken for someone who is still clinging to the '60s. But I found out he is very much in tune with the '90s way of doing business.

When a customer started to get unruly, the owner didn't hesitate to let the man know this behavior would not be tolerated. After some discussion, the customer was escorted out of the diner and told he was not welcome back.

Our waitress on this day said her name was Torre. It's not hard to find Torre in a crowd. She has long dark hair that flows evenly over her shoulders. Oh, one more thing. She dyed one side scarlet red.

I wondered if perhaps Torre was trying out a color she planned on using for Halloween. Not exactly. It seems Torre didn't like the way her boss treated her when she showed up for work one day. It seems he had a problem with her wearing a ring on every finger.

"He thinks it's gaudy," said Torre, rolling her eyes as she said this. "I thought I could find something a little more gaudy than that. We'll see who wins this one."

We liked the place so much we went back the next day. This time Torre was wearing her scarlet oh-hair-a and "gaudy" jewelry. "Guess who won the battle," Torre said with a look of triumph. "Next week I think I'll go with Maudlin Mauve or Purple Passion," Torre said with a look of mischief.

On Sunday the place is so busy that the owner hires part-time help. One part-time kid, who looked like he wasn't old enough to own a driver's license, walked up to my friend and said, `Hi Mark.' Only problem: my friend's name is Steve.

"Have you seen Juno lately?" queried the kid. "No, can't say that I have," said Steve, who wasn't the least bit phased by this. "I would really like to get Juno to teach me the rope game," said the kid, who went by the name of Nick.

Good thing this place doesn't use Nick at night.

Torre walked by our table and said she had the quote of the day. The quote was a handwritten message that filled one side of a piece of notebook paper and half of the other side.

It was well written, but somber. We complimented Torre on her creative writing ability. "Huh? Oh, that's not mine," she said. "I got that out of an Ann Rice novel. Love her stuff. Just love it. Say, do you guys think I would look good in Purple Passion? Now be honest."

~Bill Heitland is a staff writer for the Southeast Missourian.