People

Best Waitress: Paula Ropp at Pancake Pantry

She’ll bring you coffee, juice, and pancakes with remarkable promptness and unusual precision. Paula never, and we mean never, mistakes (or makes a mistake on) an order. But if you expect that order to come with a smile, you’ll go home hungry. You have to earn Paula’s love, and it’s a tough love to earn. You better make sure you look her in the eye on all occasions. And if you ask for something twice, she’ll tersely inform you that she heard you the first time. But if you do work your way into her good graces, she’ll be your biggest fan. She keeps up with what’s going on in your life and keeps you up to date on hers. She hugs you when you’ve been away and asks about your friends. If you keep it real with Paula, she greets you each morning with the warmest smile east of Julia Roberts. Of course, if you’re on anything less than your best behavior, she’ll kick your behind.

—M.P.

Best Priestly Waiter: Ben Albert at Sasso

He brings the bread; he pours the wine; he creates the setting not just for a meal, but for communion’s sacred space. In the priestly hands of Sasso waiter Ben Albert, dinner is a downright sacramental experience. Don’t worry, he won’t preach to you, but he’ll interpret the menu with homiletic eloquence. And if you ask him to, he’ll even marry your wine.

—B.F.W.

Best Server Serving the Best Beer: Jeanine Baker at Blackstone Brewery

Jeanine Baker is a wife, a gardener, a great human being, and a damn hard worker. And it just so happens that she has ready access to arguably the best beer in town. (We’re particularly partial to Blackstone’s Red Springs Ale.) Jeanine never lets her customers reach empty before asking if they want another round. Everyone lucky enough to be sitting at one of her tables should give Jeanine a salute—and a big tip. When she finishes her shift, she likes to sit at the bar and unwind. Buy her a beer, and light her cigarette. You might learn a little something about cauliflower.

—L.M.G.

Best Dishwasher: Carl P. Hall at Provence Breads & Cafe

It’s been 28 years since Carl P. Hall first put his teenage hands into dishwater at the old Soundtrack Lounge on Division Street. Now his résumé reads like a history of Nashville eateries. Sunset Grill, Mario’s, Tony Roma’s, London Fishery, Sportsman’s Grille (formerly Spats), TGIFriday’s, Applebee’s, the old Nine Point Mesa on Music Row—all have benefited from his tireless professionalism and incredible positive attitude. He’s plying his trade at Provence Breads & Cafe these days, but to call Carl just a dishwasher is sort of like saying Michael Jordan was just a basketball player. Like “His Airness,” Carl does it all—helps prep food, stocks the walk-in, deals with vendors, deep-cleans the kitchen, assists with deliveries—just about anything that’ll keep things running smoothly. And oh yes, he washes dishes too. Hundreds of ’em. Flawlessly. Spotlessly. And when you hear that distinctive baritone voice say, “Tighten it up!” that means Carl’s coming through with his broom, and you’d best be on your toes. He’s truly a Nashville original.

—M.B.

Best Initiative From Mayor Bill Purcell: Affordable Housing

The mayor’s impact on the current shortage of affordable housing in Nashville has yet to be felt in any large way. But it may yet. And in any case, give him credit for identifying such a people-friendly initiative off the bat.

—L.M.G.

Best Mayoral Personality Trait: A Sense of Humor

It’s no wonder that during his younger days Bill Purcell was a wisecracking columnist for his college newspaper. Say what you want—we certainly will—about the mayor’s acutely political and sometimes downright mean-spirited nature, but Purcell can tell a joke or weave a tale to make even the grumpiest curmudgeon crack a smile. That storytelling talent is often used at the expense of some poor schlub, but still...he could have answered another calling in radio or talk-TV as a sort of Garrison Keillor-meets-Dennis Miller personality.

—L.M.G.

Best Mayoral Intimate: Deputy Mayor Bill Phillips

Talk about having to put out some fires. Maybe Bill Phillips—the first so-called deputy mayor in Nashville history—ought to become the next fire chief. A former journalist and loyal Republican, Phillips has to know a little bit about a lot of things and to play bad cop for a mayor who’s difficult to please. He’s charming at the same time that he’s caustic, and funny at the same time that he’s serious. And, not least importantly, he gives good quote. L.M.G.