Radio Guys at Lunch
Matt Seinberg

Two men walk into a restaurant for lunch, having never met before. They have lots of friends and acquaintances in common. Still, they didn’t know this fact, yet.

No, there wasn’t a priest, rabbi or minister at the bar. Nor where there are any talking dogs, frogs or other animals. In fact, the bar was empty, as was the rest of the restaurant, except for two veterans of the radio wars.

I had lunch, today, with Pat Gillen. He’s is a news editor for All Access, run by our common friend, Joel Denver. Whenever I needed a mention for Big Apple Airchecks, I knew I could always count on Joel and Pat to publish something

As it turns out, Pat only lives about 10 minutes from me. We decided to have lunch and play “Who Do You Know In Radio?” After a quick handshake and hello, the game started. Names started flying fast and furious. I won’t bore you them, but the amount was vast and quite impressive. Of course, Pat, who has been in radio much longer than have I, won the game, which is pretty much as I expected.

Pat and I had lunch at Smokin’ Al’s, in Massapequa, New York. For those readers who tune in weekly, you will remember the columns last year about my quest for good BBQ in which Smokin’ Al’s had one bad, and one good review. I am happy to say that they once again passed the good food test today.

I had the Carolina Pulled Park sandwich. Pat had the sliced brisket. Smoking Al’s signature sweet sauce was deep, in both dishes. By the end of the meal, the sauce dripped from my hands and chin.

One of the reasons we got together was talk about planning a cocktail hour or dinner for radio people working on Long Island. We know some men and women, in radio, on Long Island, but not enough. We’d like to meet more of them.

The tough part is finding a time and date that works for everyone. My preference is a Friday or Saturday night. Depending on how many say they will attend determines if we just meet in a bar or restaurant or if have to find a party room. Smokin’ Al’s is my first choice.

Now that Pat and I have met and got along, I wonder if we make plans with our spouses, will they get along. I find wives get along better than do husbands, when the roles reverse. Do we now become long life real life friends, or just two radio veterans that talk on the phone, email and do Facebook? Now that I think about it, lunch, with Pat, was a blind date, of sorts, but it went well.

Two middle ages radio people having lunch. There really is nothing better.