Lucy
OUR GOODMAN FAMILY
Meet Lucy, our part-time Sommelier and one of our waitresses at City.
Lucy has been working at Goodman City since 2017. She likes big wines, will take a ribeye if you’re offering, and would love to see the return of the truffle mash. She also has a message to a Mr. Bono of Dublin, if he happens to be reading…
Lucy – “well, Lucyna, but every calls me Lucy” – is a “part-time sommelier, part-time waitress” at Goodman City. “I want to be a fulltime sommelier, but I’m just starting.”
Aside from six months working in a shoe shop – “which I hated every day,” she admits, with a laugh – Lucy has always worked in hospitality. She came to London to learn English, with plans to stay for a year… some 21 years ago. “I fell in love with London. Less and less, maybe [which, frankly, makes you a proper Londoner], but those first years? I came from a small village in Poland so everything was just ‘wow’.”
London is also where Lucy discovered her calling. “I started with strong alcohol,” she laughs, “because I’m from Poland, but when I came here, I started to love wine.
Lucy has been part of the Goodman family since 2017, working as a waitress and she’s slowly moving her way up to sommelier.
“When I started as a sommelier, I was so scared, so stressed. I know I’m a good waitress, I’ve done it most of my life, and always in steakhouses, so I knew the food. But wine?!” Three years on, and with the support of the Goodman family, things are a little different. “I enjoy talking with the customers, getting to know them, the flavour profiles they enjoy, learning what to suggest. My knowledge is better, and I’m always learning more – but the wine list is huge!
“Personally? I prefer white wine, a creamy Chardonnay from California, a crisp, fresh Chablis or, particularly, a German Riesling, those old oaky ones…” Lucy does the “chef’s kiss” gesture. “Red? Has to be a Cabernet Sauvignon from California.” She shrugs. “I like big wines.” Lucy also likes to keep her Goodman order classic. “Tuna tartare. Tempura Prawns. A ribeye with onions, the spinach and garlic, and mash rather than chips. And Stilton Sauce. When I first came here, I wasn’t a fan but now it’s my favourite.
“I don’t often do dessert but, when I do, I like it simple, the crème brûlée or just the vanilla ice cream, I love that. My usual dessert though is a liquid dessert, an Eiswein or a glass of Pedro Ximinez, they’re just beautiful.”
When not at Goodman, Lucy loves to travel, particularly to places with vineyards. “I love Italy. Every year I’m in Germany, in the Riesling area. And my dream is to visit California… ”
Lucy also loves live music. “My first concert was Tina Turner. I still can’t believe I saw her. I’ve seen The Rolling Stones, Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Depeche Mode: I’ve seen them seven times, they’re amazing live.” There’s one gap on that wishlist, however. “U2. I want to see U2. My dream when I came here, was to go to Dublin and see U2 but it hasn’t happened yet.” If anyone could get the message to them, there’s someone at Goodman City who’d be very grateful…
Credits
Interview by Neil Davey
Photography by Tom Bowles