A former flight attendant with Canada 3000, vivacious owner Lisa Laudenbach launched Schmooze a couple of years ago,
hiring flight attendants who were out of work post-9/11. Now staffed with 150 ex–sky surfers—from Air Canada, Jetsgo and Sky Service—Schmooze has polish and spark.
Laudenbach observed that events were often staffed by surly poker-faced servers who wandered about like bored black-clad spectres.
Addressing this personality crisis, her livelier servers are all professionally trained in hospitality, ready to crisis manage with a smile.

“We have worldly people with energy and stories. Nobody’s boring,” Laudenbach offers through bursts of infectious laughter.
Staff are also trained in “simulserve,” high-end silver-service choreography: guests sit and are served immediately, sans delay
(heads are never left to crane for attention, hands never forced to grope desperately for breadbaskets).

Schmooze is the official staff of the Carlu, and outfits are 1930s-style black on black, streamlined and dramatic.

That said, costumes (so long as they’re seemly) are welcome.