Last Call

With many of his earliest memories centered around the enjoyment of good food and strong drink, John Bordach's successful 30-year career in the hospitality industry was in some ways preordained. Whether waiting tables in high-end establishments, managing one of the first sushi restaurants in the region, or cooking for large crowds, the creation, presentation, and pleasure of a fine meal enhanced with theperfect liquid accompaniment was Bordach s greatest ambition. It was also almost his death. Relating tales both comic and tragic, Bordach takes us through his journey of alcohol addiction with a self-deprecating humor that belies the poignancy of his story. Coming of age during the 1970s in Detroit s downriver suburbs, yet deeply influenced by the woods and waters of northern Michigan, Bordach spans a wide-ranging landscape of love, friendship and work colored with the emotional despair and physical destruction of addiction. Both a cautionary tale and a hopeful ode to recovery, Last Call reminds us that addiction can happen to anyone. When the ingredients in an addict s bowl of life outer-directed blame, indifference, denial, and guilt combine to create a toxic meal, only new ingredients inner reflection, faith, and hard work -can provide the nourishment for recovery.