Where are the Purse Hooks?
It was 1990-something, and I set my muffin down on the small café table as I joined my husband in this cozy bakery located in the midst of The Magnificent Mile in Downtown Chicago, celebrating our wedding anniversary. As we took our seats, I hung my purse on the back of my chair. When we finished, I grabbed my handbag and noticed it was now open, no longer holding my Ralph Lauren sunglasses, a gift I received from my husband an hour earlier, or my wallet, which held a vacation-weekend full of cash and credit cards. So many credit cards.
It was the last time I ever threw my purse on the back of a chair in a restaurant.
Every woman can relate to this. No man has ever stressed over where to put his wallet when sitting down at the bar, which might explain why it’s still an issue today in the majority of eating establishments. The answer is the simple purse hook, yet, so many bars still don’t have them, and I’ve yet to see purse hooks available for tables. No woman wants to put her handbag on the floor, and tables rarely offer enough space. My sister bought me a purse hook that I now keep in my purse, and it’s a godsend.
Pictured, are purse hooks adorning a bar in The Grey Rabbit, a beautiful art gallery and lounge in Grand Rapids. I wish I could thank the woman who insisted they be installed. Because we all know, as the bar was assembled, a woman asked, “Where are the purse hooks?”
Author of Chasing North Star, and the upcoming I’m Your Person.
