It's Saturday night and the bar is packed. You wait patiently for a spot at the bar to open -- sound familiar?

If you are at The Village Pourhouse (205 1st Street), you might have the pleasure of meeting resident bartender Janine Loffredo. Also a former bartender at O'Donoghues, she joined the staff at The Village Pourhouse when it opened this past fall and has been working at the location for the last five years. "I moved to Hoboken seven years ago when I started working in New York City. I liked the Hoboken nightlife and had to find a way to make money and not spend it every weekend," she says with a smile.

The bar is pretty crowded for a Tuesday night. Beer pong participants and college basketball fans line the counter ordering drinks. A typical night for Janine starts at 4:30pm when she arrives from her day job in digital marketing. She sets up the bar in anticipation for the ensuing crowd and starts taking orders as they come in. "There's not much to it," she tells me in between conversations with her customers. What appears overwhelming at times is actually her favorite part of the job. "It's the people," she tells me. "You can have fun while you are still working."

Living uptown but working downtown on 1st Street, I asked her how she would describe her life in Hoboken. "Awesome," she replied as she poured a couple of beers for a customer. "There is so much to do. I love going out to brunch on the weekends and shopping," she says as her eyes light up and a few more customers call her to the other end of the bar.

Having met her fiance, Tom, while working at O'Donoghues (Tom works at Mulligan's up the street), she tells me excitedly about how they have been together for the last four years and have already set a wedding date. "We actually entered this contest online for Crate & Barrel to win a dream wedding," Janine explains. "It'd be great to be able to have the kind of wedding we want with all of our friends and family there to celebrate with us."

When not at work, Janine enjoys riding her bike along the pier and playing softball, "when there's no snow," of course. "I also like to eat out in Hoboken," she says to me. Her favorite restaurant is The Brass Rail (135 Washington Street). She suggests that I try the Garlic Rubbed Skirt Steak. "The cheese crumbles are delicious," she reassures me. After discussing a few of her favorite places to eat she mentions that she would like to see more restaurants with healthier menus. "I want a place with a really good salad."

If you would like to help this Hoboken couple win their dream wedding, visit their page at http://www.ultimateweddingcontest.com/entry/99639 and vote for them by clicking on the button. Best of luck Janine and Tom!