Spotlight: What I Do As a Restaurant Manager
Running a good restaurant is literally plate spinning. You need to manage the supply of ingredients, schedule the entire staff, prepare the premises, and more before the restaurant even opens. What day in the life of a restaurant manager do you really enjoy?
We spoke to a restaurant manager who has worked in both chain restaurants and small independent establishments to find out how he came to his current job and what his days look like.
Tell us a little about yourself and your experience.
My name is Edward. I am 25 years old and have been running restaurants for about four years. I opened new restaurants in two different states and helped struggling restaurants become successful again. I have worked both in corporate networks managing 150 employees and in family establishments with a whopping 12 employees. I would never say that I should be regarded as an expert in my field, but I’ve been doing it long enough to know what you can do to be successful in this field, and which can get you in a lot of trouble very quickly. … I am currently working as a restaurant manager in St. Pete Beach, Florida.
What prompted you to choose your career path?
Simply put, I love to eat. As a child, food has always been a source of comfort and a way to spend time with your family without the awkwardness of talking to each other. I mean, what’s better than Mom’s homemade mac and cheese or Grandma’s gravy cookies that no matter how hard you try, you can never recreate? (Seriously, what did she put in there?) Something about how to connect those warm and fuzzy memories with food and decompose it so people can create their own memories told me this is where I need to be. …
How did you get a job? What kind of education and experience did you need?
As I said, I am not an expert. I do not have a degree in restaurant and hospitality management (in fact, I majored in history), and the more I learned about this business, the more I realized that most of us do not have a degree related to what we do. Obviously, every restaurant is different, and I went to establishments that literally laughed at me when I told them that I did not have a degree in restaurant and hotel management. I was fortunate enough to start working for a company that believed in promotion from the inside out, and they gave me the chance when they offered me a management training program. I only worked there for about two months, but I had previous experience in retail management, so they took a chance on me too. And I will be forever grateful to them.
Do you need any licenses or certificates?
Become a manager? No. But once you really get into this position, you need to get a food safety certification. It is important. There is nothing worse in this business than someone who does not know how to properly handle food. There are plenty of opportunities for bacteria and germs to spread in everyday life, and when you come into contact with food that thousands of people eat in a day, it can go from good to bad very quickly. I’m sure local and state laws differ, but every location I’ve ever worked must have at least one certified manager in a building at any given time. Most locations do not require employee training, so it is much more important to properly train managers.
What do you actually spend most of your time on?
Preparing for the arrival of guests to the restaurant. The amount of planning required for a restaurant to function properly is a little overwhelming at first, but it becomes easier when you understand it. This is much more than the waitress in the front and the chef in the back. It’s hours of preparation, before we even open up, serving staff tidying up every inch of the restaurant and kitchen, checking supplies, cleaning, extra prep work, scheduling and training.
Even musical choices are not necessarily random. When you walk into a restaurant, everything you see, hear, smell, taste and feel seems to be for good reason. The smell of freshly baked bread that makes your mouth water? Some places artificially mislead this. When I first came to the management side of the industry, the company I worked for spent almost a week explaining to us the “why” behind all of these factors, and it opened my eyes. Why would anyone spend $ 10 on a cup of coffee when they can be made at home? Because we love the atmosphere, the music and how we feel when the barista writes our names on the cover of a coffee cup, as if we belong to her. This is science and is sometimes used to seduce us.
What misconceptions do people often have about your job?
If you’ve ever watched a movie or TV show about working in a restaurant, they often have a stereotypical manager — a lonely, awkward, sometimes perverse guy who sits in the office all day doing paperwork. I would like to say that these people do not exist, but they are. I have heard horror stories about different places crumbling and burning, and the manager has no idea what is going on because they are hidden in his office. I realized early on that the office is not a meeting place and you shouldn’t be there for more than five minutes. I even asked the general manager to remove the chairs from the office to make sure we got the message (thanks to Ryan). But he was right. My job has been to kiss babies and make sure each of our guests has the best lunch possible. I am not here to argue with you about how your steak was cooked (although I know you are probably wrong), I am here to impress you with our food and services and make you tell all your friends how my restaurant was amazing.
What’s your average uptime?
Again, this varies from place to place. I worked on a corporate network in Texas, doing 70-80 hours a week, seven days a week, a good month or two because we didn’t have enough managers. Once everything was settled, it averaged 55-60 hours, which is similar to what I am doing now. 10-12 hour shifts are normal in most places, but it depends on how well you discipline yourself and get your work done on time. To keep it simple: you stay until the job is done.
What personal tips and shortcuts have made your job easier?
If you ask anyone who has ever worked for me, I hope they will tell you how easy it is to get along with me. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve fired dozens and dozens of people and done hundreds of formal reviews, but you need to be the kind of person your employees can turn to when they have a problem, and someone they don’t want to get frustrated with by doing something is wrong. Many people have compared this to parenting. I am proud to earn the loyalty of my employees. Not only for me, but also in order to get them to participate in making the restaurant itself as successful as possible. The success of the restaurant is accompanied by the success of the employees, and it is important not to let them overlook this.
What are you doing differently from your colleagues or colleagues in the same profession?
Like most people, I had good bosses and really, really, really bad bosses. The bosses who asked me to spy on employees, lie about things to fire someone they didn’t like, and those who “accidentally” came up with numbers to look good to their boss, and blamed us when they found out. But you learn from people like that. I build relationships with my employees. I try to find out their hobbies, children’s names, birthdays, etc. A little recognition and the realization that they are not just numbers goes a long way. Lone mother with three children do not have to worry if she knows that I know that her daughter’s birthday in two weeks, and she had to earn. Little things like this reinforce the loyalty and “family” relationships that drive most restaurants.
It’s another matter that I act differently – that I refuse to rule with an iron fist. You can get someone to do what you need to do, or you can ask politely. Both will do the same thing, but no one hates you for doing it the second way. Saying “sweep this floor or I’ll write to you” will cause outrage in someone. Not to mention, when things get tough, good luck for them to help if you don’t need to. My old fallback request: “Hey (insert name here), can you please help me (insert task here). I would appreciate it, “followed by a sincere thank you. This not only gets the job done, but shows them that you appreciate their help. It means so much in the long run.
What’s the worst part of a job and how do you deal with it?
It’s lonely. And tense. And you must sacrifice time with family and friends. But as with any career, these are sacrifices that you need to either live with, manage, or just find another job that suits you best. In most places, fraternization between managers and employees is not tolerated, as this creates a conflict of interest that can be detrimental to the business. Sometimes working with the same people makes you want to rip their heads off, and sometimes you really love them. When you spend 12 hours a day with the same people, you naturally build relationships. They became a second family.
You have to deal with people you don’t normally associate with and deal with them while you have a queue of customers, while you are understaffed, or after being called on the weekend. In one ear, a guest is complaining about something, even if he can’t tell you the difference between a medium-rare steak and a well-done steak, and the 17-year-old hostess who loves literally can’t even . You have to keep your composure and lead your team. Because there is nothing better than watching your leader curl up in a ball and cry during lunch; it crushes everyone’s spirit. Trust me, I saw it happen.
What advice can you give to people who visit your restaurant?
My biggest advice to people eating out is to just be patient. Real food doesn’t come quickly. This is why they do not awardMichelin stars . Depending on the restaurant, the time for accepting tickets (the time from the moment the order is sent to the kitchen until the moment it leaves the kitchen) can vary from 10 minutes to 30 minutes or more. In general, the more beautiful the place, the longer the meal will last. I won’t serve you slop on a plate because you have to be in the movies in 20 minutes. But if your meal takes longer than it should, I’ll be there to apologize; I admit this mistake. And just because you ordered earlier than the table next to you does not mean that your food will be delivered first. Your well-done ribeye (15-18 minutes cooking time) takes much longer to cook than their salad and fried shrimp (2-5 minutes cooking time).
Another tip is to do a little research. Restaurant review sites can be of great help. Know which establishments specialize in food preparation. One sweet old lady asked me to make her breakfast (eggs, bacon and waffles) at 6:00 pm on Wednesday night. I can cook with the best of them and had all the ingredients and equipment I needed (although we were by no means the place for breakfast) so I told her I would try. I proceeded to prepare her breakfast while the strange gazes of my kitchen staff were taking place. I covered it, decorated it and began to carry it to the table. After a few bites, I asked her what it tasted like. She said that this is not what she is doing and advised me to get rid of it. Moral of the story: Don’t go to the diner and expect award-winning Thai food. It will not happen.
How much money can you expect at your job?
Again, this depends on the institution. I started with a corporate company that offered me about $ 40,000 a year, not counting bonuses. With that came insurance, 401k, paid vacations and vacations, but I also worked MUCH more and didn’t devote much time. I currently work at a family steakhouse where I get paid about the same, minus some perks, but with a much more balanced work / life ratio. I’m sure my experience is different from others, so if you want an objective answer, contact the Bureau of Labor Statistics .
How are you progressing in your field?
Inflate your ass and get ready to work hard. As elsewhere, there are always a few people who manage to chat and kiss sweetly on the ass, but to achieve anything based on your own merit, you have to work hard. Long nights, work breaks, and doing whatever you need to do is all you need to do. But to “move forward” means more responsibility. And this responsibility means that you will have your hands on more areas in which you not only need to be competent, but also be able to explain to others. A good general manager trains the managers under them to do their job well, and trains them to be ready for a CEO promotion or transfer.
The best boss I ever had to not only teach us how he did his job, but actually make each of us do his job on a monthly rotation basis. During this month we changed positions (i.e. the bar manager becomes the general manager and the general manager becomes the bar manager) and he taught us how to plan sales, hold meetings, including conference calls with regional directors, and other the responsibilities that GM calls it entailed. It was an extremely valuable experience that I will never take for granted.
What do your customers underestimate / overestimate?
Our compassion. If your food doesn’t come out correctly, is burnt, or is otherwise created that should not have happened, please let me fix it for you. This is my job. But please do not submit items simply because you don’t like it or because “it wasn’t what I expected.” Please read the menu and ask questions. I would like to explain how the food is prepared, what it was made from, and answer any other question you might have. We want you to have an amazing dining experience. I want you to leave happy and come back as soon as possible. And do not try to invent something to get free food. Yes, we see a lot of people, but we remember those who lie to us and hurt us.
And for the love of all that is holy, tip your server. In case you didn’t know, most of them earn less than the minimum wage and tip is how they make a living. If you feel like you shouldn’t tip because your server did something wrong or upset you, let the manager know before leaving. We need to know these things so they don’t happen again.
What advice would you give to those who want to become your profession?
I constantly tell people who have never worked in the catering industry this simple truth: this is not for everyone, and this is normal. Some people cannot handle stress or deal with people I have to deal with. But it’s worth it for me. Be prepared for long nights, complaints about people, and hot and dirty environments. Yes, some nights suck, but if you maintain a great attitude and that attitude spreads to the people around you, you will have fun along the way. You cannot pretend to be passion. If you have passion, follow it wherever it takes you.