Restaurant Job Board Blog

I would like to give an insight to those aspiring hospitality professionals as well as those already working in the industry on the qualities that makes one successful in Hospitality Industry.

This is from my practical experience and through my observation and analysis spread over a career span of 12 years in many countries. I have seen over and over again, some people who were successful in the hospitality industry, nearly always had the same qualities listed below and they had it consistently, day after day, 365 days a year, which led to their success.

Though they are basic qualities, following them will have a wonderful effect, irrespective of what position one is in. Though product knowledge, intelligence and connections play a role in ones success, the qualities mentioned below take precedence for ones success in the hospitality industry.

1. Attitude: Service Oriented and a positive attitude towards guest and other team members.
2. Hardwork: This is the most important required quality in this industry. There is no short cut to hard work.
3. Friendliness: An Outgoing, Friendly and cheerful disposition, both towards guests, staff members and staff from other departments, to ensure a smooth working environment.
4. Appearance: Appearance in the form of well groomed and neat presentation is very important in creating the right impression to guests and other staff members.
5. Courtesy: Good manners and courtesy is very important when dealing with guests and other staff members.
6. Honesty: The priority, because, one deals with cash and other guest belongings and valuables on a day to day basis.
7. Creativity: Hospitality/Food and Beverage offers many avenues to display ones creative talents either in the form of creative food and drinks, good buffet and banquet set ups etc.
8. Ownership and responsibility: Not doing the “passing around the buck” thing, but owning and solving some serious issues and problems that come up from time to time.
9. Commitment and Consistency: Good job done, once, is not enough, the golden rule is: Good job always.
10. Passion for and pride in job: only get in to the industry if you like what you are doing, irrespective of monetary gain
11. Punctuality and discipline: You don’t just miss your flight/train and girlfriend/boyfriend if you are late, but also respect and also your job at the end
12. Ability to take orders and instructions from superiors: Don’t like taking orders and instructions from Superiors, than better start your own business than to work for someone.
13. Communication skills: The world runs on Communication. This is not just about speaking many languages which will help you out on a day to day basis as you come across guests/staff from different countries, but also communicating your ideas and instructions to your staff as a manager and as a staff to communicate your concerns to your managers.
14. Respect for others: I have worked in different countries with different socio-economic conditions and cultural beliefs and one thing that comes handy always is the respect one gives to Views, Traditions etc of other people.
15. Patience: Many a times when things get quite stressful and tempers run high in Hospitality industry, when it’s very busy, the only protection shied is “Patience”.
16. Empathy: Empathy towards your colleagues.
17. Personality: By personality I mean the nature of a person as to if one is an Introvert or an extrovert. It’s always been, or most of the time, though not always, people with outgoing personality are easily successful in this industry.
18. Adaptability: Adaptability to changes and new ideas.
19. Attendance: Irrespective of your late night party or your early morning hangover, not calling in sick when not really sick.
20. Hands on: This industry is all about being practical and hands on, irrespective of the position one is in. More Physical presence is required in operations than in the office, before computer.
21. Long Hours: long productive hours at work are one of the top open secrets to success in this industry.
22. Flexibility: Many a times one has to be flexible in this industry either in the form of change in working shifts, days off, annual leave etc.

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Santosh Koripella has been involved in the Hospitality and Food and Beverage Career in 11 different Countries all over the World. He is currently a Food and Beverage Consultant. Santosh recently published a book called: Food and Beverage Bible, you can find it here: www.foodnbeveragebible.com

Let’s face it; every server position has its headaches. From “Mom’s Diner” to “Le Cirque”, customers will find things to be unhappy about (whether real or imagined) in any restaurant on the planet. But when you throw in high-rollers, comped meals, happy winners and the not-so-happy losers, plus the numerous rowdy bachelor parties, you have a job that requires a server to have the patience of a saint.

In Las Vegas — as well as casinos everywhere — servers stand to make some excellent money IF they can learn to deal with all kinds of situations. Big tips — no, make that huge tips — are no myth. Stories of casino winners pleased with their “take” and sharing their good fortune with the guy or gal who serves them that 5 a.m. steak and egg plate are legion…and true.

Now, before you drop your apron and head for the nearest gambling hall, there are some things you should know. Here’s a list of things you should be prepared to deal with in a casino restaurant job.

• Happy drunks, unhappy drunks. Yes, you can see them in any restaurant that serves alcohol, but keep in mind that in places like Las Vegas, those drinks may be free – all night long – because the person has been gambling. Free drinks lead to lots more drunks.
• Winners and losers. Winners are usually okay. Maybe a little garrulous but they are happy and may shower a bit of that happiness on you. Losers on the other hand are not happy…at all. They may take that out on you, on the chef, heck, on the busboy, if they just dropped a hefty bankroll in the casino.
• It’s a bachelor party. Woohoooo! Four guys, six guys, a whole football team of young men just looking to have a great time. That probably includes those FREE drinks I’ve talked about plus the gambling and now, a little fun with the server. Keep your sense of humor intact and don’t be afraid to call in reinforcements if needed.
• “Comped” (free) meals and the customers who DO NOT get that they still need to leave a tip for good service are common. It happens – the slot player who puts enough coin through to get a free meal but doesn’t have the sense to leave a gratuity. Always remind your guests that the tax and tip is not included in the comp. Nicely said, it works.
• High-rollers. Your managers will know them and if you are assigned to their table(s) – take very good care of them. If there is the slightest problem, get the BOTH involved immediately. THIS is not the time to go it alone.

All things considered, casino jobs are financially rewarding. Just be prepared for your own share of “interesting” situations.

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“C.C. Royal” is a former restaurant owner turned blogger at http://RoyallyFlushed.com, a website that talks about Las Vegas and casino travel in general. News and reviews on destinations, restaurants and the gaming industry as a whole are all subjects she and her staff post about frequently.

Do you want to become a Chef or work in a successful restaurant’s kitchen…? Learn what it takes to become a successful chef in today’s fast paced restaurant industry through picking a successful Chef’s brain. I recently had an opportunity to interview one of Toronto’s most noted Chefs, his name is Peter McKnight.

Chef McKnight began his professional cooking career 14 years ago in Toronto in an extremely high volume Italian kitchen called Joe Badali’s. From there he moved on to The Royal York Hotel, A la Carte Kitchen, and Charlie Trotter’s. At only 21 Chef McKnight took position as Executive Chef at Wish Restaurant. Peter continues his personal devoted pursuit of excellence in cuisine. He most recently had joined Toronto’s Boba Bistro.

Here is how our interview went:

Peter, thank you for being with us for this interview. Before we get into restaurant talk tell us about the different things that you like to do when you are not working? Outside of Cooking I have written, recorded and co-produced two independently funded EPs, and have just completed my first full length record. I also enjoy painting, golf and boxing.

What do you personally like to eat when you’re not cooking it?I enjoy a variety of ethnic foods be it any where from Caribbean to Asian.

What do you personally dislike when you go out and dine? I cannot stomach poor service or pretense. In all utter honesty I can’t stand paying for something I could prepare much better myself.

What made you get into cooking, was it one thing or a series of events? My mother is and has always been a lousy cook. I think I began out of sheer frustration out of eating things that were of about the caliber of what early astronauts would have been eating. I began to cook for myself at 8 years old.

How would you describe the style that you like to cook in? I describe my food as simple food prepared well. In my opinion category in food is derived from ignorant food writers’ necessity to fill page space.

What do you try to accomplish with each dish? I personally aim to excite the palate and accentuate the true character of good seasonal ingredients.

I know that you knew a lot about and admired Gordon Ramsey a long time before he was all over the media with his many television productions. Who are your favorite chefs now and why? I am reluctant to say anything against anybody in print who has a lot more money than I do. However, a lot more people have seen him yell than seen him cook, which is a shame because he does have actual hands on ability which is a lot more than you can say for most on TV.  Currently I respect people like Daniel Boulud, and Jacques Pepin, because their craft is mainly much more content driven than about ego. Ferran Adria is an immense talent, but titles like World’s Greatest Chef are about as hokey as world’s biggest d–k.  If you as a Chef prepare something with love and passion and you have a diner who thoroughly enjoys it, that is really all that counts.

What challenges are there when you are trying to create, but there is this nasty business of making money and trying to not alienate the majority of your potential customers? I believe there will always be room for the honest business person in any capacity. However, there is not always the most entirely food savvy clientèle or owners. It is and will always remain the most challenging of businesses and professions in the world.

Have you seen kitchens gel with management before? If so, how did they accomplish this? If not, then what are your suggestions in order to make it happen? I have on a number of occasions, and I always draw parallels to sports it requires the key position players for the roles. Just as in basketball you do not have your shortest players in the center position. You do not have unreliable and unskilled people in key restaurant roles.  The restaurant industry is a special one as it requires many skills and traits that don’t apply to other fields.  The paying customer does not need to understand the eighteen thousand consequential problems that may arise in any restaurant employee’s life.  Restaurants always require excellent employees performing tasks at excellent levels. Leadership by example is the only way.

What should managers understand before they try to ‘handle’ kitchen people? I do not fully understand the question, but I guess one piece of advice would be compassion, as high temperature tends to make the best of us irritable.

What are the key things that you look for when you are hiring kitchen assistants? Having worked at various levels in kitchens of various sizes the two primary things I need in assistants is a) an agreeable personality and b) a work ethic.  The first simply because tasks can always be corrected and instructed, and kitchens tend to be confined spaces, it can compare to being locked in the trunk of a car with a rhinoceros when you work with someone who is difficult.  Secondly work ethic is imperative as cooking is one the most demanding jobs there are, it is not for the lazy or weak.

At what point do you start firing staff? Or what are some of the things you’ve fired people for? At Wish, I tended to give everyone a fair chance as they deserved but I had no tolerance for a missed shift without good reason, or a gross case of incompetence. If you would not pay for anything you prepared, then you should not expect others to either.

I have seen you pump out beautiful creations in high volumes, what are some secret tips to accomplish this as far as thinking and skill required? I never chalk things up to a secret. It is a result of rigorous training and training to maintain an uncompromisable standard. The second customer is paying the same as the third and so on… you have to maintain that type of thought process. In line cooking stamina and adrenaline are key components to success.

Have you seen any traits that stand out of successful Chefs? In all the Chefs or artists that I admire- the one constant has to be integrity. I believe I cook because I love to cook. If you hate what you do how well can you be expected to do it?

Thank you so much Chef Peter for your time and insight. I am looking forward to your next Live Symtones’ Event or Chef’s Table.

I recently had an interview with Matthew W. Ray from WorkAlertz.com who happens to have a really interesting service that can help businesses involved in the hospitality industry manage their employees better through the communication of SMS (aka cell phone texting).  Let’s face it, your younger employees text, why not communicate on a level they want to be communicated with.

Here is how the interview went:

Matt, tell us a bit about your background in or how it relates to the hospitality industry?

In the summer of 2000, just like any normal teenager, it was time to get a part-time summer job. I spent the better part 6 years in a pizzeria, with nearly 50 employees, called Pontillo’s Pizzeria in Bushnell’s Basin, NY while juggling school and a business internship on the side. I worked my way up from dishwasher to manager in a short few years, learning as much of the business as I could and realizing the scheduling hassles first hand. From there, I was able to feel the pains of missed shifts, finding shift covers, and wasting time on the phone and not enough time with the customer. When I joined the MyMinderz, with bootstrap founders Dan Agnew and Steve Palo, we had many long discussions about a next-generation notification company. I was sold and wanted to spend my spare time coming up with something really great. We have started with WorkAlertz, to become the leader in work schedule notification, and will soon launch a whole suite of applications that fit under the MyMinderz patent-pending privacy platform.

What do you think are the main challenges managers and supervisors have with scheduling?

The main challenges management has with scheduling is making sure they have shifts covered properly. Keeping a properly staffed facility with call-ins and no shows takes time away from your customer. Managing employee time-off requests is a nightmare when juggling through 20+ pieces of oddly shaped, illegibly written employee notes.

What do you think are the main challenges that managers have with their staff in regards to schedules?

Many hospitality jobs are flexible part-time positions. It’s a challenge to manage employees fluctuating availability and conflicts to schedules based on school, sports, and second jobs. It’s always time consuming and there’s plenty of room for error. Many younger employees also forget when they are working, especially when their shifts are changing from week to week. One of the last challenges managers have is employees disrupting operations by calling in or stopping by to get their schedule and request time-off. All the unnecessary time spent with scheduling hassles should be spent on the customer experience.

What do you think are the things that can help hospitality staff with their schedules?

Having 24/7 access to their work schedule would be a huge benefit to any hospitality staff member. Getting their individual work schedule on their cell phone as a text is really getting embraced for obvious reasons – they love it! Being able to view the department’s entire schedule online helps employees find coverage if they need time-off. Saving personal time by not needing to call in or drive in to view their schedule and take time off.

Tell us a bit about your product and how it addresses these challenges?

WorkAlertz is an online work schedule notification system that is a easy-to-use solution for scheduling and communicating with employees. Employees aren’t calling and stopping in to see when they’re working or having the excuse that they forgot when they were scheduled. Employees can opt-in to receive notifications before every shift and are now on-time. Being a software application, no one needs to download any software ever!

How does it help if a staff doesn’t have a cellphone?

WorkAlertz can also send employees’ schedules to their e-mail and Facebook accounts. The manager can still print the schedule in a clean, pre-formatted printout if desired to post on the wall in the back room. Time-off can still be taken off online at home, at work, and at school.

How does it help when a staff member is running late?

WorkAlertz can send shift reminders before every shift if desired by the employee. Many places have varying weekly shifts for their employees. From the management’s perspective, it takes the old excuse “I forgot when I was working” out of the equation. It really makes the employees more accountable.

How does it help the staff in switching shifts?

The employees can view the entire staff’s schedule so they can see who’s not working and make the initial call before getting the manager’s approval. Just like before, but without stopping by or calling in to disrupt business operations.

Does it help with on call type staff such as in night clubs, busy holidays, catering, etc?

WorkAlertz’ StaffAlertz module is a truly great time-saver. You can send messages to employees filtered by schedule and those who are working or not working. You can even type in who can’t come in and it will automatically generate a message based on their shift assignment and send it to employees not scheduled. It increases communication with your staff 100%!

Are the staff’s cellphone numbers private when using this system?

WorkAlertz runs on the MyMinderz patent-pending privacy platform which protects users’ cell phone numbers just like many online financial institutions. It’s also optional for employees to share your number with your coworkers once inside the system.

What are the abuses that can possibly happen or that you’ve seen happen using this system?

Just like any other communication medium, managers can abuse the service by sending out announcements too frequently and at inappropriate times. But, only those deemed management have access to send out messages to staff members that have opted in to the WorkAlertz work notification system. If abused, management will surely hear from their staff and it would most likely be quickly resolved.

Is there anything else that this system can do to help hospitality workers?

WorkAlertz helps your company’s green initiatives. Less paper schedules and notes, no more wasted trips to the restaurant or facility to see the schedule. Also, no more time spent on the phone with co-workers chatting over when they are working next. The StaffAlertz module allows instant communication of company promotions and event reminders like staff meetings. Employees can forward their schedule to their friends and family as desired.

What are some of the new features that your team is coming up with in 2009?

There’s a whole suite of notification applications planned on the MyMinderz platform, but as far as WorkAlertz goes, we will be working on labor law compliance, filtered schedule views, ability to set constraints on when one receives an alert on their phone, and tagging of employees to name just a few. All new features, of course, are added in with no additional charge once an account has be processed.

Are you applying for a different server or bartending job?

Every manager or owner is eager to know one thing. This is the most important thing they want to know and the one of the easiest ways to score the job you want.

Management wants to know if you can sell.

Be sure to let them know you know how to sell and understand how to upsell.

Tell them what your average sales are at you current or previous serving job. Let them know what kind of regulars you can bring.

If you are applying for a bartending job and you are bring regulars or can prove that you have above average sale volumes then there are not many managers or owners who will not hire you on the spot. (Unless they are crazy!)

It always comes down to the GREEN. So be sure to tell them what they want to know.

Photo by Tracy O