Restaurant manager

Restaurant manager job description: Typical employers | Qualifications and training | Key skills | Useful links | Find jobs and courses

Specific duties and the amount of customer/staff contact vary according to the size of employer: managers in larger organisations may be mostly office-based, whereas managers of smaller establishments often have frequent contact with both customers and employees.

Typical job responsibilities include:

• recruiting, training and supervising staff
• agreeing and managing budgets
• planning menus
• ensuring compliance with licensing, hygiene and health and safety legislation/guidelines
• promoting and marketing the business
• overseeing stock levels
• ordering supplies
• producing staff rotas
• handling customer enquiries and complaints
• taking reservations
• greeting customers
• planning
• problem solving
• preparing and presenting staffing/sales reports
• keeping statistical and financial records
• assessing profitability
• setting targets
• producing plans to increase/maximise sales and profits
• handling administration and paperwork
• liaising with customers, employees, suppliers, licensing authorities, sales representatives etc
• making improvements to the running of the business.

Typical employers of restaurant managers

• national, regional and international restaurant chains
• large hotel restaurants
• independent restaurants
• themed restaurants
• café bars
• brassieres
• hotel/leisure groups.

Vacancies are advertised online, by careers services, specialist recruitment agencies, in local and national newspapers. More information can be found in publications such as Caterer and Hotelkeeper, Hotel and Caterer, Catering Update, The Caterer, British Hotelier and Restaurateur, Catering and Hotel Management and HCIMA News and Appointments. Networking and speculative approaches to employers are advisable, particularly for graduate training schemes with larger restaurants.

Qualifications and training required

Employers may favour candidates with a relevant degree/HND in business studies, management, hospitality management or hotel and catering. Appropriate personal qualities, practical experience and business acumen are generally regarded as being equally as important as academic qualifications. Gaining practical hotel, catering, restaurant, waitressing or customer service work experience is essential.

Key skills for restaurant managers

• commercial awareness
• flexibility
• good interpersonal skills
• communication skills
• problem-solving skills
• organisational skills
• team working skills.