Restaurant management can be divided into two main areas. The first of them, a so-called Back of the House, involves food product management, coordination of work in the kitchen where the goal is to maintain a high quality of food. Although we do not see what is happening at the back of the house (hence the name), we do see the final effect of these actions as restaurant’s Guests.
The second area in restaurant management, a so-called Front of the House, is even more challenging and involves managing staff and providing the best quality of service. These two factors affect the image of the restaurant owner as an employer, and above all the image of the restaurant itself.
An important aspect of management is to determine the main tasks and responsibilities in advance, and then assign them to the appropriate positions. The number of positions and the scope of duties depend on the size of the restaurant.
A restaurateur should keep a close eye on all areas of restaurant management, which requires knowledge and experience. In the case where the restaurateur is primarily an investor and owns not one, but several restaurants (or runs a completely different business), it is necessary to delegate responsibilities to the appropriate person.
Therefore, when running your own restaurant business, one needs to look at their business globally, considering all areas of management, and take an action as soon as something fails to work properly.
In this case, the restaurant manager comes to the rescue, who is usually responsible for the staff (like waiters and runners), monitoring the kitchen work, contacting suppliers and fulfilling orders, as well as the restaurant's image, which involves conducting marketing activities. If the manager’s duties are limited to managing personnel and coordinating their work, they can be referred to as the shift manager.
Usually, the head chef is responsible for the work of the kitchen, and should collaborate with the manager. In the case of larger restaurants, it is possible to separate the position of the sous-chef. It is worth having the head chef and the deputy complement each other (one being more creative, the other better at managing and counting) - thanks to this, managing the kitchen brings better results in all areas.
From our experience, we know that restaurateurs often focus on back-of-the-house operations, thinking that this is where the source of a restaurant's success (or failure) lies. In reality, the success of a restaurant largely depends on the relationships maintained with people, both the restaurant's guests and its employees. Therefore, when running your own restaurant, it is necessary to look at your business globally, taking into account all management areas, and take an action when something stops working properly.
In the following articles, we will pay more attention to individual aspects of restaurant management, and in the next post, we will talk about the secrets of menu engineering as an important tool in the hands of the manager. Stay tuned!
