Salary and Outlook

According to the US Department of Labor, there are 309,800 people employed as food service managers in the United States. The median annual salary is $56,600. Entry level employees earn approximately $33,880 per year and senior employees earn approximately $94,770 per year.

Estimates do not include other potential benefits such as health insurance, overtime pay, or retirement benefits that may be offered by employers.

Job Duties

• Keep records required by government agencies regarding sanitation or food subsidies.
• Investigate and resolve complaints regarding food quality, service, or accommodations.
• Maintain food and equipment inventories, and keep inventory records.
• Monitor food preparation methods, portion sizes, and garnishing and presentation of food to ensure that food is prepared and presented in an acceptable manner.
• Schedule and receive food and beverage deliveries, checking delivery contents to verify product quality and quantity.
• Coordinate assignments of cooking personnel to ensure economical use of food and timely preparation.
• Monitor compliance with health and fire regulations regarding food preparation and serving, and building maintenance in lodging and dining facilities.
• Count money and make bank deposits.
• Estimate food, liquor, wine, and other beverage consumption to anticipate amounts to be purchased or requisitioned.
• Schedule use of facilities or catering services for events such as banquets or receptions, and negotiate details of arrangements with clients.
• Take dining reservations.
• Plan menus and food utilization, based on anticipated number of guests, nutritional value, palatability, popularity, and costs.
• Establish and enforce nutritional standards for dining establishments, based on accepted industry standards.
• Create specialty dishes and develop recipes to be used in dining facilities.
• Establish standards for personnel performance and customer service.
• Perform some food preparation or service tasks, such as cooking, clearing tables, and serving food and drinks when necessary.
• Greet guests, escort them to their seats, and present them with menus and wine lists.
• Test cooked food by tasting and smelling it to ensure palatability and flavor conformity.
• Schedule staff hours and assign duties.
• Arrange for equipment maintenance and repairs, and coordinate a variety of services, such as waste removal and pest control.
• Review menus and analyze recipes to determine labor and overhead costs, and assign prices to menu items.
• Organize and direct worker training programs, resolve personnel problems, hire new staff, and evaluate employee performance in dining and lodging facilities.
• Review work procedures and operational problems to determine ways to improve service, performance, or safety.
• Assess staffing needs and recruit staff, using methods such as newspaper advertisements or attendance at job fairs.
• Order and purchase equipment and supplies.
• Record the number, type, and cost of items sold to determine which items may be unpopular or less profitable.
• Monitor employee and patron activities to ensure liquor regulations are obeyed.
• Monitor budgets and payroll records, and review financial transactions to ensure that expenditures are authorized and budgeted.

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