6 Front- and Back-of-the-House

Objectives Describe the responsibilities of the general manager. List the six functions of the front-of-the-house. Contrast the members of the front-of-the-house staff and the back-of-the-house staff. Describe the responsibilities of the restaurant manager. continued

Objectives List the seven functions of the back-of-the-house. Describe the responsibilities of the executive chef. Assess the importance of the work of the steward and dishwashing crew.

Restaurant Areas Front-of-the-house: areas guests usually see entrance host/hostess stand dining room Back-of-the-house: areas guests usually do not see kitchen receiving and storage areas business offices

The General Manager Has overall responsibility for front-of-the-house and back-of-the house operations Hires and supervises managers May also be the restaurant owner In a chain restaurant, is responsible for communications with corporate headquarters

Front-of-the-House Functions Seating guests Selling food Transmitting orders to the kitchen Serving customers Bussing tables Obtaining payment from customers

Seating Reservations are the promise of a table in a restaurant Customers book a reservation when they call ahead to reserve a table for a specific number of people at a particular date and time Walk-ins are customers who do not have a reservation To make up for guests who make reservations but don’t show up, many restaurants overbook continued

Seating Open seating is used when restaurants seat customers on a first come, first served basis Residence time is the time it takes to eat a meal, pay the bill, and leave the restaurant Call-ahead seating is used when customers call ahead to have their names placed on a waiting list

Sales Selling occurs when the server takes the customer’s food order Sales may be increased by suggestive selling such as server’s recommendations unopened bottle of wine left at the table samples for sale displays of desserts

Transmitting Orders The server takes the order from the customer The server transmits the order to the kitchen, sometimes using a point-of-sales system The culinary staff prepares the food The completed food order is checked for accuracy and appearance The server picks up the order from the pass-through and brings it to the customer

Serving The prime responsibility of the front-of-the-house staff is quality service Quality service means anticipating and fulfilling guests’ needs

Bussing Tasks include setting place settings on the table clearing dirty dishes from the table sweeping under and around the table assisting the servers as needed

Payment The check should be presented after dessert and additional beverages have been served The payment may be handled by the server or by a cashier Some restaurants accept only cash; others accept credit and debit cards

Front-of-the-House Staff Managers Host or hostess Servers Bussers Cashiers Trainers (in large restaurants)

Managers The restaurant manager is responsible for hiring, training, and supervising front-of-the-house staff schedules staff handles guest relations oversees quality of service is responsible for front-of-the-house cleanliness, cash management, and coordination with the back-of-the-house

Host or Hostess Most tasks involve managing the flow of customers in the dining room, such as welcoming and seating customers keeping track of which tables are occupied, ready, or almost ready making sure customers are distributed so no one server is overloaded Additional duties may include serving beverages and bread

Servers Servers are representatives of the restaurant to the customer sell the dining experience to the customer deliver the dining experience to the customer may be responsible for collecting payment from the customer

Bussers Bussers assist the servers are responsible for setup, clearing, and resetting of tables keep the area under and around the table clean

Cashiers Cashiers handle the payments for the meals prepare the change fund report the receipts may prepare the bank deposit

Back-of-the-House Functions Food production Purchasing and receiving Marketing and sales Human resources Accounting Security Engineering and maintenance

Back-of-the-House Staff Back-of-the-house functions related to the kitchen and food production require one or more managers staff responsible for cleaning and maintaining plateware, flatware, glassware, and utensils food production staff

Managers In independent restaurants, an executive chef manages menus and operations The executive chef may have an assistant, called a sous-chef Chain restaurants have a corporate executive chef to manage menus Each unit of a chain restaurant has a kitchen manager to oversee operations

Steward The steward supervises dishwashing, pot washing, and cleanup purchases and keeps track of glassware, flatware, and plateware is responsible for the general cleanliness of the kitchen The dishwasher operates the dishwashing machine and washes large items

Food Preparers A chef is a professional cook A cook is someone who prepares food for eating An expediter transmits the orders from the servers to the chefs or cooks, organizes and monitors timing of the orders, and checks the orders before they are picked up

Chapter 6 Review What is the distinction between front-of-the-house and back-of-the-house? Front-of-the-house includes areas guests usually see. Back-of-the-house includes areas guests usually do not see. Who has overall responsibility for front-of-the-house and back-of-the-house operations? the general manager continued

Chapter 6 Review Front-of-the-house functions include seating guests, selling food, transmitting orders, serving customers, bussing tables, and _____. obtaining payment from customers Who has responsibility for managing the flow of customers in the dining room? the host or hostess continued

Chapter 6 Review Food production is a _____ function. back-of-the-house Who supervises kitchen cleanup? the steward