Restaurant manager job description template

Position Identification

1. Position Summary

The Restaurant Manager oversees daily dining room and kitchen operations to maintain guest satisfaction, service pace, and operational profitability for [ORGANIZATION_NAME]. This role leads front-of-house and back-of-house teams, directs shift execution, and enforces food safety, liquor service, and workplace safety standards across all service periods. The position acts as the primary on-site operational leader, managing labour productivity, inventory levels, cash reconciliation, and guest resolution in alignment with organizational standards. The primary outcome of this role is the consistent delivery of high-quality food and hospitality within approved labour and operating cost budgets.

2. Key Responsibilities

2.1 Shift Leadership and Service Execution (20%)

• Lead daily shift briefings, allocate station assignments, and set service priorities across front-of-house and back-of-house teams before each meal period.
• Monitor dining room floor pacing, table turnover, order wait times, and ticket flow to maintain standard service delivery during peak and non-peak hours.
• Conduct pre-shift inspections of dining areas, service stations, bar areas, and washrooms to verify cleanliness, product readiness, and visual presentation.
• Step into operational service positions (such as host, expediter, or floor server) during peak volume spikes to resolve bottlenecks and maintain flow.

2.2 Food Safety, Product Quality, and Sanitation (15%)

• Enforce provincial food safety regulations, critical temperature logging, and Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) principles across food storage, preparation, and plating areas.
• Inspect incoming raw ingredients and prepared food daily for freshness, proper labelling, date coding, and adherence to organization recipe specifications.
• Oversee daily opening, mid-shift, and closing sanitation checklists, ensuring proper chemical storage, dishwashing sanitisation levels, and waste disposal practices.
• Ensure all food handlers hold active provincial food handler certifications and comply with personal hygiene and hair-covering requirements.

2.3 Staff Supervision, Training, and Scheduling (20%)

• Build and publish weekly staff schedules using [HRIS_NAME] or the scheduling platform at least [N_BUSINESS_DAYS] days in advance, aligning scheduled hours with forecasted sales volume.
• Conduct structured on-the-job onboarding and skills training for newly hired servers, hosts, bussers, and kitchen staff against standard operating procedures.
• Monitor daily employee attendance, punctuality, meal break compliance, and uniform standards, documenting operational coaching discussions for [OWNER_OR_MANAGER] review.
• Administer regular performance check-ins, coach team members on hospitality standards, and participate with [REPORTS_TO_TITLE] in formal performance reviews.

2.4 Financial Management, Cash Handling, and Inventory (15%)

• Conduct opening and closing cash drawer counts, balance server checkout summaries, prepare bank deposits, and investigate register overages or shortages exceeding [CASH_VARIANCE_LIMIT].
• Track daily sales, guest covers, average spend per guest, and labour cost percentages against weekly budget targets provided by [OWNER_OR_MANAGER].
• Perform weekly physical inventory counts for food items, beverages, draft beer, wine, spirits, paper goods, and cleaning chemicals.
• Enter vendor invoices into [PAYROLL_SYSTEM] or the inventory tracking software, flag price variances on purchase orders, and verify delivery receipt accuracy against bills of lading.

2.5 Health, Safety, and Regulatory Compliance (10%)

• Enforce provincial liquor licence regulations, ensuring all service staff verify valid patron identification and adhere to mandatory responsible beverage service practices.
• Maintain the workplace health and safety program, conduct monthly safety inspections, log incidents, and report injuries immediately to [FIRST_AID_CONTACT] and the provincial workers' compensation board.
• Maintain current Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS) Safety Data Sheets (SDS) and ensure all staff use [REQUIRED_PPE] when handling commercial chemicals.
• Maintain emergency evacuation maps, first aid kit stock levels, fire extinguisher inspection tags, and kitchen suppression system inspection logs.

2.6 Guest Relations and Incident Resolution (10%)

• Circulate throughout the dining room during active service to engage guests, verify order quality, and build repeat business.
• Resolve customer complaints regarding food quality, service delays, or billing errors directly on the floor using organization-approved compensation guidelines.
• Review online customer feedback and guest comment forms weekly, implementing operational corrections where recurring service or food quality issues are identified.
• Maintain an incident log detailing any refusal of service, patron removals under liquor compliance rules, or customer slip-and-fall events.

2.7 Facility, Smallwares, and Equipment Maintenance (10%)

• Monitor commercial kitchen equipment (refrigeration, ovens, fryers, dish machines) and HVAC systems, logging preventative maintenance tasks and temperature logs.
• Issue service requests to approved third-party repair vendors for broken kitchen equipment, point-of-sale hardware, or plumbing issues with sign-off from [OWNER_OR_MANAGER].
• Audit smallwares, glassware, cutlery, and linen inventory levels monthly, placing replenishment orders within the designated budget limit of [REPLENISHMENT_BUDGET_LIMIT].
• Manage end-of-night facility security procedures, verifying that all exterior access doors, walk-in coolers, liquor storage units, and cash safes are secured.

3. Qualifications & Experience

Qualifications and Experience Profile

4. Competencies

Role Competencies and Behavioural Indicators

5. Working Conditions & Performance Measures

5.1 Working Conditions and Physical Demands

The physical and environmental demands described below represent those required to successfully perform the core functions of this role and are used for workplace safety planning and accommodation assessments under applicable human rights legislation.

Physical Demands and Environmental Conditions

5.2 Performance Measures

Key Performance Indicators and Service Metrics

5.3 Career Path

• Typical Prior Roles: Shift Supervisor, Assistant Restaurant Manager, Lead Server, Head Bartender, or Kitchen Supervisor.
• Typical Next Roles: General Manager, Multi-Unit Operations Manager, Food and Beverage Director, or Area Operations Lead.

5.4 Position Acknowledgement

This job description outlines the primary duties, responsibilities, and qualifications required for the Restaurant Manager position at [ORGANIZATION_NAME]. It is not an exhaustive inventory of all tasks that may be assigned. Management reserves the right to amend this job description with reasonable notice to reflect operational changes or business requirements.

Employee Name (Printed): ________

Employee Signature: _____ Date: _____

Manager Name (Printed): _________

Manager Signature: ____ Date: _______

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