Call Us · Text Us* · Submit your resume

Pacific Coast Hospitality

staffing

PUTTING "HOSPITALITY" BACK INTO THE RESTAURANT INDUSTRY

by

Whether you own the finest dining in town or the cafe on the corner, what’s happened to hospitality in the restaurant industry?
True hospitality in a lot of cases is simply a lost art.  Not so long ago you would have been greeted at the door of anyplace, the gas station attendant would wash your windshield and the host would happily take your coat upon arrival for dinner.
For every owner, front of house host and server, we know what you see when dining out the good, bad and ugly of hospitality. So if it’s been seen, what’s the hold up to putting it in play on the job?
Perhaps the answer lies in the basics of hiring and what we do with new staff once we’ve hired them. Restaurants are very much transient employers. People come and go and, unfortunately, service is negatively affected by turnover. Unless you have figured out that regular and consistent training is the absolute foundation of your restaurant and your first priority, your guest experience will be inconsistent at best.
The key in hiring is to look for approach, attitude and true desire to serve over prior experience. If these core values are present and you take the time to develop and train your fledgling staff, your customers will notice and reward your restaurant with their business. Once you believe in and practice effective consistent training and recognize and reward your standouts, your restaurant will have a lasting powerful advantage over your competitors. This is a simple concept, yet too often overlooked with all the other important details in running restaurants.
Don’t let hospitality be a lost art in your restaurant. Develop a new game plan that begins with your staff understanding and practicing the nuances of what service really means and what your guest seeks. Train consistently, over deliver on each guest’s expectations and take pride in sustaining the magic.

HIRING: PACIFIC NORTHWEST

by

The Pacific Northwest… the only place in America where you can blaze the trail to natural hot springs in the morning, Instagram a pic of the mountains during lunch and hit one of the world’s coolest cities by afternoon to sample a few local brewed beers and dine at the finest of establishments into dawn.

The Pacific Northwest is a region of offbeat charm and character.  Its quirky sense of style and belonging make it a place that’s hard to say goodbye to.

Portland and Seattle are just two of the Northwest cities we’re most fond of and currently hiring talented candidates for open hospitality positions:

Call it what you want – PDX, P-Town, Puddletown, Stumptown, City of Roses, Bridge City, River City or Beervana – Portland doesn’t disappoint.  And Seattle, it might have got a name as the home of Starbucks and it certainly shares in the bad rap for rain and grey skies along with Portland… but there’s more! Much more to both these Northwest cities when you become a local.

The locals don’t let the rain get them down, umbrellas are for the visitors – locals don’t mind the weather and never let it get in the way of having a good time. With Pike Place Market home to more than 200 vendors, farmers, and specialty shops, it’ Seattle’s No. 1 tourist destination.

Portland continually keeps things a little more green with a strong reputation for being a republic of tree huggers, and understandably so. One of the best and most convenient places to enjoy them is the aptly named Forest Park, a bosky Eden where natives like to take their morning run, bike, dog walk or enjoy the day.

When you’re headed to a local game in the Northwest, you can’t be a fair weather fan.  And may we not forget the grub – with everything from specified menus created by world renowned chefs to longstanding home style establishments, your pallet won’t go dull.

Whether looking for a career advancement or uproot from your current location, maybe the Northwest lifestyle is right for you? Apply today.

3 Reasons It May Just Be Harder Than Ever to Hire

by

Staffing and keeping a restaurant staffed is possibly the most difficult task managers and owners constantly face. Turnover is nearly what the hospitality industry is known for. Regardless whether hiring back- or front-of-the-house positions, it may be harder than ever to staff restaurants.

 

Here’s three reasons why some hospitality industry experts believe it’s harder than ever to staff:

  1. More people are looking for jobs because of the status of the economy, but means there’s less people with experience to hire. The ex-sales manager, teacher, lawyer, etc. are looking for any position, even if a complete career changes. Less experience doesn’t always count as a disadvantage, but sure can lead to longer trainings and more direct management needed until they have significant industry experience. Weigh out the pros and cons of hiring and applicant with no hospitality industry experience.

 

  1. Chefs are always looking for good cooks, but with more applicants who have completed culinary school, their demand for higher pay is greater than ever. With a demand for higher pay, their skills should match, but that’s not always fact. Regardless of schooling, experience is the best style of learning. Finding a balance to pay what’s appropriate for keeping each employee happy with what’s possible financially can be a great challenge.

 

  1. Employees formerly accepted one job and kept it for years, even decades – a sense of pride developed over time about the company they worked for and how they advanced. Today, more than ever employees are exercising their rights and embracing their inner adventure spirit and moving from job to job. The average time a candidate spends at one job in the hospitality industry is six months or less.

 

Perhaps that bottom line is, most people don’t want to work. In today’s world less is more – and work ethic seems to follow that directly. Employees can be extremely unreliable and have no sense of drive to accomplish and carry your business forward.

 

Hiring is a beast for most. Finding dedicated job applicants that have experience and work ethic as parallels is no easy task. What do you think, is it harder than ever to hire?

Hiring the Right Chef for Your Restaurant

by

A chef might be called the heart of the kitchen.  They are the lead creative force of a business, no matter how casual or upscale the place may be.  This important role brings with it the responsibility of overseeing all kitchen operations.  When you are interviewing a candidate for a chef position, make sure to ask these questions:

1.) What is your philosophy on _____________?

You could be broad in filling in the blank asking about the candidates philosophy on food.  Or you could be specific and inquire about their thoughts on customer service.  It is important that you and your new chef agree on philosophy in order to create the most enjoyable and tasty experience for your employees and patrons.

2.) How would cook this dish?

John Stableforth, the director of a successful catering consultancy firm, encourages employers to share a part of their menu with a candidate.  Ask them to describe how they would prepare and serve one of the dishes.  This will show you their creative side as well as introduce their cooking methods.  Always ask if you don’t understand an answer about the cooking.  If you are not a chef, it is ok to ask them to explain.  Remember to ask about speed.  If you restaurant prepares large quantities of food, be sure your chef has experience and comfort in this area.

Check out Stableforth’s thoughts on hiring the right chef here.

3.) What experience do you have as a leader?

Bruce Buschel, an avid blogger featured on the NYTimes website in 2010, calls chefs “creative people who create in stressful situations and are given a wide berth by most colleagues.”  Your chef candidate may be able to cook and serve amazing dishes, but that is only one side of the job which you seeking to hire them.  Ask your potential employee about their experience leading a team.  You will want someone who you trust to supervise and train others; confident and commanding.

Check out Buschel’s article here.

 

Finding the right chef for your business is a time consuming task.  Take the time to ask the important questions to ensure your new chef can deliver quality plates and smoothly run your kitchen.

6 Tips for Motivating Your Restaurant Service Staff

by

What do teachers, coaches, parents, and restaurant managers have in common?  They all use motivation to help those they interact with succeed.  In the food service world keeping the team moving forward means success.  To learn the art of motivating you could take a class at Northeastern University with Professor Leonard J. Glick.  But if you want quick tips you can begin to implement today, check out the tips he gives FORBES to keep people “smiling and producing.”

 

Build Ownership Among Your Crew

Glick explains that company personnel must feel responsible for what the customer is buying.  If you can achieve this, your employees will feel that they own the place, not just work there.  Glick suggests that you allow your employees to bring their ideas for improvement and have people rotate responsibilities from time to time.  When people feel like something is “mine” they don’t want to fail or dissatisfy the customer.

 

Trust Employees To Leave Their Comfort Zones

If we were to be honest, few employees want to do one specific task over and over.  Glick encourages you to grant them new responsibilities.  This will promote growth and confidence.  It also will provide a sense of value.  If this makes you nervous, Glick adds, “to me the bigger risk is having people get burnt out or bored.”

 

Keep Your Team Informed

As a leader, you have a clearer perspective on the bigger picture than your employees.  It is crucial that you tell those under you what’s going on.  Don’t fall in to the trap that something is “common knowledge.”  Take the time to share with your employees.  It will strengthen the feeling of importance as a part of the organization.

 

Treat Your Employees as Adults

Not everything that happens in food service is positive.  At some point you will have to give bad news to individuals or the organization as a whole.  Deal with tough situations in a straightforward and respectable manner, Glick says.

 

Be a Consistent Boss

Glick is very blunt in this section of the article.  Ideally, he writes, you want in open relationship with your employees but not a peer relationship.  “I think the work thing is to pretend you’re peer . . .it’s the inconsistency . . . which is the bigger problem.”  You are the boss, and you may have to act like it, sometimes.

 

Money and Perks Matters (But Not As Much As You Think)

Glick encourages employers to find a salary that will allow your employees to feel they’re being paid fairly.  Don’t bend over backward to lowball them.  If the salary is in place, “the motivation comes from . . . the opportunity to learn [and] the opportunity to contribute,” Glick adds.

Perks are on businesses radars because of large companies offering lavish perks to their personnel.  Glick cautions writing, “like money, these things tend to be less powerful motivators.”  You must understand that these perks are no substation for in-job challenges and feeling of being a part of a quality team.

 

Check out the full article here.