Jul 18, 2024
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12 min read
Need the recipe for success? Check out our restaurant manager resume guide now.
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Food and Beverage Manager
Fast Food Restaurant Manager
Assistant Restaurant Manager
Wine Steward Restaurant Manager
Fine Dining Restaurant Manager
Casual Dining Restaurant Manager
Restaurant Training Manager
Restaurant Customer Service Manager
When applying for this role, it's essential to showcase any prior experience in managing food and beverage operations. Highlight your ability to streamline processes and manage inventory effectively. Include any relevant certifications, such as 'Food Safety Management' or 'Beverage Management Certification', and mention their duration to demonstrate your commitment to the field. Use a 'skill-action-result' approach to illustrate how your leadership has improved team performance or reduced costs at previous jobs, reinforcing the impact you can make in enhancing customer satisfaction and operational efficiency.
When applying for this role, emphasize any previous experience in fast-paced environments, particularly in food service. Highlight your ability to manage teams effectively, ensuring smooth operations during peak hours. Training in food safety regulations and customer service excellence should be mentioned, along with any relevant certifications. Use the 'skill-action-result' approach to showcase how your leadership improved team productivity or customer satisfaction. Include metrics, such as increased sales or reduced wait times, to demonstrate tangible impacts from your management.
When applying for this position, it's important to showcase any previous experience in inventory management and team training. Highlighting your ability to maintain high standards of service is crucial. If you have certifications in food safety or conflict resolution, be sure to mention these, as they demonstrate your commitment to quality and team dynamics. Use specific examples to illustrate how your initiatives have improved efficiency or guest satisfaction. Focus on the tangible outcomes of your actions to create a compelling narrative in your application.
To excel in this role, highlight your expertise in wine selection and pairing. Previous experience in inventory management is essential, so showcase any relevant skills in stock control and supplier negotiation. Having completed certifications like 'WSET Level 2' or training in hospitality will strengthen your position. Use specific examples to show how your knowledge has increased sales or enhanced guest experiences. Focus on a 'skill-action-result' format to illustrate how your contributions improved customer satisfaction or boosted profitability for prior establishments.
When applying for a Fine Dining Restaurant Manager role, it’s important to showcase your experience in upscale environments. Highlight your expertise in fine dining service standards and wine pairing knowledge. Mention any leadership roles, focusing on how you trained staff to deliver exceptional guest experiences. Include certifications like 'Wine and Beverage Management' to add credibility. Use specific examples of how you improved customer satisfaction ratings or increased sales through menu enhancements. Your cover letter should reflect a commitment to excellence and a track record of fostering high-performing teams.
When applying for this role, focus on your expertise in managing teams and improving service quality. Highlight any experience you have with inventory management and cost control, as these are critical in a casual dining setting. If you've completed any courses in food safety or hospitality management, mention them to show your commitment. Provide specific examples of how you increased customer satisfaction or reduced wait times, using a 'situation-action-result' format to illustrate your impact on previous employers.
When applying for this role, focus on your experience in developing training programs and materials. Highlight any previous roles where you successfully enhanced team performance through effective training initiatives. Strong presentation skills and the ability to adapt training styles to different audiences are essential. If you have certifications in training or coaching, mention these and provide details about their relevance. Include examples of how your training efforts led to improved employee retention or customer satisfaction, following a 'skill-action-result' format to demonstrate your impact.
When applying for this role, focus on any past experience in customer service and team leadership. It's important to showcase your ability to resolve customer issues effectively. Highlight any relevant training or certifications, such as 'Conflict Resolution' or 'Customer Experience Management', along with the length of the program. Provide specific examples demonstrating how you've improved customer satisfaction or streamlined service processes. Use the 'skill-action-result' method to illustrate how your contributions positively impacted team performance and company reputation.
Writing a resume for a restaurant manager job can feel like balancing a tray of drinks during a lunch rush. You’re a pro when it comes to managing a busy eatery, but can you show that off on your resume and back it up with stats and facts?
Hiring managers are looking for leaders, not just operation experts. However, balancing your hands-on experience and your leadership know-how on paper can be tough. It’s your job to show that you’re a good all-rounder, keeping the plates spinning fast.
In this guide, we’ll show you how to write a compelling restaurant manager resume that ticks all the boxes. Read on to find out how you can cook up a storm.
Key takeaways
We’ve created this restaurant manager guide to help you with the trickier side of applying for jobs. We understand that it’s not always easy—that’s why we’re here to help.
Luckily for you, we’ve got a bunch of tools, tips, and examples to help you stand out in the competitive job market. Ready to get started? Follow the steps below to make the most of this resource. Use our resume builder for a polished and professional finish.
Armed with our resume builder and this guide, you have everything you need to land your next restaurant manager job.
Ready to get cooking? Let’s take a look at the first step in the process.
When you’re writing your restaurant manager resume, you need to focus on your key skills, measurable achievements, and industry-specific expertise. Try to quantify these feats with metrics to show the hiring manager what value you bring to the table.
It’s important to grab the reader's attention quickly. So, make sure your resume layout is simple, skimmable, and attractive. Having an eye-catching resume is half of the job.
Drop your resume here or choose a file.
PDF & DOCX only. Max 2MB file size.
Money talks—literally. When you’re writing your restaurant manager resume, focus on the bottom line. How did your efforts boost the business’ sales? Use metrics to illustrate how you impacted the company’s income. The more impressive the stats, the better your odds.
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Be clear about your results. Rather than using vague or inspiring terms, get straight to the point. How much did you increase the profits by and when?
Here’s an example you can use for inspiration:
“Consistently increased quarterly sales by 20% through improved customer engagement.”
Managing a restaurant is all about people. You’re at the front of the ship, so you need to lead it toward success. Let the hiring manager know how you do just that. Include details of your management style and the training you’ve delivered to teams.
Provide any leadership qualifications you have
Some examples of these include Certified Restaurant Manager (CRM) from AHLEI or the ServSafe Manager Certification.
Note: You can add these to the education section on your resume.
Hiring managers don’t have a long time to look at your resume. Make sure your writing style is short and sweet. You can start by writing down everything you want to share. When you’ve finished, read it back and edit out any sentences or paragraphs that don’t add value.
Use bullet points!
This format is skimmable and easy for the hiring manager to read. Wherever possible, swap blocks of text for bullet points instead.
How did you improve your last company? As a manager, it’s your job to look for new initiatives and schemes to make the business better. When it comes to restaurants, that could mean reducing food waste, improving productivity, and appealing to new customers.
Impress with numbers
Don’t just shout about your achievements—put statistics on them. When talking about the innovations you’ve made, add evidence to back up your claims.
For example, you might include the following:
“Implemented cost-saving measures resulting in a 15% reduction in food waste.”
Now you know what to focus on, let’s take a look at how to lay out your resume.
As a general rule, we recommend using the reverse-chronological format for a restaurant manager resume. This is the standard resume format in the U.S., and hiring managers expect it.
It begins with your most recent achievements, such as work experience and education, at the top of each section and lists older entries as you move down the page.
We recommend using modern fonts, such as Arial and Rubik.
Avoid serif fonts, such as Georgia, as these can be harder to read.
Always save your resume as a PDF. This way, the formatting will be consistent.
Your margins should be between 0.5 to 1 inch to maintain readability.
Your resume header sits at the top of the page and includes your contact details. It should be clear, concise, and readable.
Here’s what you should list:
Remember: You don’t need to include a photo for this position.
Next up, let’s talk about your resume summary. This is a short paragraph at the top of the page that summarizes your top achievements. It should be eye-catching, engaging, and specific to you. Get all of that right, and you’ll go far.
You should include your strongest career points, any key skills, and your most notable achievements.
Here are some ideas you can use:
You should tailor your resume summary for each new job. Make sure your application meets the specific needs of the hiring manager.
Using action-driven language and tangible metrics, this summary is certain to grab the hiring manager’s attention. It clearly outlines the candidate’s most important attributes.
You need ample work experience on a resume. If you’ve been in the hospitality industry for years, now’s the time to start shouting about it. Only feature up to 10 to 15 years of work experience and focus on roles relevant to restaurants and customer services.
Target your resume
Be sure to tailor your work experience. Look at the job advert and use the same keywords and terminology the hiring manager uses. This quick hack swiftly shows the hiring manager you’re the best person for the job.
Kick things off with the main details of your role. That includes the company name, location, your title, and dates of employment. Add bullet points below that cover your top achievements. As always, add metrics and statistics to show your impact.
Using clear language, this resume experience sample is immediately engaging. It includes the candidate’s most important feats (to date!) and adds a bunch of context, too.
Metrics—such as the “90% employee retention rate”—show that the manager has what it takes to lead. Always be as specific as possible when it comes to your results.
When writing your work experience section, you can take a few different approaches. Below, we’ve shared three options that you may use:
It’s all about the bottom line. Be clear about the achievements you gained, and back them up with metrics. This gives the hiring manager a clear idea of your skills and experience.
What are your most impressive skills? Spotlight the talents you’ve picked up during your restaurant manager career. Illustrate how you use each of these skills to your advantage.
The hospitality industry is vast, and no two restaurant managers are the same. Focus on your specific field—i.e. the type of restaurant you’ve worked in. You should do this if you’re applying for a role in the same type of eatery.
Thinking about what skills to put on a resume? It’s all about getting the balance right. As a restaurant manager, you need to lead your team while also overseeing the operations of the location. It’s a tall order, but you’re up to the job.
Start by looking back at the job advert. What skills are listed in the core criteria? Highlight any you have and then include them in your restaurant manager resume. Use the exact same terminology as the advert. This will help you impress the reader and get past the ATS (Applicant Tracking System).
Hard skills are at the heart of your restaurant manager role. Also known as technical skills, these resume competencies help you get the background aspect of the job. Whether that means using certain software to manage stock or planning the rotas, you need to be at the top of your game. Be sure to pinpoint the talents you’ve nailed down.
Hard skills may help you keep things ticking over. However, you need soft skills to inspire, motivate, and manage your team. Identify the traits that allow you to lead with confidence, manage difficult situations, and help support your staff.
While many restaurant managers don’t have college degrees, you still need to include education on your resume. Use the reverse-chronological order when detailing your education, any extra training, and any certificates you have under your belt.
Start with your high school education—adding your GPA if it’s above 3.5. You can also list any professional certifications. Examples entail certificates such as the Certified Hospitality Supervisor (CHS) and the ServSafe Food Protection Manager Certification.
You’ve served the mains… but what about the side dishes? Look for ways to give your restaurant manager resume a little more pizazz. Once you’ve completed all of the above, consider adding some additional (and optional) sections to your resume.
Speaking a second language could be your competitive edge. For example, if you’re working in a French bistro, you may have to chit-chat with a French chef. Include any languages you speak plus your proficiency level.
When you’re not working, how do you spend your time? Boast about any hobbies that make you a better restaurant manager. For example, you may list your interest in cooking or the fact that you enjoy going to restaurants, or that you manage a sports team.
If you lack experience in restaurants, don’t panic. You can bolster your work experience section with some volunteer work. Only include positions that are similar to your managerial duties. Think about roles where you had to lead a team, for example.
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Don’t overload your restaurant manager resume! When adding extra sections, think about how they add value to your application. What do they tell the hiring manager about you?
Landing your next restaurant manager job starts with crafting an amazing resume. In this guide, we’ve shared the tools and advice you need to make that happen. Why not start drafting your application now? Use our resume builder tool to get the ball rolling.
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