Maître D’ Job Description Template

A maître d' works at a restaurant.

If kitchen staff represent the heart and soul of any restaurant, then maître d’s are its face. They are the first voice potential customers are likely to hear on the phone when they make a reservation and the first point of contact they make as they enter the dining area. It’s essential that your front-of-house supervisors possess the poised, polished, professional demeanor necessary to maintain calm in the face of chaos and keep the tables full and turning over at a profitable interval.

The demand for wait staff supervisory personnel, including hosts and maître d’s, is projected to grow nearly 5%, faster than most other occupations. At the same time, restauranteurs have seen higher staff attrition rates in recent years, challenging food service employers to find workers with the skills they need to keep their dining rooms running smoothly. A well-worded maître d’ job description can help attract capable front-of-house managers who can keep your customers happy so you can focus on capitalizing on Americans’ growing appetite for takeout and dine-in food options.

In addition to the customizable template below, you can also get inspiration from Monster’s free hostess and host resume sample and look through Monster’s front-of-house manager openings for inspiration.

A maître d' works at a restaurant.

Maître d’ Job Description

Intro Paragraph: Your job description should begin with a concise overview of the position and a brief description of your ideal candidate. Writing this summary will help you to focus on the most critical qualities you are seeking in a front-house manager.

You might phrase it: “We are seeking a wait staff manager to join our food services team. The ideal candidate has previous restaurant or hospitality experience and a passion for helping provide customers with an enjoyable dining experience.”

About Our Workplace: Since front-of-house managers are employed in various settings, from small upscale restaurants to hotel dining rooms to casual family diners, this section of your education consultant job description is an essential element of your job post. Explain what makes your workplace special. One of the best ways to fill out this section is to ask staff members to craft two to three sentences describing what they like best about working for your business. The more clearly you can communicate the elements that make your workplace stand out, the more likely you are to attract applicants who will succeed.

Maître d’ Job Responsibilities: The following list of day-to-day job responsibilities may differ significantly depending on your typical diners and the size and level of formality of your restaurant.

  • Welcomes guests in a warm and friendly manner, ascertains their dining preferences and needs, and determines where best to seat them.
  • Maintains and updates the seating chart, including making reservations, keeping track of available tables, and managing waiting lists in coordination with kitchen and serving staff.
  • Directs diners to their table or the bar, provides them with menus, and answers questions about chef’s specials and other menu features.
  • Responds to guest requests and questions politely and efficiently, taking note of food allergies and other dietary restrictions and coordinating with kitchen staff and other team members as needed.
  • Guides opening and closing of the restaurant in cooperation with the chef and back-of-house manager.
  • Communicates with diners about specials, promotions, and wait times.
  • Pitches in to clear and set tables and deliver food and other requested items to diners.
  • Greets diners who arrive for takeout orders and coordinates delivery orders with staff drivers and mobile food delivery services.
  • Keeps waiting areas clean and organized and ensures that waiting customers are comfortable.
  • Ensures diners have a pleasant, welcoming, and memorable dining experience.
  • Resolves conflicts or addresses or works to prevent diner disappointments.
  • May be called upon to assist in managing and scheduling wait staff.

Work Hours and Benefits: Next, you’ll want to include the required hours, including how often shifts change, whether overtime is offered, and whether your establishment is open during holidays. If your maître d’ needs to work weekends, note it here. You’ll also want to include the salary range and benefits. To determine a fair offer for your city or town, you can use a salary tool like Monster’s, which allows you to input the job title and location to calculate estimates for low, median, and high salaries.

One of the best ways to use this section of your maître d’ job description is to emphasize benefits and perks that are most likely to appeal to applicants, such as paid time off and professional development opportunities.

Maître d’ Skills: Be aware that some candidates are less likely to apply for positions if they don’t think they have every listed qualification. Exhaustive lists of required skills and experiences can be especially detrimental if you want to strengthen your diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives and attract women applicants and candidates from underrepresented groups. For this reason, you may want to limit the number of required skills you include or divide your requirements between “required” and “optional” qualifications.

  • Customer service focus
  • Excellent knowledge of phone and workplace etiquette
  • Poise, professionalism, and patience
  • Ability to communicate effectively with customers, staff, and vendors
  • Multitasking, organizational, and problem-solving skills
  • Ability to stay calm and provide actionable solutions to problems under pressure, to diffuse tense situations, and to resolve interpersonal conflicts
  • Flexibility to adapt to a constantly changing environment and set of challenges
  • Team leadership and the ability to collaborate effectively with others
  • Basic math and computer skills, including data entry and familiarity with point of sale (POS) software
  • Attention to detail
  • Efficiency
  • Discretion

Education, Experience, and Licensing Requirements:

  • High school diploma or equivalent
  • Associate or bachelor’s degree in hotel and/or restaurant management a plus
  • Prior restaurant or other hospitality or food services experience a plus

Call to Action: End your maître d’ job description with a “call to action” that encourages qualified applicants to “apply now” by filling out an online application.

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