Use this restaurant manager job description template to attract the best candidates on job posting sites and keep your team on the same page with pay, duties, and responsibilities.
How to Write a Restaurant Manager Job Description + Template
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This article is part of a larger series on Hiring.
A restaurant manager job description outlines the duties and responsibilities of a restaurant manager’s role. It is the foundation for you to advertise the job when you’re ready to hire a new restaurant manager and becomes the formal description of the job when you extend a job offer to the right candidate.
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Let’s take a look at the steps for writing a strong job description that documents what you want in a restaurant manager in terms of skills, experience, and education and covers the functions of the job, such as building shift schedules, maintaining the facility, and ordering supplies. Download our free restaurant manager job description template as a starting point.
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For a professional applicant tracking system that provides job description templates, consider ZipRecruiter. It will post your job to over 100 job boards and you can manage applicants in one convenient location.
Step 1: Write an Enticing ‘About Us’ Statement
This section at the top of your restaurant manager job description is meant to attract applicants and give them a feel for your restaurant. Use descriptive language and let applicants know why they would want to work at your restaurant. Click through the images below for examples from real-world restaurant manager job postings.
Don’t be afraid to toot your own horn when hiring new employees for your restaurant. Restaurant staff like to feel like a part of a vibrant company, so really advertise what makes your restaurant stand out.
Step 2: Describe Job Duties
There are various types of restaurant managers, all with slightly different duties and responsibilities. The type of restaurant manager you need will depend on your restaurant type, staff size, and ownership structure. If you are an owner who works in your restaurant, you’ll need a different type of manager depending on whether you work as the chef or as a front of house (FOH) manager yourself.
What is FOH and BOH? In restaurant speak, the restaurant is “the house.” Staff that work in the dining room are “front of house,” and staff that work in the kitchen are the “back of house.” In writing, these terms are commonly abbreviated as FOH and BOH (as in “FOH Schedule”). When speaking, however, you always say the full phrase “front of house” and “back of house.” No one says “Foh” and “Boh.”
Click through the sections below to see a full description of different restaurant manager types.
With so many different types of managers, your job description must be specific in the tasks you need this manager to perform. Use strong action verbs whenever possible. Restaurant management is an active field, not a desk job, and your job description should reflect that. Also, take this opportunity to also set clear performance expectations. If you have a bonus structure based on sales growth, customer satisfaction scores, or hitting cost control targets, state it clearly in the job description.
Titles like “Staff Coach,”“Service Leader,” “Service Coach,” and “Crew Leader” are showing up more frequently on job posting sites as restaurants scramble to create new titles for leadership roles that emerged as the restaurant industry evolved since 2020. While these titles sound engaging, they can make it difficult for applicants with relevant experience to find your job listing. If applicants are searching for “restaurant manager” jobs and your posting is for a “Crew Coach,” you could miss out on the best candidates.
Step 3: List Skills & Qualifications
Education level and experience are common categories to include in the skills and qualifications section of your restaurant manager job description. Does this manager need to have a hospitality management degree? Or will a high school diploma do? Are you looking for three to five years of management experience? Or are you willing to train the right candidate?
It is also common to list skills like:
- Ability to stand for long periods of eight to 12 hours
- Ability to lift up to 50 pounds
- Proficiency with specific software (point-of-sale systems, accounting, inventory, etc.)
- Problem-solving
- Customer service
- Financial management
- Attention to detail
- Passion for food, beverage, and service
Step 4: Add Benefits & Salary Range
You should consider finishing your restaurant manager job description with an expected salary range. Including the salary in your job description ensures you allocate enough funds to attract the best candidates and helps you stick to your budget. Plus, 91% of job searchers say that salary information in the job posting influences their decision to apply.
How much you pay your restaurant managers will vary based on your location and restaurant type. Your location also plays a role; in major cities like Chicago and New York, you’ll need to pay more to attract the best candidates. The table below lists salary ranges by restaurant manager type and restaurant style.
Restaurant Manager Salary Range
Manager Type | Quick Service | Casual Full Service | Fine Dining |
|---|---|---|---|
General Manager | $50,000–$65,000 | $68,000–$80,000 | $80,000–$110,000 |
Assistant General Manager | $45,000–$55,000 | $60,000–$75,000 | $70,000–$75,000 |
Floor Manager | $35,000–$45,000 | $45,000–$55,000 | $50,000–$60,000 |
Bar Manager | N/A | $45,000–$60,000 | $55,000–$70,000 |
*Figures are from totals listed by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Indeed, and Glassdoor; averaged and organized by our restaurant expert.
The number of job postings that include salary information was 43.7% in March of 2023. In February 2020, this number was 18.4%. This increase is likely due to Colorado, California, Washington, and New York City passing legislation requiring salary information in job postings.
Step 5: Tell Applicants How to Apply
Job postings get passed around a lot online. You might post your restaurant manager opening on one site and see it pop up on a different aggregating site. Or restaurant workers might share your post with friends they know are searching for a restaurant manager job. So, always include a brief mention of how candidates should apply. Should they email a cover letter and resume directly to you? Should they apply only via Indeed or another job posting site?
Include your preferred method of contact in your job description so that no matter where applicants see your job posting, they know where to send their application materials. It is typical for restaurant managers to place their initial applications directly through your preferred job posting site, though some restaurants request applicants to email the owner directly or submit applications in person.
Once your restaurant manager job description is complete, get feedback before you post. Have other staff members you trust read over your job description to see if you missed any key tasks.
Tools for Creating a Restaurant Manager Job Description
Like most restaurant tasks, there is a growing number of software and online platforms that can help you create a restaurant manager job description and find great employees. Many human resources systems and scheduling apps include job description templates. Job posting sites offer posting packages and other services to help you get your ad in front of the right candidates. The table below showcases some of our top-recommended tools.
 |  |  |
|---|---|---|
From $40 per month | From $16 per day | From $0 per month |
Payroll and HR software with a custom job board that cross-posts open positions on LinkedIn, ZipRecruiter, Google Jobs, and more | Online employment marketplace and recruitment platform with candidate screening tools | Scheduling and HR software with included job description templates |
Restaurant Manager Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
A restaurant manager’s main responsibility is profitability. All of the associated managerial tasks—resolving customer complaints, training new staff, ordering supplies—support the goal of profitability.
Restaurant profit margins are tight. Ensuring that the restaurant operates as efficiently as possible requires daily attention from a restaurant manager who can read the sales patterns and make decisions in the moment to maintain profitability. These decisions might include sending staff home on a slow shift, turning off online ordering when the kitchen is busy, or discounting a customer’s meal when something has gone wrong.
Most restaurant managers start their workday with a walkthrough of the restaurant, looking for any safety issues or equipment that needs to be repaired. They might also check on high-value items like rare meat cuts or popular spirits to ensure the supplies are at the expected levels.
Then, the manager typically reads the previous day’s manager log and reviews the orders or reservations for the day ahead to identify any potential issues. These potential issues—along with any menu changes or daily specials—will be addressed in their preshift meeting (sometimes called a “line up”) with the hourly staff before the restaurant opens.
Once the restaurant is open, the restaurant manager is an active presence in the dining room and the kitchen. The manager supports the service team, assigning server sections, assigning cash tills to cashiers or bartenders, and liaising with the kitchen team to keep the restaurant running smoothly. The manager sends hourly staff on breaks when needed and audits individual sales reports.
At the end of a shift, restaurant manager duties include balancing the cash and receipts. They pull relevant sales and cost reports to complete the manager log. Depending on the day, the manager may also attend a management meeting or respond to customer inquiries for large party bookings or catering orders.
Restaurant managers need to have strong food and wine knowledge, excellent communication skills, stamina to work on their feet for 10+ hours per day, and excellent customer service skills. They should also be reasonably good with numbers, as most of any restaurant management job is controlling costs.
There’s no one educational program that is needed to be a restaurant manager. You might find the best restaurant managers are those who have come through the ranks. For example, they may have worked their way up in a larger fast-food chain, or they may have managed a smaller gourmet restaurant with a very demanding clientele.
What’s most important to look for is their expertise in the areas you find most important for your business. That may be staff management, customer service, and brand reputation, or it may be food and labor cost control. The best restaurant manager candidates will be those with expertise in all the core functions of a restaurant manager job.
The “head” of a restaurant varies depending on the restaurant type. In small, independent restaurants, the “head” of the restaurant is usually the owner. The owner of a small restaurant may also be the general manager or the executive chef. In larger restaurants with numerous owners or silent owners, the head of the restaurant is usually the general manager or GM.
Bottom Line
A restaurant manager is responsible for running a restaurant profitably. On a daily basis, restaurant managers manage staff and product orders while maintaining customer service standards and hitting cost and sales targets. They monitor cash flow, audit credit card transactions, and ensure that all restaurant facilities are in compliance with health and safety laws.
As such, a great restaurant manager is crucial to the success of your restaurant operation, whether it’s a family restaurant or a quick-serve establishment. Having a solid job description for the restaurant manager role is the tool you’ll need to find and manage that critical staff member. It serves as the foundation of discussion for duties and responsibilities when talking with your restaurant manager and makes it clear what you’re looking for when hiring.
