The profession of a bartender is considered more prestigious than that of a waiter and is seen by many as a long term profession. The bartender position can be considered a kind of stepping stone to professional growth for the waiter, it requires more skills, knowledge and is more profitable. But there are different kinds of barmen, some barmen in restaurants simply serve some drinks, and a bartender in nightclubs and discos is a kind of artist, because it requires a high speed of work and artistry. Many bartenders master “freestyle” – the ability to juggle bottles and glasses to bring artistry to the process of making and serving drinks. In this case, the bartender will get more tips, and perhaps the customer will come again next time. But the newcomer has to start small. First trained as an assistant bartender, for three months you have to carry dishes, ice, rub bottles, make sure they are clean. Some restaurants have two bars, one flowing – the service bar, the other more chambered – the front bar. At the beginning, the bartender is assigned to the service bar, where up to 500 people a day are served and the technique is quickly built up, after which the employee can be put already on the front bar to communicate with the guests.

A sommelier is the employee who sells liquor and cigars to guests. This is the person responsible for serving drinks in the restaurant, giving advice on wine and drink selection, serving them or watching over their serving to the client, up to the moment when the client leaves the room. The sommelier is required to know the service and know the wines, their geography and their correspondence to the dishes. The sommelier should not only distinguish numerous shades of taste, but also describe them to a guest so that the latter has a desire to try a drink. So on the one hand he is a guide, on the other hand a taster. Professional barmen often pass into the category of a sommelier when they know the cuisine better and it is easier for them to communicate with the client. The chef consults with the sommelier, for example, when introducing a new dish that requires a change in the wine list. It takes years to become a pro.

A sommelier is an artist, you can’t take a course and become an artist. But if one is talented, a good course can be the road to the profession. Sommeliers are those who have received certificates and diplomas at sommelier courses and interned at restaurants. Beginners can apply to the Association of Sommeliers, which will determine if there is aptitude for the job and will advise on how to proceed. On a good sommelier depends the turnover of wine in the restaurant, there is a need for professionals, but they are few.

The hostess is the hostess of the hall. Her main function is to greet guests and escort them to their table. The first person the customer sees when entering the restaurant hall is the hostess. On her friendliness in many respects depends the overall impression of the institution. That is why she has to be not only pretty, but also to radiate positive energy. Experience for hostesses is not required, but the knowledge of English is welcome. Despite these, simple duties, in many elite institutions requirements for education and cultural level of hostesses are very high. You must be willing to hold a conversation with a customer, respond to their jokes, and sometimes get out of non-standard situations, of which there are many. The duties of a hostess include making the visitor spend the maximum amount of money on food and drinks, perform a slow dance with him, sing karaoke, etc. The hostess girl’s income is most often directly related to the money spent by the visitor. Another of their functions is to manage the work of the waiters. Duties of a hostess may include control of admission to the restaurant of guests staying at the hotel, who have paid for food. There is also a need for guest service skills – during peak hours, hostesses may take orders from customers, replacing the waiter. Just like waiters, hostesses mostly consider their jobs as temporary, but with specialized education can make a career.

The Maitre D’hôtel is the manager of the hall. His responsibilities include operational management of line staff and their training, quality control of service and cash discipline, meeting guests. Maitre d’hôtel solves conflict situations that can not be resolved by the waiter, and after the meal can ask the guest about the quality of service, there are times when he replaces the waiter. The whole range of emergency situations should be under his control. In addition, the maitre d’ is a kind of part-time psychologist. In his hands is often the key to the good mood of the guests. Some of them he picks up a table, talks to them. A solid client should want to come to the restaurant again and again. For this it is necessary not just to serve him – with him it is necessary to make friends. Sometimes it is only on the maitre d’hôtel to preserve the restaurant’s reputation. Often in the absence of the director, he takes over his duties, and the entire staff, including security, must follow his orders. They try to take a person with experience as a hall manager regardless of sex, age, and special education. Basic education for the maitre d’hôtel does not matter. To occupy this position, as a rule, it is necessary to have a pleasant appearance, competent speech and a good command of spoken English. To become a good maitre d’hôtel, you must learn all the subtleties of restaurant science, as usually all the maîtresse were themselves waiters in the past.

Chef

Most restaurateurs recognize this category of personnel the most problematic – it is difficult to find good cooks. Therefore, restaurants organize a system of internal training. Some take college graduates without experience “with a twinkle in their eye,” but most still prefer experienced chefs. There is some discrimination in the kitchen: the hot shop is considered the prerogative of men, and the cold shop, where they cut salads and decorate dishes, is the prerogative of women. When recruiting staff for a restaurant, many people encounter the following problems: Firstly, many chefs have inadequate self-esteem – they claim to be chefs with fairly average professional credentials. Second, the inability to consistently maintain the same level of food quality. The first three days a new chef cooks well, then there is a decline, and eventually at the end of the probationary period with him parted. Fifteen years ago, the profession of chef was not considered prestigious and not well paid. But with the end of the 80s of the last century in the capital and other cities, like mushrooms after the rain, began to appear in cafes, bars, restaurants, snack bars, pizzerias. And everywhere they were in need of chefs.

In the profession of chef prefer to take men. The first reason: the chef has to “marry” the restaurant – he usually has a 12-hour workday and one day off. In addition, it is sometimes physically demanding – you have to carry weights and stand on your feet all day. The second reason is that a man is considered the best cook. In the profession of a chef, managerial skills are often more important than culinary skills. It is very rare to find a man who is both a good cook and a manager. If a person has a bright culinary talent, then his career growth can be horizontal, for example, he can become the personal chef of the president of some large holding company. Now they often invite “chefs” to the regions to promote a restaurant, especially “from scratch”. But not everything is that smooth. Often a chef, having arrived and assessed the situation, sees that there are no qualified staff, there is no one to train, and the restaurant owners do not plan to recruit new, more professional specialists. So the chef goes to the stove and works seven days a week for 12 hours a day for the guests. Naturally, the prestige of the place goes up, the number of customers increases, and when he leaves, everything is the same. Some people, on the contrary, take it seriously, invite the chef for six months, and he starts by renewing the staff.

The chef should not smoke: cigarette smoke dulls the sensitivity of the taste buds. The same can be said about alcoholic beverages. Even a sip of beer distorts the sensation of the dish or completely changes it. People with diseases of the digestive system and skin diseases (even minor ones) are simply not allowed to work in the kitchen. Inspections are not uncommon, however, almost every three months. Chefs are strict about it!

The pastry chef prepares different types of dough, creams, fillings according to recipes. He kneads, kneads, rolls out and cuts dough, forms desired products (cakes, pastries, cookies, etc.), bakes them to perfection. Fills cakes and pies with cream, fondant, chocolate, whipped cream, etc. Checks the weight of finished products, which helps to determine if the recipe was followed correctly. A pastry chef needs a fine taste and sense of smell, gustatory memory and creative imagination, he must be well versed in the products, their composition, ingredients, know all the secrets of the equipment. Important and eye-vision: the eye often cut cakes from a whole plate or cake, determine their size and shape, the spatial arrangement of the elements of decoration (composition). Profession will require physical endurance, as we have to work long hours standing at a fairly high temperature. The pastry chef must have the following personal qualities: creativity, accuracy, good health, developed gustatory memory.