Accountability cannot shift based on mood or circumstance.

Training always starts at the door.

Running a restaurant looks different than a lot of people think. There are relationships with vendors to maintain, reservation management and optimization, staffing, orders, invoicing, and then there is the actual service aspect that most people think is the bulk of our job. Before our service starts, there are about three to four hours of other work that need to happen, so we stay efficient, and our staff can make the most money possible.

I think the General Manager role is misunderstood. We are culture builders, and culture is not just a slogan. It is built through daily decisions and consistent standards.

Here are five ingredients I focus on to create a strong culture as a general manager:

1. Punctuality is a Non-Negotiable

Making sure everyone is on time every day is non-negotiable for me. It sets the tone. When the first standard of the day is clear, everything else builds from there. If we ask our guests to be on time, it is even more important that our employees are on time as well.

2. Make Sure Everyone Is Well Informed

For pre-service lineups, we have a system where we use one sheet that contains all food and beverage notes from all of the guests each evening. This helps us give context to staff so we are not just giving people a ton of information without a reference. Making sure everyone is well-informed reduces confusion and makes service feel intentional rather than frantic.

No one, including myself, wants to walk into a restaurant where everyone is running around frantically, that is usually a sign of a lack of direction. There is a time and place to move fast. But when you see people go one way and then quickly go another and nothing gets accomplished, it normally comes from unclear leadership.

3. Hold Everyone to the Same Standard

Holding people accountable for the standards you set and never backing down from them is critical. Accountability cannot shift based on mood or circumstance.

Early in my career, I made the mistake of not being vocal enough to speak up when I saw things we could improve. I used to mostly concern myself with being liked by my coworkers and worrying about others’ opinions of me. It is impossible to please everyone. Now I focus on improving our service and operations.

There is a very fine line between authority and approachability. A quote from Kobe Bryant has always stuck with me: “Leadership is a lonely place.” My job is to run a restaurant as profitably as possible, with the business’s interests in mind first. I am open to any and all suggestions from our staff on how we can improve operations or service, but I also have to weigh those suggestions against what the business needs to be successful.

4. Build Systems That Support the Entire Team

One of the most important decisions we made was tip pooling the entire restaurant evenly. Everyone works for the entire group. They understand each person’s role in service. We do not have to worry about having even cover counts to give everyone an equal opportunity to make money. If someone has a smaller section, they might be running drinks or filling water pitchers. It creates shared ownership.

Consistency in staffing impacts the guest experience long term. We have the same server take care of the same guest in the same seat to the best of our ability. That allows the guest and the server or bartender to establish a relationship beyond your normal everyday restaurant interaction.

5. Be Available and Proficient

Five small daily things shape our culture: being available, trying to provide what we need to succeed, going out of our way to get what we might need day by day rather than waiting, holding everyone to the same standard, and being proficient enough in each role to step in when needed.

Training reflects that structure. Training always starts at the door. If you can run the host stand in a restaurant, you will have a great understanding of how the entire restaurant operates. Once staff members master the host stand they can move on to running food and server assistant positions. From there they will shadow a server and start with a small section. This is how we have ensured longevity and adaptability in all of our servers throughout the years.

Ultimately, culture is reinforced by trust. Owners have to give their GM the tools they need to succeed and leave some of the decision-making solely in the GM’s hands. That trust matters.

The best compliment I have ever received from a guest was simple: “You really look like you know what you’re doing.” For a General Manager, that usually means the culture is working.

Source: Kyle Brown, FSR