Restaurant General Manager Interview Questions

The goal for a successful interview for a Restaurant General Manager is to assess the candidate’s experience in managing daily operations of a restaurant, ability to oversee staff and ensure a positive customer experience, and strategic planning skills for long-term growth and profitability.

Situational interview questions

• You have noticed a rise in customer complaints about slow service at your busy hours. How would you address and solve this problem while maintaining quality service and food standards?
• Your restaurant has recently received negative reviews about the cleanliness of the dining area and kitchen. How would you improve and maintain hygiene standards to ensure customer satisfaction and meet health requirements?
• A key member of your team is constantly causing disagreements and tension with other staff members. How would you handle this situation and maintain a positive work environment?
• Your restaurant is experiencing a decrease in sales during weekdays. What strategies would you implement to increase sales and revenue?
• One of your suppliers has delivered subpar quality ingredients, and it has affected the taste and presentation of your dishes. How would you handle this situation and ensure that your restaurant maintains its reputation for excellent food quality?

Soft skills interview questions

• How do you handle conflicts or difficult situations with your team members or customers as a restaurant general manager?
• How do you inspire and motivate your team members to meet the business objectives and provide excellent customer service consistently?
• Can you describe a time when you introduced and implemented a change to improve the performance of your previous restaurant? How did you handle the pushback from your employees?
• Can you explain your approach to delegation and decision-making as a restaurant general manager? How do you ensure everyone is on the same page and aligned with the business goals?
• How do you maintain a positive and productive work environment that fosters teamwork, open communication, and a commitment to excellence among your employees?

Role-specific interview questions

• How have you managed inventory and procurement in your past restaurant management roles?
• Can you walk us through your experience in developing and maintaining a strong team dynamic among restaurant staff?
• How have you implemented cost-saving measures in your previous positions as a restaurant general manager?
• Have you worked with any point-of-sale (POS) systems or other restaurant technology tools? If so, can you describe your experience and how you’ve utilized them to improve operations?
• Give an example of how you have dealt with a difficult customer complaint or situation and how you resolved it in a professional manner.

STAR interview questions

1. Can you describe a situation where you found that your restaurant needed to improve its customer service?

– What was your task in this situation?

– What actions did you take to address the issue?

– What were the results of those actions?

2. Can you share an example of a challenge you faced when managing a team of restaurant staff?

– What was your task in this situation?

– What actions did you take to address the issue?

– What were the results of those actions?

3. Have you ever had to deal with a difficult customer complaint?

– Can you describe the situation?

– What was your task in this situation?

– What actions did you take to address the issue?

– What were the results of those actions?

4. Can you tell us about a time when you had to implement changes in the menu or restaurant policies?

– What was your task in this situation?

– What actions did you take to implement the changes?

– What were the results of those actions?

5. Have you ever faced a situation where you had to resolve a conflict between two employees in the restaurant?

– What was your task in this situation?

– What actions did you take to resolve the conflict?

– What were the results of those actions?