INTRODUCTION TO THE FOOD AND BEVERAGE SECTOR

INTRODUCTION TO THE FOOD AND BEVERAGE SECTOR

·         Profit generated from the provision of food and beverage services is another significant source of income in the hospitality business.

 

The food and beverage department within a hotel consists of various units and huge quantity of staff in order to cater the needs of customers inside or outside the hotel. 

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·         Generally speaking, the provision of food and beverage services are not only limited to restaurants and bars operating inside a hotel property. In fact, it also involves other functional units.

·         Related food and beverage departments in a hotel:

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o    Kitchen

o    Restaurants

o    Catering (internal and external)

o    Banqueting (internal and external)

o    Room Service (in-room dining)

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o    Mini-bars

o    Lounge bars

o    Stewarding

o    Staff Canteen

 

·         Kitchens

·         A kitchen is a place for the storage and preparation of food. In some hotels, there may be a variety of kitchens catering to different needs, from breakfast, lunch and dinner, to events such as gala dinners and conferences. 

 

The number of customers being catered for varies depending on the size of the dining facilities and kitchen, the number of staff employed and the equipment being used.

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·         Hotel kitchens can be divided into separate sections. Some of the examples are as follows:

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o    Production kitchen

o    Banqueting kitchen

o    À la carte kitchen

o    Grill room

o    Pastry kitchen

o    Food preparation area

• The purpose of a kitchen is to produce the right quality of food of the highest standard for the required number of people, on time, by the most effective use of staff, equipment and materials. 

 

It is sometimes necessary for a hotel to have different types of kitchens and cooking sections. 

 

Different types of kitchens/sections serve their unique functions. 

• Example:

 

A production kitchen is an example of a kitchen.

 

Production kitchens produce foods for separate service areas in the hotel. 

 

The amount of food produced can be as large as in the production for airlines or function centres dealing with hundreds of people, or as in the food production for a counter area where smaller numbers of customers are catered for.

 

·         Restaurants

·         Most hotels have at least one dining room that can be used for breakfast, lunch and dinner meals. 

 

Typically these food and beverage areas are run by a Restaurant Manager. 

 

Some larger and higher-grade hotels may have multiple restaurants and dining areas.

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·         Restaurants in hotels can vary, e.g. coffee shop, casual restaurant, formal dining room, banqueting facilities. Restaurants can also often specialize in certain types of food or sometimes present a certain theme. For example, there are seafood restaurants, vegetarian restaurants or ethnic restaurants. 

 

Hotels may have different restaurants to cater for different events and times of the day. For example, breakfast and lunch may be served in the same restaurant whereas dinner may be in a more formal setting.

 

·         Banqueting and Catering

·         A banquet, event or function can be described as the service of food and drink at a specific time and place, to a given number of customers at a known price. Banquet is a term used  to describe a large formal occasion,  e.g. wedding. 

 

Some examples of hospitality functions include:

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o    Business functions – conferences, lunch, and dinner meetings

o    Social functions – gala dinners, anniversaries, weddings

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o    Catering

o    The banqueting service is an on demand service which requires advanced reservation by customers. The demand for banquet staff is less stable when compared with restaurants and may involve the recruitment of part-time staff in this department, especially in peak seasons.

 

Hotel catering events are usually organized in different formats. Set menus are generally preferred in most catering events. And some organizers would  prefer  choosing buffet style which is suitable when time is limited.

·         Hotels, which provide banqueting facilities and services are always equipped with banqueting kitchens. The setting of a banqueting kitchen should be spacious which allows mass production of food items required for every single event. 

 

In some hotels, special preparation areas are also available in adjacent to the banquet kitchen for the plating of dishes as the end stage of food production. Movable warmers are always used to transport and keep prepared food in good condition before serving them in the banquet rooms.

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·         Buffet

·         A buffet is a self-serving system. Customers select food from a display, and it is consumed either seated at a table or standing.

 

There are different types of buffets. One form is to have a line of food serving sections filled with fixed portions of food; customers take whatever food items they want as they walk along and pay at the end for each dish. A good example is a cafeteria.

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o    All-you-can-eat-buffet

o    Self-service, Cafeteria

o    Tray line

 

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Customers pay a fixed price and help themselves to as much food as they wish in a single meal. 

 

 

 

 

 

·         Room Service

·         This is the service provided in hotels that allows customers to order food and drink to be delivered to their rooms.

 

Although not all hotels have room service available for their customers, such a service does give conveniences and enhance guest satisfaction during their stays. Customers who order food and beverages to be delivered to their rooms can enjoy high privacy and personalized services in their dining experiences.

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o    Room Service

o    To ensure the freshness of food orders, hot dishes are kept in the warmer inside the service cart before being delivered to the room. Close communication with the housekeeping department is essential to ensure no used trays or dishes are left outside guest rooms.  

 

In order to reduce the workload on room attendants, floor checks are performed regularly by room service staff to ensure the hygiene and tidiness of corridors on each hotel floor. 

 

·         Bar Management

·         Bar management involves planning, organizing, staffing, leading and controlling. A bar manager’s responsibilities often include coordinating, training and evaluating the staff.   

 

Bars managers will have a sound knowledge of wines, beers and spirits, and also the ability to make alcoholic and non-alcoholic cocktails. Other duties may include:

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o    Supervising the ordering and storage of wines

o    Overseeing staff, rotas, and training

o    Scheduling of staff

o    Maintaining cost control

o    Knowledge of other beverages

 

·         Stewarding Department

·         The stewarding department is responsible for the correct cleaning, drying and storage of all equipment used in the preparation and cooking of food. It is critical to prevent the spread of bacteria and cross-contamination.

 

Responsibilities of the Chief Steward are:

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o    Cleanliness of back-of-house

o    Washing of pots and pans

o    Cleanliness of glassware, china and cutlery

o    Inventory of chemical stock

o    Maintenance of dishwashing machines

o    Pest control, where necessary

 

·         Staff Canteen

·         Most hotels have their own staff canteens which are managed by the food and beverage department. In some cases, hotels may appoint a catering company to manage and offer food and beverage services to employees. Some of them operate 24-hour a day to provide free meals to staff working in different shifts.

 

Operational cost would not be counted as an expense of the food and beverage department but budgeted by the financial controller of the hotel as a cost of the HR department.

 

 

 

·         Restaurant Organization and Duties of Key Positions

·         Food and Beverage Manager

·         The responsibilities of a Food and Beverage Manager typically cover a number of areas. They will have the sole responsibility for the day-to-day running of the food and beverage department and ensure budgetary controls while overseeing pricing and purchasing in all food and beverage areas. 

 

They will also be involved in the recruitment and supervision of a highly skilled food and beverage team and be responsible for the creation and implementation of seasonal food and beverage marketing strategies including input into menu planning.

 

The attached image shows the structure of restaurant staff from management levels down to floor staff levels.

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·         The main responsibilities of the food and beverage manager can also include the following:

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o    Ensuring that the profit margins are achieved

o    Purchasing, receiving and controlling inventory

o    Interviewing and selecting staff

o    Training of staff for supervisory level

o    Promotion of the beverage department

o    Co-ordinating requests from other departments

o    Complying with health and safety regulations

o    Ensure all departments are working efficiently

 

·         Restaurant Manager

·         In a suitably staffed restaurant or hotel the restaurant manager is in charge of assigning customers to tables and dividing the dining area into areas of responsibility for waiting staff. 

 

The manager also records advance reservations, as well as dealing with customer complaints and making sure staff are completing their tasks in an efficient manner.  

 

The Managers duties include daily operations, staffing and human resources, finance, marketing, advertising and public relations. Their duties also extend to the following:

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o    responsibilities to the customers

o    responsibilities to the employer

o    responsibilities for health and safety

o    responsibilities for staff training

o    interviewing and selecting new staff

 

·         Assistant Restaurant Manager

·         An Assistant Restaurant Manager will assist the Restaurant Manager in the organization and running of the restaurant. They will assume full responsibility when the Restaurant Manager is unavailable, on leave or absent. 

 

Their duties will include daily operations and staffing and will also extend to responsibilities for staff training, health and safety and to the guest.

 

Other restaurant floor staff positions include the following:

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o    Station Waiter

o    Waiter/Waitress

o   

Head Waiter or Section Supervisor

 

This person is responsible for a team of staff serving a set number of tables in the restaurant or function; this is known as a station.

 

·         Kitchen Duties and Key Positions

·         Head Chef / Executive Chef

 

In large establishments the duties of the Head Chef / Executive Chef are mainly administrative.

Only in small establishments would it be necessary for the Head Chef to be engaged in handling the food. 

 

The functions of the Head Chef / Executive Chef are:

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o    Order the food

o    Engage the staff

o    Supervise the kitchen

o    Advise on equipment purchases

o    Responsible for guest satisfaction

o    Ensure food quality

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·         The Head Chef / Executive Chef also has to work in conjunction with:

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o    Other chefs and cooks

o    Food and beverage staff

o    Function staff

o    Kitchen stewards

 

·         Sous Chef

The Sous Chef relieves the Head Chef and is the Chef’s right hand. Their main function is to supervise the work in the kitchen so that it runs smoothly and according to the Head chef’s wishes. 

 

In large kitchens there may be several sous-chefs with specific responsibility for separate services such as banquets and grill room.

 

Other chefs and staff who work in the kitchen are listed below:

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o    Commis Chef

o    Apprentice

o    Each Station Chef is a senior chef in charge of a section of the work in the kitchen, such as sauces and soups, fish, vegetables, roast or pastry. This is the job of the specialist. 

 

The Station Chefs organize their own sections, delegate the work to assistants and are in fact the backbone of the kitchen.

 

·         Food and Beverage and Other Departments

·         The food and beverage department depends on the other departments in the hotel for effective functioning. 

 

Smooth co-ordination is important and communication between departments must be clear and concise.

The following shows the relationship between the food and beverage department and other hotel departments.

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o    Rooms Division

o    Engineering

o    Security

 

o    F&B department always has coordination with Rooms Division in performing different duties. For example, in some hotels, they are supported by the telephone department in taking room service orders. 

 

Some housekeeping departments would also help the F&B department to collect used trays and utensils after the consumption of food items by in-room guests on each floor. It is the responsibility of F&B department to give support to the executive lounge in providing snack and beverage services to the hotel guests.

 

·         Relationships between the food and beverage department and all other hotel departments include the following:

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o    Human Resources

o    Sales/Marketing

o    Accounting

o    Purchasing

 

o    The relationship between human resources department and F&B department is similar to those mentioned earlier with the front office and housekeeping departments. 

 

The need of the food and beverage department in recruiting a large quantity of casual staff in case of peak seasons and large-scaled events relies heavily on the support of the human resources department.