Council of Hotel and Restaurant Trainers P.O. Box 2835 Westfield, NJ 07091 chart.org (800) 463-5918
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How did you get into the hospitality industry? I had a unique upbringing: I was raised in the hotel industry. My family and I lived in hotels most of my adolescence. Therefore, I was born into hospitality. I entered the food and beverage industry when I was 15. My first job was as a cashier at Carl’s Jr. I lived in Las Vegas at the time, so I quickly began working in the larger hotels and resorts (Treasure Island, Mirage, MGM Grand). I soon moved into the restaurant service industry where I was brought on by The Cheesecake Factory and stayed for almost 20 years. I shifted into more lifestyle brand restaurants in Los Angeles for a bit before taking on my current role with Levity Live. What has been the wildest moment of your training career so far? Wildest moment may have been when we were opening a new venue on New Year’s Eve. New market, new venue, new staff, and new management team. A snowstorm unexpectedly hit the area and so many training days had to be postponed. Due to the weather, there were delays with inspections and liquor deliveries which became quite the challenge. It suddenly became clear that we were not going to receive any liquor in the venue until opening night. Our new bartenders had set up the liquor room and all service bars the day of opening. They were unable to actually practice making any of our specialty cocktails until the first guest order was placed that night. They received over 400 tickets to the service well the first 30 minutes of their shift. The training team kicked into full support as these amazing bartenders dug in deep and barreled through each ticket as feverishly as possible. Wild indeed, but no one walked out, no one cried, every guest was taken care of, and they were all smiling with a sense of accomplishment at the end of the night. I watched a group of people, that were complete strangers just a week or two prior, become forever family that night. What is the most impactful thing you have learned about training? What I’ve learned over the years with training is that people learn in different ways and at different speeds. I’ve learned to be patient and constantly check in and ask questions. I always try to be real and honest with the trainee, then allow them the bandwidth to just relax and breathe. It’s just F&B, it’s always going to be okay if you put the guest first.
Brea Watkins Director of Training Levity Live
2023 High 5 eBook is Now Online
Explore this collection of ideas, and copy, transform, or combine these sparks into your own successful solution! chart.org > Training Tools & Resources > Training High 5 eBook
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