hiring but then I was with a mate, and we were out one night and he asked what I was doing for work. I said I was looking for something, that I was interested in hospitality to build some funds up and get a bit of a feel for what I like and he texted Lucy [Baker]. “I came in the next week for a trial shift and I’ve been here ever since.” The early days were a mix of nerves, chaos, and rapid adjustment. Learning service from the ground up isn’t for the faint-hearted – especially when the only prior experience with handling high-pressure situations involved goalposts and 90-minute matches. But resilience, curiosity, and willingness to do the hard yards proved to be the catalyst. After moving from the floor to bar service, he began pouring energy into learning and watching everything around him. From there the nerves settled and a strong work ethic and desire to learn emerged. “I really dedicated myself to learning lots, soaking up everything like a sponge and just keeping eyes on everything, so learning every minute of every day that I was here. I’ve grown in that position and taken on a few more responsibilities, I now run the bar and I work the floor most nights, which is a real change from where I first started! And I got offered full time position and I’ve been here ever since.” For Baker, a local hospitality stalwart and owner of St. Albi, the vision of Matthew in action on his first service night will forever be ingrained in her memory. But despite not hesitating to declare Matt was a “deer in the headlights”, Baker could see the potential beyond the initial shift and was determined to find a spot in the business where her could flourish.
“I can teach people to carry plates and to pour wine and to present wine and all of that, but I cannot teach people work ethic, kindness, and all the things that come in hospitality like working under pressure, conflict resolution, having that really upbeat personality when things are under the pump,” Lucy says. “I really love getting out and talking to people, helping people to have a great experience and have fun and laugh.” - Matthew Bomford “That is what a lot of our hiring is actually based on. He was terrible on the floor, but I knew that he had something in him. St. Albi is a really busy restaurant as well, and everyone has to be a part of that, the wheels have to keep turning. I knew that he was a beautiful person, and I wanted to work with him. There’s something I really loved about him. “So we got him into the back bar… and he just absolutely kills it now. He’s so creative, he creates all the cocktails, manages the team in the bar, does all the ordering, manages the floor, he’s the
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Tasmanian Hospitality Review December/January Edition
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