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Assistant food service director vs dining room manager

The differences between assistant food service directors and dining room managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both an assistant food service director and a dining room manager. Additionally, a dining room manager has an average salary of $49,372, which is higher than the $41,871 average annual salary of an assistant food service director.

The top three skills for an assistant food service director include food preparation, cleanliness and servsafe. The most important skills for a dining room manager are fine dining, food service, and good judgment.

Assistant food service director vs dining room manager overview

Assistant Food Service DirectorDining Room Manager
Yearly salary$41,871$49,372
Hourly rate$20.13$23.74
Growth rate10%10%
Number of jobs150,177162,992
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 55%Bachelor's Degree, 51%
Average age3939
Years of experience44

What does an assistant food service director do?

An Assistant Food Service Director supervises and coordinates food preparation and food service activities. They work under the direction of the director of food service.

What does a dining room manager do?

Dining Room Managers are responsible for supervising the operations of a dining establishment or restaurant. Their duties include ensuring workers adhere to operational and service standards, implement training and recruitment processes, addressing customer concerns, achieving customer satisfaction, and overseeing a restaurant's inventory and budget. Dining Room Managers compile daily reports, greet customers, introduce menus, and ensure the dining area is healthy and clean. They also assist in the orientation of workers.

Assistant food service director vs dining room manager salary

Assistant food service directors and dining room managers have different pay scales, as shown below.

Assistant Food Service DirectorDining Room Manager
Average salary$41,871$49,372
Salary rangeBetween $29,000 And $59,000Between $35,000 And $69,000
Highest paying City-New York, NY
Highest paying state-Rhode Island
Best paying company-Hca Hospital Services Of San Diego
Best paying industry-Hospitality

Differences between assistant food service director and dining room manager education

There are a few differences between an assistant food service director and a dining room manager in terms of educational background:

Assistant Food Service DirectorDining Room Manager
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 55%Bachelor's Degree, 51%
Most common majorBusinessBusiness
Most common collegeCornell UniversityCornell University

Assistant food service director vs dining room manager demographics

Here are the differences between assistant food service directors' and dining room managers' demographics:

Assistant Food Service DirectorDining Room Manager
Average age3939
Gender ratioMale, 50.7% Female, 49.3%Male, 42.9% Female, 57.1%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 11.6% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.5% Asian, 7.2% White, 59.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%Black or African American, 10.4% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 15.6% Asian, 8.5% White, 60.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage10%10%

Differences between assistant food service director and dining room manager duties and responsibilities

Assistant food service director example responsibilities.

  • Manage nutrition department of pharmacy and medical home healthcare supply company.
  • Attend food safety classes and complete the Chicago, Illinois and federal ServSafe certifications.
  • Adhere to standard operating procedures for cleanliness of the facility and culinary instruments and utensils
  • Roll out new culinary and nutritional programs in conjunction with Eurest marketing and culinary team.
  • Prepare and research material to become expert on topics ranging from HACCP's, cross contamination, and food borne illness.
  • Facilitate development, implementation and utilization of HACCP.
  • Show more

Dining room manager example responsibilities.

  • Interview, hire, train, and manage take-out and in-room delivery staff.
  • Control operational costs by managing bar and wine inventory.
  • Manage payroll and timekeeping, and effectively complete proper paperwork for new hires and terminations.
  • Manage daily FOH staff line-up, covering necessary instruction and education concerning fine-dining service and beverage, menu and company knowledge.
  • Team with culinary product development to integrate customer data into new products that increase revenue and customer satisfaction.
  • Entrust with the care of VIP guests like Thomas Keller, Michael Mina and Alain Passard.
  • Show more

Assistant food service director vs dining room manager skills

Common assistant food service director skills
  • Food Preparation, 22%
  • Cleanliness, 16%
  • ServSafe, 14%
  • Culinary, 7%
  • Fine Dining, 7%
  • Food Production, 6%
Common dining room manager skills
  • Fine Dining, 27%
  • Food Service, 12%
  • Good Judgment, 12%
  • Cleanliness, 12%
  • Customer Service, 5%
  • Food Handling, 4%

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