Maître d'hôtel

Maître d'hôtel [ mɛːtʁə d‿otɛl ] is the name for the manager of a restaurant . The term comes from French and is mainly used in the upscale gastronomy sector.

In terms of hierarchy, the maître d'hôtel is superordinate to all other restaurant employees (trainees, commis de rang, demichef de rang , chef de rang , sommelier , second head waiter). He acts both as head waiter and restaurant manager.

His professional tasks include advising the guests, flambéing , carving , decanting wine and serving at the guest's table. His managerial tasks include a. the representation of the restaurant business, customer care and complaint management, monitoring of the profitability of the restaurant business, instruction and assessment of employees, menu and wine list creation (in cooperation with the kitchen director / chef or sommelier) and marketing .

With the increasing spread of US-American hotel chains , the job description of the maître d'hôtel is increasingly being replaced by that of the restaurant manager, who emphasizes the commercial tasks more than the service.