Assistant Restaurant Manager

Dobbies; Milton Keynes; On-site; GBP 25,000 - 30,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading garden centre retailer in Milton Keynes is hiring an Assistant Restaurant Manager to oversee restaurant operations while ensuring exceptional customer experiences and compliance with health standards. Candidates should have proven experience in restaurant management, strong commercial awareness, and the ability to enhance team performance through effective training.

Benefits

Generous annual leave

50% off in Restaurants

Access to Wagestream for financial well-being

Employee wellbeing support

Dobbies Academy for development

Qualifications

• Proven experience in restaurant management is essential.
• Understanding of budgets and profitability is required.
• Ability to manage stock controls strictly is necessary.
• Capability to identify training needs and coach teams.

Responsibilities

• Oversee restaurant operations including kitchen and front of house.
• Lead a team focused on delivering a great customer experience.
• Ensure health and safety compliance at all times.
• Manage stock to minimize wastage and maintain quality.

Skills

Hospitality passion

Restaurant management experience

Commercial awareness

Stock management

Health & Safety regulations

Training and coaching

Adaptability

Positive change management

Job description

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Client:

Location:

Milton Keynes, United Kingdom

Job Category:

Other

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EU work permit required:

Yes

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Job Reference:

1bbb85b1158b

Job Views:

15

Posted:

12.08.2025

Expiry Date:

26.09.2025

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Job Description:

Our Assistant Restaurant Managers play an essential role in delivering an exceptional experience across our Restaurants – delivering tasty food, maintaining operational standards, smashing commercial targets, and ensuring food hygiene, whilst assisting the Restaurant Manager.

Responsibilities

• Oversee the fast-paced restaurant operation, taking responsibility for both the kitchen and front of house operation.
• Lead an engaged team, focused on delivering a great customer experience and making it work for our customer.
• Ensure strict compliance with health and safety regulations at all times.
• Effective stock management controls, to ensure wastage is minimised and the kitchen has everything it needs to deliver to our customers.
• Support the delivery of in-store events, including seasonal highlights such as Breakfast with Santa, and regular fixtures such as Afternoon Teas.
• Communicate effectively with our central support teams to maintain smooth operations and feedback to improve our business.
• Work as part of the overall Garden Centre Management team to deliver a safe working environment, a commercially successful store, and a great place to work for our colleagues.

Who we are looking for

• You'll bring passion for hospitality with proven experience of restaurant management.
• Commercial awareness and understanding of budgets, profitability from driving sales and improved ways of working.
• A proven ability to manage stock controls and strict adherence to health & safety regulations.
• Ability to identify training needs. You'll be effectively coaching and training all levels ensuring our teams are delivering a first-class customer experience and safe centre environment.
• Adaptability. You'll act quickly and enthusiastically to changing priorities, workload, and new regulations or requirements.
• Positivity managing change, you'll lead the team through each session with care and motivation to deliver the best.
• Can demonstrate our values at all times - we're one team, getting better every day. We bring a smile. We live and breathe gardens. We make it work for our customers.

What we offer

• Generous annual leave entitlement. Use your holidays when you want with limited statutory days off required.
• Treat yourself with generous uncapped discount across our stores with 50% off in our Restaurants, 25% off in the Garden Centre, and 10% off in our food halls.
• Access to Wagestream - support your financial wellbeing, with the ability to access earnings ahead of pay day, save for the future, and receive financial advice.
• Access to Retail Trust - seek confidential support, access to a virtual GP, free counselling service, and discounted retail rewards with our employee wellbeing platform.
• Access to Dobbies Academy - continue your development with our eLearning platform and development programmes.
• Thriving culture; the Dobbies team are passionate, diverse, and committed to making it work for our customers.

About Us

At Dobbies, we’re proud to have a history dating back to 1865. We were founded by James Dobbie and are the only garden centre retailer to have stores in every nation across the UK.

Our passion and joy for gardens and plants is what makes us special. In our stores, we showcase this through own brand and branded products, concession partners, and services. We champion garden living all year round.

Many of our stores feature a restaurant or coffee shop, where customers can enjoy refreshments or meals in a relaxed and welcoming environment.

We offer a calendar of events and experiences that bring people and communities together, and we have a national charity partner that both our colleagues and customers raise money for.

We’re committed to being a great place to work. We’re one team, and we encourage our colleagues to be the best version of themselves, every day; to share their wins and celebrate success. Together, we make it work for our customers.