Sommelier

The Dorchester; City of Westminster; On-site; GBP 35,000 - 48,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Complimentary stays

50% food & beverage discounts

Royal London Private Pension scheme

Apprenticeships & development

Social & milestone events

£1000 referral bonus

Well-being support

Job summary

The Dorchester in London is seeking a Sommelier to elevate our wine service and guest experience. You will learn from award-winning colleagues and our learning academy to uphold exceptional craft, service, and leadership across the restaurant.

This role emphasizes advanced wine knowledge, food and wine pairing, and delivering outstanding guest interactions in a luxury setting with shift-based hours and opportunities for career development.

Qualifications

• Advanced Wine Knowledge: In-depth understanding of wine regions, varieties, tasting notes, and wine service techniques.
• Experience with Food and Wine Pairing: Ability to recommend pairings that enhance the dining experience.
• Communication Skills: Clear verbal communication to interact with guests and explain wine options, as well as collaborate with team members.
• Customer Service: Ability to enhance the guest experience by recommending suitable wines and responding to requests or preferences.
• Team Collaboration: Working closely with kitchen staff and waiters to provide seamless food and wine pairing service.
• Problem-Solving: Handling guest concerns about wine or service in a calm and efficient manner.

Responsibilities

• As a Sommelier, you’ll enjoy your work and take pride in delighting our guests.
• You will be responsible for recommending our exceptional wines to our guests for every occasion during their day, including selecting wines and creating drink lists, managing stock, and serving wine orders efficiently.

Skills

Advanced wine knowledge

Wine pairing

Communication skills

Customer service

Team collaboration

Problem solving

Job description

Join us as a Sommelier at Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester, recently recognised as one of ‘The Sunday Times Top 10 Best Places to Work for’ in 2024, 2025 & 2026 and ‘Hotel of the year – London’ at the 2024 AA Hospitality Awards. We continually strive to build and nurture a culture where inclusiveness is part of our DNA, reflected in our values of passion, personality, respect, working together, and creativity. We believe that a variety of perspectives enriches our culture and drives our success.

We care about your career and are proud to have the absolute best people in the industry.

When you join us as a Sommelier at Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester, you will have a unique opportunity to excel in your field. You will learn from your fellow Legends and our award-winning learning academy to achieve the highest standards in craft, service, and leadership.

What you’ll do

As a Sommelier, you’ll enjoy your work and take pride in delighting our guests:

• You will be responsible for recommending our exceptional wines to our guests for every occasion during their day. This will include selecting wines and creating drink lists, managing stock, as well as serving wine orders efficiently and in a timely manner all to ensure our guests receives nothing but the best experience
• Sometimes our guests have special requests involving dietary requirements, wine preferences and even special occasions. Most of these requests are fulfilled by our Sommelier.

The items shared are the essence of a day in the life of a Sommelier, but we’ll make sure you are provided with specifics on how we care for our hotel.

The operational hours of work are shift-based and may be subjected to change. These currently set as:

• Tuesday to Saturday: 14:30 - close
• Sunday and Monday: Off

What you’ll bring

Essential Skills and Experience

• Advanced Wine Knowledge: In-depth understanding of wine regions, varieties, tasting notes, and wine service techniques.
• Experience with Food and Wine Pairing: Ability to recommend pairings that enhance the dining experience.
• Communication Skills: Clear verbal communication to interact with guests and explain wine options, as well as collaborate with team members.
• Customer Service: Ability to enhance the guest experience by recommending suitable wines and responding to requests or preferences.
• Team Collaboration: Working closely with kitchen staff and waiters to provide seamless food and wine pairing service.
• Problem-Solving: Handling guest concerns about wine or service in a calm and efficient manner.

Preferred Skills and Experience

• Mentorship Experience: Experience training or guiding junior sommeliers or waitstaff.
• Additional Language Skills: Knowledge of languages other than English to communicate with international guests.
• Experience in Fine Dining or Luxury Hospitality: Previous experience in a Michelin-starred or upscale dining environment.

What you’ll get

• Complimentary Stays: Enjoy complimentary stays with breakfast at Dorchester Collection Hotels every year.
• Discounts: Get 50% off food and beverages at selected bars and restaurants within the Dorchester Collection: Enjoy Friends & Family stay discounts at hotels, Benefit from discounts at various high street and online shops
• Employee Perks: Enrol from day 1 into the Royal London Private Pension scheme (we contribute 8% towards your pension); Benefit from Seasonal ticket loan, Rental deposit scheme, private financial advice, and Eye care vouchers.
• Training and Development: Advance in your career by accessing various apprenticeships from Level 2 to Hospitality Degree Level 5. We partner with outstanding nationally recognised Apprenticeship providers.
• Social Events: Participate in vibrant social events, including a summer party, winter ball, pub quizzes, and cultural and milestone recognition celebrations.
• Referral Bonus: Earn a £1000 bonus when you recommend a friend.
• Well-being Support: Access immediate well-being advice because we care about our employees.

We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees and applicants. If you need us to do anything to support you during the recruitment process (such as adjustments to how you apply, alternative formats of information, or adjustments to the assessment process itself), please do call People & Culture team on 02073197011 or email [e-mail] so that we can discuss how we can support you through this process.