Dining Services Dining Room Supervisor

Roanoke College; Salem (VA); On-site; USD 42,000 - 54,000; Full time

Job summary

Roanoke College in Salem, Virginia seeks a Dining Room Supervisor to lead Sutton Commons front‑of‑the‑house operations, supervise dining room staff, and manage daily financial and administrative tasks to support a 10 million dollar dining program. The role emphasizes guest service, safety compliance, and collaboration with the Executive Chef to deliver outstanding culinary experiences.

The position requires strong leadership, excellent communication, and a solutions‑oriented mindset.

Qualifications

• Strong leadership and interpersonal abilities with staff guidance and mentoring.
• Excellent decision making and problem solving under pressure.
• Familiarity with food safety, sanitation, and VA health guidelines.

Responsibilities

• Represent Roanoke College positively to guests and team members.
• Enforce safety, sanitation, and workplace standards as instructed.
• Supervise dining room staff and assist with daily front‑of‑house operations.
• Use POS systems to process transactions and manage cash handling.
• Maintain deposit records, inventory, and related financial tasks.
• Plan for special events and assist with marketing collateral as needed.
• Train staff on SOPs, safety, and customer service best practices.
• Coordinate with the Executive Chef and manage equipment and maintenance issues.

Skills

Leadership

Verbal and written communication

Food service operations

Time management

Education

Associate’s degree in culinary arts or related field

2 years of equivalent food service experience

Tools

Menu management software

Office software (Word/Excel)

Job description

About Roanoke College

Roanoke College is a place where every student who works hard has the opportunity to succeed. We champion potential, providing essential learning and leadership through innovative academic programs and transformative educational experiences, giving students the mettle, mindset, and empathy to pursue lives of purpose, build meaningful careers, and meet society’s most pressing needs. Located in scenic Salem, Virginia, Roanoke College is an intimate, welcoming community that has served the local region and beyond for nearly 200 years. Now, we’re building on momentum and offering a Roanoke experience for today’s students and a legacy that belongs to every Maroon. Learn about the College's new strategic plan, Imagine Roanoke: A Strategic Plan for Roanoke College and the 21st Century Learner. Roanoke College is a nationally ranked residential liberal arts college affiliated with the Lutheran Church (ELCA), located in the beautiful Roanoke Valley of Virginia. A Phi Beta Kappa institution, Roanoke College is an equal opportunity employer and actively seeks diversity among its faculty, staff, and students; women and members of under‑represented groups are especially encouraged to apply.

The Position

This position is a hands‑on, working supervisor and serves in a leadership role for the Sutton Commons dining center, Roanoke College’s all‑you‑care‑to‑eat dining operation. The Dining Room Supervisor is a highly visible role and will participate in all daily duties for front‑of‑the‑house operations to help support the mission of Roanoke College Dining Services, “…to provide excellent culinary and hospitality experiences.” With an annual operating budget of over $10 million, the Sutton Commons serves over 1,500 meals daily to students, faculty, staff, and campus guests. The Dining Room Supervisor helps to ensure facility readiness to accept guests during hours of operations, supervises dining room staff, and performs the administrative functions of a supervisor. The Dining Room Supervisor reports to the Executive Chef and is the co‑lead front‑of‑house supervisor. This position begins on Friday, August 14, 2026.

Key Responsibilities

• Positively represent Roanoke College, treating all guests and team members with courtesy and respect.
• Apply and enforce workplace safety and sanitation standards as instructed by VDH and Dining.
• Cleaning & maintaining equipment for stewardship and safe operation.
• Handling, stocking, and rotating food, supplies, equipment, and chemicals commonly used in foodservice as needed or directed.
• Provide daily assistance to dining room staff to ensure overall cleanliness of dining areas and stocking and replenishing of products and supplies.
• Use a Point‑of‑Sale machine/ cash register to obtain payment transactions from customers including cash, credit, and tap‑to‑pay options.
• Ensure compliance to food safety, sanitation, workplace safety standards, and other department and college policies.
• File daily deposit records, maintaining sales and inventory records, and support other financial tasks to meet operation and department’s financial goals.
• Help plan and prepare for special events and functions.
• Conduct general Human Resources supervisory tasks, including training, performance planning and evaluation, etc.
• Report any equipment, facilities, or maintenance issues as they are identified.
• Accurately record temperatures, sales data, inventory levels, and other pertinent data.
• Manage and control inventory: places orders, receives stock; checks invoices, maintains quality control, takes periodic physical inventories.
• Support department equipment inventory and maintenance processes.
• Work to achieve high quality customer and client satisfaction scores.
• Teach and train dining room staff on best practices, standard operating procedures, safety and sanitation.
• Prepare signage, announcements, and other communication and marketing collateral.
• Creates a positive environment and successfully motivates and manages team.
• Other duties as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications

• Strong verbal and written communication skills in the English language, including active listening, dynamic flexibility, and critical thinking, and ability to multi‑task and ensure effective time management.
• Excellent decision making and reasoning skills, and excellent ability to solve problems.
• Excellent and effective interpersonal and work leadership skills to provide guidance to staff.
• Strong knowledge in food service operations.
• Ability to effectively respond to a high‑pressure environment and/or unpredictable outcomes.
• Effective leadership and interpersonal skills to provide guidance, coaching and mentoring to subordinates of various levels and within various job families.
• Familiarity with business and management principles involved in planning, leadership techniques, and coordination of people and resources.
• Ability to teach others how to perform tasks essential for their operational success.

Preferred Qualifications

• Advanced computer skills and experience with computerized menu management systems and knowledge of office and industry software applications, including word processing, spreadsheets, database management, e‑mail and web‑based applications. Ability to learn new programs.
• Experience managing college & university food service operations.
• Experience working with personnel, digital content, social media, menu management, and time clock software.

Education, Experience, Skills, And Abilities

• Ability to compute basic math and read and write the English language.
• Education or professional experience equivalent to:
  • Associate’s degree in culinary arts, hospitality management, business management or related field, plus 2 years of equivalent food service experience, or
  • Equivalent education and Food Service Experience with thorough knowledge in food service operations.
• 1+ years’ experience in a foodservice leadership/supervisory role.
• Familiarity with safe food service principles and VA Dept. of Health guidelines.

Special Conditions Of Employment

• Satisfactory conviction history background check.
• Maintain a valid VA driver’s license, a clean DMV record and successful completion of required Roanoke College driver training programs.
• Must have current certification or be able to pass ServSafe Manager and Food Allergy Research & Education (FARE) certification exams within 6 months of employment and renew as needed.
• Dining services staff are considered essential personnel. In the event of a university closure, modification, or suspension due to weather or other emergency conditions, this position is expected to make all reasonable attempts to report to work as scheduled for the duration of the closure/suspension.
• Attend trade shows, conferences, and off‑site training as required.
• Availability to work flexible hours, including evenings, weekends, and holidays as needed to accommodate operational needs.