Restaurant General Manager: Lead Growth & Guest Experience

Il Fornaio; Irvine (CA); On-site; USD 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive compensation

Benefits package

Paid vacation

Education assistance

Dining discounts

Job summary

Il Fornaio seeks an experienced General Manager to lead a single-location restaurant with accountability for the business, guest experience, and team development. You will own P&L, drive service standards, and cultivate a high-performing culture in a fast-paced hospitality environment.

You will recruit, coach, and retain talent, ensure compliance and food safety, and partner with the Managing Partner to execute company strategies and achieve sustainable profitability.

Qualifications

• 5-7 years of progressive restaurant management experience, ideally including General Manager or comparable senior leadership responsibility.
• Experience leading a high-quality, full-service restaurant is required.
• Demonstrated ownership of restaurant P&L performance, including sales, labor, forecasting, controllable expenses, productivity, and profitability.

Responsibilities

• Own full restaurant P&L and profitability.
• Lead the restaurant management team and staffing.
• Maintain exceptional guest experience and proactive guest recovery.
• Foster a culture of trust, accountability, curiosity, and continuous learning.
• Build community relationships to strengthen local relevance and business performance.

Skills

P&L ownership

Guest experience

Team development

Communication skills

Hospitality leadership

Tools

POS systems

HR/ATS

Scheduling software

Job description

Il Fornaio seeks an experienced General Manager to lead a single-location restaurant with accountability for the business, guest experience, and team development. You will own P&L, drive service standards, and cultivate a high-performing culture in a fast-paced hospitality environment.

You will recruit, coach, and retain talent, ensure compliance and food safety, and partner with the Managing Partner to execute company strategies and achieve sustainable profitability.