Winfried Sauer, 36 /EMPLOYER: Seasons Restaurant, Four Seasons Hotel / SALARY RANGE: $45,000 to $80,000
Why did you choose this field?
Maybe you notice I have a slight accent. Originally I’m from Germany, and part of my plan was to see something of the world–work with people and work with food and beverages. Combined with that, I decided I wanted to go to hotel school. I went to Geneva to learn French and because I didn’t speak French, I started as a busboy in a restaurant. Then I worked as back server and front server for a year. Then I went to London to improve my English. And then I wanted to see the world a little faster, so I decided to work on a cruise ship. And I did that for another seven months–working at the bar and bartending, and working in the restaurant a little bit.
Then I went back to Germany and worked as a wine waiter for two years and became assistant restaurant manager. I transferred with that company to New York and was trained in stewarding, room service, and banquets. I just came to Chicago about 10 months ago and after being in big cities I really appreciate being here. Besides the education there’s a lot of on-the-job experience so you kind of decide which direction you want to go. For me it was mostly the restaurant part.
What is your educational background?
I went to hotel school–Hotel Und Berufsfachschule in Dortmund. In Germany when you go to hotel school, a couple of weeks you go to school, then a couple of weeks you go to the hotel. And after each school time you go back to a different department. After three years I graduated. I left school in 1985.
Describe an average day.
I come into work between noon and 2 p.m. First thing you do is look at the reservation book to look for regulars, look for special celebrations–if they’re celebrating anniversaries or birthdays. You make sure that all special requests are taken care of–a birthday cake, a candle in the dessert, a special bottle of wine pre-ordered. You look for regular guests, like Mr. So and So likes a bottle of wine on the table when he comes in.
Then you talk to the chef about special menus or if the menu’s changing. We have rooms for small parties, for benchmark events like a 50th anniversary. So usually I meet with people about plans for the special parties coming up and finalize those–the menus, the wine selection, the cocktails, things like that.
Usually, at 5:30 p.m. we have a meeting. We go over the menu because it changes every other day. So we brief the staff on the wine combination, what to recommend with it. We go over who’s coming in for dinner, what to expect, when are crunch times. We get everyone in the loop for the evening on what’s going to happen.
And then at 6 p.m. it’s show time. We open the door and then I greet and seat all the guests. I make sure all their requests are fulfilled. The last guests leave at midnight so I usually leave about 12:30 a.m. I finish the paperwork–review the receipts are correct and add them up and see if it balances. If it does, good, then it’s over. But if not, it’s going to be another half hour. Then I drop it off for the night audit.
What’s the best thing about the job?
The contact with the people. You really have to put your heart in there. Coming to this restaurant should be like coming to your home. From the moment guests enter the door, you take their coat. You make sure you have the best wine, the best food. You want to make them feel comfortable. So you put your heart into this every day.
What’s the worst thing?
Sometimes, unfortunately, I cannot accommodate a reservation. It’s the difficult part. So I see if I can accommodate them on a weekday. Four Seasons also owns the Ritz-Carlton; sometimes there’s an opening there.
What three attributes are essential to doing your job well?
You need to be a people person definitely. You need to be flexible to accommodate all the different requests. You have to be quality driven and make sure everyone else on the staff is also.
Where will you go from here?
My wife works in food and beverage at the Ritz-Carlton and we’re both happy with what we’re doing right now. I like Chicago, it’s a very friendly, very cosmopolitan city. Lots of things to do In the future I would be interested in moving up the ladder. The next move up would be director of restaurants or food and beverage director, which is in charge of banquets, all the kitchens, the bars.
What advice would you give to those interested in this area?
Starting on the floor working with the people. School does only so many things. At one point it comes back to what’s most important. For me, between 6 and 10 o’clock, it’s to be in my restaurant greeting our guests. Any paperwork, anything else is secondary. Get your feet wet out there. Learn in a restaurant guest contact–how to talk to people.
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