sous chef

line cook

restaurant manager

bartender

host/hostess

LOCAL Public Eatery

A typical day at work in my position involves sales and labour mangement, floor management, team goals and recruitment. As I have a split role (serving and management) alternatively, a day looks like section checks, customer service, and side duties. Communication is a huge aspect at work and crucial for career progression. Local Public Eatery is a warm environment that has a structured management prioritizing worker satisfaction and values it's workers home-work balance. My experience on this front has been a direct result upon my personal morals regarding team-orientation, respect, work ethic, communication and dedication; in other words, the advancement opportunities benefit those who match Local values, thus the opportunities are given to those who deserve them; it is not a coasting job, which alongside with their coaching methods and management support, create a strong and growing industrial future.
The workplace culture is much like its management style – team relationships are crucial to Local Public Eatery as it recognizes the structural value of team trust and motivation.
The hardest part of the job is, unsurprisingly, customer relations; this is not consequence of Local, as those who are in hospitality understand the potential volatility or aggression that customers may show in their experience; despite this, management has shown loyalty to workers and does not leave the team feeling unsupported.
The most enjoyable part of the job is being there; I always enjoy being at work, socializing (within reason) with my coworkers and management, and the sense of community within the business. I truly, love working at Local. When I first applied, I knew the minute I walked into the building, that I wanted to work at Local, and am pleased to say my impression of the business has not changed over the five months I've been employed there.

I joined the company as a shift manager with over 12 years of progressive experience in the hospitality industry. From the beginning, it was clear that there was a serious lack of structure. There were no clear guidelines or standard operating procedures in place. Different shift managers gave conflicting information about how things should be done. This made it extremely difficult to perform confidently or lead others effectively.

Some leaders displayed condescending behavior that would not be acceptable in a more formal environment with defined policies for professional conduct. It reflected a lack of accountability and training.

What truly stood out to me was something that happened during my first week. I approached my manager privately and explained that I was facing “financial difficulties” due to the recent passing of my brother and the expenses that followed. I asked if I could have my discounted meal covered and have the cost deducted from my first paycheck. He responded by saying, “I do not know you that well,” and that he would prefer to help someone who had been there for years. He then advised me to bring food from home. At the time, I did not have anything to bring. That moment was deeply embarrassing and remains one of the most disheartening experiences I have had in my career. I have always believed that hospitality begins at home—with how we treat our team members.

There was also a moment where my manager laughed at my Caribbean accent after I pronounced a word. It made me feel othered and uncomfortable. While I personally thought he was a cool person, professionally he needs some serious polishing in how he leads and communicates.

The typical day at work is coming in and being forced to learn every single station despite my being hired as a line cook. Everyone is expected to Prep everyone is expected to do dishes. Everyone is expected to line cook everyone. Never, ever, in my days have I seen a kitchen run the way this one is run, All of the Local Public Eateries.
The only thing you learn on this job is how to hate it,
How one has time or energy at the end of the day and how you can't pay the bills because the pay is not great and neither are the tips.
The workplace has a form of clique culture. If you don't get along with certain people you start to get treated poorly And not to forget to mention hours constantly being cut and no consistency with scheduling. What was the point of telling my availability.
The hardest part of the job I would have to say is the inconsistency of work and the demand of having to learn every single station, following the ludicrous meticulous recipes that honestly are just not that great. The pressure and high demand working at local public eatery
Is why this place has such a high turnover rate .
No one feels respected enough, no one feels paid enough. No one feels like they have any energy at the end of the day,  with the patios opening, this only means the work is gonna be even harder and the pressure is gonna be on even more.
The most enjoyable part of the job is actually leaving there.

For a temporary job, Local is an okay place to work at. It's a typical kitchen job, fast-paced and demanding but I find that their system for getting food out of the line, into the window, through the expo, and to the customer works really well. It's also quite fun with the screens as you are plating, which makes it feel almost like a game. I was on a closing shift and I found that very enjoyable, and getting off of work in the middle of downtown at 2 am was often very fun. The food is good, the kitchen is always kept very clean and all of the staff for the most part vibe together well. 
However, there are some issues with having this as your place of work. First off, the turnover rate for this kitchen is very, very high. If you are good at your job, expect to work 10 times harder than your co-workers for minimal recognition, which I think contributes to the turnover. Secondly, it's not very well managed. I was issued three written warnings, that I will admit that I did deserve, however, they were all issued at once, which I don't believe is allowed under Albertan laws. 
Overall, Local is definitely a mixed bag. I met some wonderful people and lifelong friends whilst working there, and learned a lot (about how to cook eggs, mostly, lol). It's definitely an option to be considered if you are looking for a place to work, however, I might recommend taking someone else's call back first.

LPE is a great place to work especially if you can prove yourself to be a great asset without a lot of experience. Chef brought me onto the team after I interviewed with the previous Night Sous based off my brief experience at another location but I also made sure to explain how I can learn and add to the team with limited experience. Through this, I’ve gone to be one of if not the only (through difficult staff periods) full time closers, rewritten or added to certain procedures and I’ve been told I’m valuable given my drive to learn. 
My biggest recommendation is to have passion and drive. If you don’t have a lot of experience, add to this by always being available to listen and learn. 
Through my time so far at LPE, I’ve grown to become a very strong cook and am advancing towards leadership and this is with the support of my closing coach who brought me up to his standards and I’ve shadowed his ways. The support from my closing coach is incredible and my fellow closers. This job does have a lot of opportunities if you prove yourself worthy. 

I've been in this industry on and off for MANY years, and the culture at Local Kamloops is unlike any place I've ever seen.  The team service adds such a reassuring layer that relieves so much of the pressure servers experience, and the level of support, respect, and encouragement we receive from fellow staff as well as management is parallel to none. The dynamic between back of house and front of house is also unique: there is no feeling of divide that is so common to this industry. We all look out for each other and work as a well-oiled machine. Management allots shifts and sections based off of who demonstrates the most commitment, consistency, competence, and enthusiasm to and for the job, customers, and company, rather than strictly based off seniority (because a longtime server is not necessarily the best server!), which I absolutely agree with, as they aim to honour their top performers - as it should be. It's not about playing favorites, it's about acknowledging, appreciating, and rewarding those who go above and beyond. I cannot say enough about how fun and warm the culture is there. Best job ever. 

My Typical Day at LOCAL 8th Avenue is helping with whatever station is needed, delegating tasks to stock up all stations, and maintaining the kitchen clean as we go. I believe that I get to know myself better than ever such as how I react to multiple scenarios and how I respond or deal with that. I learned to speak up more, how to stand up in hard situations, and how to manage the team, etc. In terms of the management, they will bring out the best in you through your weak points to how you can deal with it.  At LOCAL 8th Ave., the workplace culture is very supportive of teaching you as fast as you can until you are able to help anyone work multiple stations during rush hours. The hardest part of the job is keeping your energy as consistently high as possible DAILY, being reasonable as you delegate tasks, and laser focus, especially on MODifications. The most enjoyable part of the job is when your partners are fun and easy to work with especially if there is great communication in line.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Most coworkers were friendly and supportive

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
I was hired as a server, yet solely given hostess shifts. They had a test that included questions around marinades, cocktails, and patty ounces. I found it absolutely ridiculous and ultimately a waste of my time. Onboarding included 0 management and I basically floated around for weeks waiting for serving shifts. The management was passive-aggressive and upset when you prioritize school. I have also yet to be paid for the rest of the time I invested here.  I would not recommend working for this location. Many servers quit in my short time here and it's due to overstaffing, 4 table limit per section and how they will send you home after an hour or two if it isn't busy. Poorly run work environment for servers. 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Poor. Lack of direction during onboarding. Bait-and-switch hiring.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Silverware, put dishes away, fill waters, seat guests, buss tables. You know..anything but any duties that I was hired for, lol.

Working at Local is a mixed bag and deserves 2.5 stars. 

The Chefs work very hard to hire people with optimistic and fun personalities. I've enjoyed nearly all of my coworkers and did feel excited to go into work just to see them. It's also a highly structured kitchen where every spec and routine is clearly laid out, sometimes to the point of being pedantic, so if you like very detailed instructions it's here. The 60% discount on food is also very good and compounds with happy hour discounts so it's cheaper to eat at work than buy groceries 

The downside is the hours, even during exceptionally busy periods, are woefully inconsistent. You will be cut from 40hrs per week to 15 with zero notice nor strong reasoning. By policy, the Chefs use hours as a "competitive motivation" to force employees to go above and beyond to get their full time hours back. Whether you're a new cook or been with the company for years, you're never guaranteed good hours. Shift Leads are the only non-salary positions that have no major fluxuation in hours 

Is the job fun? Yes. Is it a reliable way to pay your rent? No

What is the best part of working at the company?
The collaborative efforts of each team member

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Busy hours of the shift could be stressful i.e. around 2:00 p.m. when more customers begin to show up, but it was a building process and especially it thought me how to handle stress.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Team Work and Collaboration at every point of the shift.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
As a prep cook I started my day by setting up the stations (sanitizing my station, filling the soap solution for the servers to use when dropping the used plates, setting up the bins to put our waste), then I go to the board where the team leader posts our duties for the shift. I begin doing my part on the board. After every task, I punch in the amount of raw foods processed to let the line cooks know the amount available on hand. When I'm finished with my tasks, I could assist others who have yet to complete theirs and then clean the stations when done.

Top Job Titles	Average salary
Sous chef 77 salaries reported	$60,487 per year
Line cook 58 salaries reported	$21.18 per hour
Restaurant manager 58 salaries reported	$64,440 per year
Bartender 65 salaries reported	$17.79 per hour
Host/hostess 44 salaries reported	$20.79 per hour

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