Maître D - The Oak Room

Your Job In Our Words

The Oak Room Maître d' is an enthusiastic and engaging host and ambassador, ensuring each guest has a vibrant, enjoyable, and memorable experience worth returning for. This position is an ideal fit for a friendly, charismatic, and organized person — one who is passionate about excellent service, has superior interpersonal skills, and can share the excitement of new food and beverage offerings with locals and visitors alike. The Maître d' will foster an exciting, innovative, and memorable dining experience for all guests by leading a well-rounded and knowledgeable front-of-house team. Proper guest service requires a staff that is thoroughly trained in service etiquette, product knowledge, and makes every effort to meet the needs of each and every guest. We’re looking for people who care about the guest experience and a job well done. Personalities and individuality are welcome and encouraged; egos and pretension are not! We’re here to take exceptional care of our guests and one another.

Your Destination

The Oak Room is a classic American chophouse located in a picturesque, lakeside, 10-room Inn with mountain views and rolling gardens. Fashioned around grilled and prepared center-of-the-plate cuts, served with soup or salad, bread service, and choice of sauce, alongside a selection of hors d’oeuvres and traditional steakhouse sides, all delivered with warmth and care. Vegetarian, vegan, gluten free and dairy free friendly. Featuring a robust wine list and full bar. The Oak Room and Inn at Pleasant Lake routinely host weddings and events ranging from 2 to more than 200.

Key Responsibilities

Guest Experience

• Warmly greet and welcome all guests upon arrival
• Maintain a detailed understanding of the dining room floor plan and table status.
• Strategically manage and execute reservations, seating charts, and walk-in requests to maximize efficiency and guest satisfaction.
• Cultivate relationships with all guests, ensuring personalized service and addressing any special needs or requests.
• Handle guest complaints and issues with grace, professionalism, and prompt resolution, escalating to the General Manager when necessary.
• Possess extensive knowledge of the menu, beverage list (especially wine and spirits), and daily specials to confidently answer guest inquiries.

Team Leadership and Management

• Oversee and direct the service team, ensuring they adhere to service standards and protocols.
• Communicate seamlessly with the culinary team, and service staff regarding special dining notes, large parties, and timing issues.
• Train new staff on phone etiquette, reservation systems, seating philosophy, and guest relations.
• Maintain impeccable standards of appearance, organization, and decorum for the entire front-of-house area.

Administrative and Operational Duties

• Manage Resy (reservation system), including confirming reservations, managing waitlists, and optimizing yield.
• Manage phone and email inquiries, and booking reservations accurately and efficiently, utilizing various technology applications.
• Assist with updating and printing menus and ensure they are free of errors.
• Prepare end-of-shift reports detailing covers, wait times, VIP notes, and any significant operational observations.
• Enforce health, safety, and hygiene standards in all public areas.
• Daily evaluation of restaurant service performance with an eye on guest and employee satisfaction.

Qualifications

Required

• Minimum of 3 years of experience as a Maître d', Head Host/Hostess, or equivalent role in a high-end, fine dining, or upscale chophouse environment.
• Exceptional communication skills, both verbal and written.
• Demonstrated proficiency with modern reservation software (e.g., OpenTable, Resy, Tock).
• Impeccable personal presentation and professional demeanor.
• Proven ability to remain calm and decisive under pressure in a fast-paced environment.
• Flexibility to work evenings, weekends, and holidays.
• Ability to be on your feet for 8+ hours at a time.
• Ability to lift and carry up to 40 pounds.

Preferred

• Sommelier certification (Introductory or Certified) or strong wine/spirit knowledge.

Why Choose Us

To us, genuine human connections make people’s lives better, and we live for those moments and relish in those opportunities. Not just for our guests, but for each other, especially those who work here. We are a team that values each and everyone’s own unique superpowers and strive to put people in positions to best harness them.

We detest soulless, generic hospitality that makes people feel like an afterthought and celebrate that we are in the ‘business’ of creating remarkable, memorable, “unreasonable” hospitality. No one thing we do in our day is more important than making each and every guest, and our fellow team members, feel seen and heard.

Differences make a difference. We are committed to creating a culture that reflects the diversity of our hotel and restaurant guests. With that goal in mind, we encourage each of our employees to understand, accept, and celebrate differences among people. That includes different personalities, lifestyles, work styles, education, and experience. We also welcome and embrace people of all races, ethnicities, ages, religions, physical abilities, sexual orientation, gender identities and genders.

Job Types: Full-time, Part-time, Temporary, Seasonal

Pay: From $50,000.00 per year

Expected hours: 25.0 – 40.0 per week

Benefits:

• Employee discount

Work Location: In person