Best Restaurants to Work in LA, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills and General Vicinity (Pasadena: hotels)

[BeenAroundTheBlock]

My 20 something daughters are moving to LA in August. Both have quite a few years of fine dining and restaurant experience. They plan on making the rounds of the better restaurants and we'd like to put a comprehensive list together before they leave. They are looking for server, cocktail or bartending positions. Can any one give personal recommendations? Thanks so much!

[katenik]

if you're looking for strictly fine dining, go to a bookstore and buy an LA zagat guide, or pay for access to their website. the highest scorers will often be fine dining establishments, or, at least, high-end celeb chef joints. when you ask the average person about "the better" restaurants, they will tell you about places they have patronized and enjoyed, which might not necessarily be the best the city has to offer in terms of culinary reputation and, more importantly for your purposes, earning potential.

i don't know where you're from, but LA has a lot of mid-price, high-volume casual eateries (usually national chains) where it's possible to do quite well with tips, so you shouldn't rule out places like the cheesecake factory and maggiano's. also, i've heard that servers at lawry's clean up, but the women have to wear those stupid victorian denny's uniforms!

there's a lot of competition for restaurant jobs here (for obvious reasons!), but the positions tend to turn over rather quickly.

[BeenAroundTheBlock]

Good idea Kate. You're very right about cleaning up the Cheesecake Factory, etc. I just wanted to know where the hot spots were these days. I'm not sure the Zagat guide will tell me what's hip or what's in right at this moment. I also had hoped there could be someone on here that does work in the area that could shed some light.

[karkyco]

Originally Posted by BeenAroundTheBlock

My 20 something daughters are moving to LA in August. Both have quite a few years of fine dining and restaurant experience. They plan on making the rounds of the better restaurants and we'd like to put a comprehensive list together before they leave. They are looking for server, cocktail or bartending positions. Can any one give personal recommendations? Thanks so much!

Why don't you just order the Zagat Restaurant Guide for LA (cover price is $15 I think, and usually amazon has it discounted 33%)...it will give you all of the top restaurants in the southland and give you a little background on each. There are far too many upscale restaurants, eateries, boutique and luxury hotels, and clubs to name. And the area is so vast, we would need you to be a bit more specific than just "LA". There are numerous eateries in Pasadena that might fit your bill, but the main concentration of higher end tends to be in the westside - from Santa Monica to Beverly Hills to WeHo.

DOH! Looks like Kate beat me to the punch. Sorry, I should have read the replies to the topic...

[katenik]

Originally Posted by BeenAroundTheBlock

Good idea Kate. You're very right about cleaning up the Cheesecake Factory, etc. I just wanted to know where the hot spots were these days. I'm not sure the Zagat guide will tell me what's hip or what's in right at this moment. I also had hoped there could be someone on here that does work in the area that could shed some light.

yes, it will. they have lists of top 'this', and top 'that' in every relevant category imaginable. they also publish a separate guide of nightlife venues.

keep in mind that what is hip today is out tomorrow. if you want high-end and have the experience and looks (yes, i mean physical appearance. we're very image-conscious here.) to get hired, focus on the mainstays (puck, spilchal, goin, etc.), rather than the latest "hot-spots" with some famous actor or athlete's name and financing behind it, and mediocre food. those places rarely sustain their initial popularity, and when they're gone, so are the jobs.

beyond that, i don't know upon what you need light shed. if your daughters are experienced servers/bartenders, they'll know how to get restaurant jobs. once they're here, it won't take long to figure out where the beautiful people (don't) eat, if that's what they're interested in. good luck to them.

[greggd]

I think they need to find this on their own. My best suggestion is that they
speak directly with the owner if its not corporate. A bit of investigation to find out who he or she is, size them up, then inquire about employment when they are at the restaurant.

However, a good restaurant job is one where the host favors you and the average dinner is enough to warrant a decent tip at 15%.

So, they should look for a restaurant with sub par service and employee drama at a level in which they can handle. If they are good, the bar receipts will increase &/or the host may depend on them for the busy times.


for Corporate: Cheesecake factory is a sugar/sodium shack. If they are good, they may be recognized and move on to a management or training position. Tell them not to eat there regularly. Chart house may be worth checking. They seem to have a pretty regular turnover for servers and bar staff. Marina del rey restaurants along the marina, Century City..Pink Taco.

As always, Dress conservative, but look good and be serious. I suggest they find out who the owner is and inquire at that time or they will be at the mercy of the host and those who they may be replacing.

Most servers I talk to make about $100-$120 per night. The high $ places make more in tips but also give quite a bit more away to the staff.