Eatocracy over at
CNN.com has posted an interesting look into the hiring process for two of NYC's most celebrated restaurants,
Per Se and
Daniel.
Each restaurant claims to receive roughly 80-100 front-of-the-house resumes
a day. Out of those about five applicants are contacted by phone, then it's narrowed down to two for an in person interview. Nearing the end of the process, just one out of the 80-100 applicants can even get in the door for an official trail.
"We recruit very heavily and not because we’re looking to fill positions," said Anthony Rudolf, the general manager of Thomas Keller's Per Se. "You just never know when the right person is looking, so we look continuously. We’re never replacing a person, we’re just constantly grooming and fulfilling the roster."
Once someone is actually hired, the real work begins. Rudolf compares the training sessions at Per Se to "sipping water through a fire hose."