back of house team member

front of house team member

line cook/prep cook

dishwasher

line cook

4R Restaurant Group

What is the best part of working at the company?
A great team that feels like a family, courteous and helpful coworkers, good communication and support from management, a desire and commitment to several core values, including exceptionality and consistency that allows 4R to maintain a high degree of excellence both in food quality and customer support.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
It is a very popular restaurant with great food and excellent service, and the guest demand shows. The lines can often be out the door on a regular lunch or dinner rush, which makes those time challenging to keep up with the pace and yet not compromise on the quality of service or attention to detail. 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
It is very good. The managers really care about the team and the success of each team member personally, as well as the smokehouse as a whole. The team members are very collaborative, friendly, and always break the ice with new team members so that we all become really comfortable with each other and often help each other out when one or another of us is struggling or needs help with a task.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
When you first com in for your shift, whether morning or evening, it’s typically slow enough to get acclimated and briefly greet your different team members and managers as you go to clock in. After clocking in, you begin to work your station, whether preparing to serve things back of house or serving them front of house. At almost every station, there are other team members either next to yours or in the vicinity who often help you in your work and during slower times, help pass the time while still staying active doing tasks for the smokehouse. For example, if I work up from on the line serving sides, I normally will have less time to help other stations, because there is a steady stream of guests throughout the day. However, if I work to gos or smoker or hot prep in the back, there is a relaxed environment where all the team members who are in the vicinity can work together and talk about different things while doing individual tasks, which makes the work go by quicker and helps you to grow closer to them. The smokehouse usually offers a family meal each day for the team, and is made either by the managers or by team members. Anyone can make the family meal, since they encourage that kind of participation and are always open to trying new things for the meal. When it is ready, anyone not working on the front line serving guests can come take a break to eat in the back with others and socialize for a few minutes before resuming work. Front line team members make sure to switch off so that everyone has an opportunity to eat and take a small break. When your task is done and your shift is almost over, you are able to begin cleaning and organizing your station, following whatever duties are assigned to it. After that, you can find the manager to ask if they can check the work you did so you can clock out. When they give their approval, you are able to clock out and leave. Most of the time, you will work either 4 or 5 hour shift each day, so you often will have the rest of the day to yourself. I always come away from my shift with a sense of accomplishment and pride in my work and look forward to my next shift where I will see my team members and be in the positive environment that is there.

I don't know how things will be for the next person, but I must be honest. This was one of my least favorite jobs I ever had. Things were great and organized in the beginning when business was steady, but I bore witness to some things I've never seen before anywhere else in my time here. Expect to work way longer than the hours you're scheduled. There was never a day where I was scheduled less or more than 8 hours. 6am - 2pm. That's what the schedule would say. But management is very good at making you feel as if you shouldn't leave until everything is done, long after they've all went home. I've worked 12 hour, 16 hour, and 18 hour shifts in my time here, and on all of those instances I didn't find out how long the day would be until halfway through my shift. They promise you free lunches daily here. There are days where that free lunch will be a taco bar, there are days where it will be a burger, there are also days where it will be food that was prepped 2 weeks ago and didn't sell. There are also days where it will be a peanut butter sandwich. These are all things that I have witnessed. If you request time off, your request will probably be approved. But you will have to explain your commitment to 4R in a meeting with management when you return. Criticism isn't very welcome here either. They have a "if you don't like it, you can leave attitude" about the structure of this place. Whether your issue is the long shifts, the lack of materials you're provided with to execute the job effectively, or the passive aggressiveness from management when goals are not met, there isn't really much room for an employee to bring up their concerns without their employment being threatened. You can also expect to get pulled away from your main position to assist the GM with his duties at a moment's notice. In my experience if you fall short when assisting him or if you're too busy he will get very upset with you. A lot of meetings as well. In my time there, there have been meetings about where to eat and when, meetings about how long bathroom breaks should be, and meetings about being prepared to stay longer than you're scheduled. Rules change like the wind here and it can happen overnight and you have to be prepared for that. This particular location was under a lot of pressure from health inspectors at a point in time, and this was a very punitive time to be an employee. The rules also changed daily depending on if they thought the health inspector for Disney was coming out or not. This company has a great reputation locally and will go above and beyond to protect it. I have unfortunately heard management compare staff to both children and washed up football players who are no longer need by their team. I could continue sharing details about my experience working here but unfortunately I don't have enough time. Don't just take my word for it though. Your experience may be different from mine and you may have to just see for yourself.

Working at 4 River's Smokehouse was a great experience for me. Not only did I learn various skills like measurements for key ingredients but I also strengthened my communication skills in a fast paced atmosphere as well. An average day at work would consist of me preparing the restaurant from either opening to close and my duties would include simple cleaning responsibilities like making sure my work space was neat and clean and also helping co workers prepare their utensils and cookware for ingredients to be prepped and cooked with. In addition while working in the (BOH) area of 4 River's Smokehouse I learned numerous skills at other positions of the restaurant. When completing tasks early at my utility position I shadowed the bakers, line cooks, and prep cooks to pick up on any key recipes of the company. Management at the restaurant was ran very well and never did I feel like what I did was unnoticed. They were very helpful and friendly too ! My co-workers really made 4 River's an awesome place to work and they helped me grow as an individual. Even though some weekends and nights would be stressful 4 River's made me a stronger employee not only mentally but physically as well. My favorite experience at 4 River's was having the opportunity to participate in the companies "Serve Day's". Serve Day's would consist of us usually as an entire company going out in various parts of Florida giving back to less fortunate or homeless families in the surrounding area. Afterwards we'd go somewhere fun and enjoy the day at maybe the beach or a theme park, something I've never done at other places of work before.

This company is one of the best out there in this industry. I have worked and managed in numerous concepts and this is just different. Great leadership that will provide feedback and direction and will also be there alongside of us when in the "weeds". 

If you want to progress with the company you do need to show it in your actions and also express your desires. I respect that, others might not and want it given but this is not the place for hand outs. Your hard work will get recognized. 

For restaurant management its great. Yes, we work 50 hours a week and sometimes it might be longer but the senior level sees it and supports the best they can. Vacations are always approved and encouraged and with no restrictions. 

Catering was the most fun job I ever had, even though it lasted the shortest. I enjoyed being on the go, especially in a company vehicle. The smell of BBQ had to be my favorite. Everyone is so nice too! Its that commercial image company and made you feel like you were apart of the family, much like the CEO intended. You had sundays off guaranteed. Now the HUGE issue had to be scheduling. That had to be the most unprofessional thing Ive ever had to deal with. They know about their orders about 3 months in advance yet TEXT you when to come in the following day to work. So you never know when youre going to work, never know when you have off, and if they don't text you by 5PM then you have the next day off. I went two weeks without a call until I realized I was probably laid off, as so was my friend I got hired there. I expected more from the company since its one of the fastest growing in Central Florida. I should have worked at one of the  restaurants. This was back in 2013 so hopefully theyve gotten a more professional approach to scheduling.

Working at CHI (Culinary Health Institute, part of 4Roots) was an incredibly challenging experience. As the sole employee, I was consistently overworked to the point of burnout. When I attempted to set boundaries regarding tasks outside my job description, I was unfairly labeled as 'hostile.' Supervisors do not like adhering to standard work hours and will push back if you try to set this boundary. Additionally, they are resistant to feedback or correction of any kind, preferring a forced sense of positivity over constructive dialogue. If you have a direct and straightforward communication style, it will likely not be well received.

I loved the people I worked with at 4R. They have a great team that works together and are like a family even outside of work. Food is made for the workers at lunch daily. There’s good money, but a lot
of the other areas were lacking for me. It is almost always busy, and there’s a lot of work placed onto every individual. The management expects a lot out of its workers, which isn’t terrible but it can get harsh at times. They expect you to put work over school and other things in your life. 4R is priority. I think this is more of a corporate problem rather than a management problem. All in all, it’s not a terrible job. There are good people and good opportunities here, but it depends on how much of your life you want to be occupied by this company.

They only good thing that I have seen from 4Rivers is the ability to work with someone’s scheduling. Management doesn’t give proper correctives. They rely on shift leads to close the store every night. That causes many things to go undone or unfinished. Uneven work loads. They hold different expectations for everyone within the smokehouse no one is held to the same standard. They will pile on as much work as they can if you are good at your job with no compensation. They pay the worst out of any restaurant in Florida because of the Tip share system there for giving them the chance to take full advantage of workers. Management will ask other people to change plans to stay late while they leave at normal times or early. 

They want you to work positions even if your not comfortable with them, and if you tell them your not comfortable doing certain things they cut your hours down to almost nothing! For the amount of work they want you to do the pay isn’t fair enough. Not to mention there are minimal staff so no one is properly trained they just kind of throw you out there and you learn it on your own .. which isn’t there fault to be short staffed but I feel as if a manager shouldn’t be able to get mad at you or cut your hours after not knowing how to do something correctly if you’ve never been properly trained to do so. Select few managers are very unprofessional, not understanding by any means if you don’t show up your pretty much fired. 

A typical day a work would be coming in and setting up your station, restocking, etc. There is carver and sides/ cashier for both boh ( to go, drive thru) and foh (front line). There is dining room who makes sure everything looks great. There is middle line which is making everything that requires a grill. There is prep which makes all the food for the restaurant, everything is made in house except a few items. Carver carves meats such as brisket, sausage, chicken, etc., into portions. Sides just scoops sides for and cashes out customers. Great, fun, productive job and very family like all around! 

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Back of house team member 46 salaries reported	$17.33 per hour
Front of house team member 49 salaries reported	$17.06 per hour
Line cook/prep cook 36 salaries reported	$17.01 per hour
Dishwasher 27 salaries reported	$16.87 per hour
Line cook 28 salaries reported	$16.93 per hour

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