restaurant manager

line cook

cashier

prep cook

event staff

Mission BBQ

I’ll start with the good stuff first. As a community ambassador I got to really help all our hero’s. I was known, still am, as the BBQ lady. I enjoyed visiting my community and telling them all about the company. I got to run events for charities and also marketing events which I loved. I was able to really hone in my marketing skills and learned new ones that I’ve now carried on to my new career. I’ve met lifelong friends and listened to veterans tell me stories of their service. That is priceless to me and I’m forever grateful for that. 

Now for the not so great. The pay is not good if you aren’t salaried. There is no bonus at all for all the sales you bring in from your marketing and promotion of the brand. The GM and DO get huge bonuses but not the actual people out there doing the work. At the regional quarterly meetings you are told over and over again it’s your responsibility to bring business in for catering especially even though each store has a catering manager, but there is no compensation for your high sales except for a 100.00 gift card. You will be driving around a lot but the gas mileage compensation is well below the national average. .25 per mile is what they will give you. Also you will have to buy things for in store and out of store events on your own card and get reimbursed. They refused to acknowledge the need for stores to have a credit card. Their systems are very outdated and need to get with the technology times. The conference calls during the month are always the same stuff and it’s a waste of time especially when it’s all written down in what they call the W’s. I can understand for the new hires but for those of us that have been there forever years it’s monotonous and it feels like we are treated like children. Micromanaging at its finest. During the pandemic is when I really noticed the lack of consideration for the teammates especially those with health concerns. They did not keep the team safe, allowed the customers to not social distance, and still held in store events with a hundred customers in the store at one time. 

There are also quite a lot of husband/wife teams that work together. This causes issues especially if the husband is over the wife. The wife will always be right and you can’t say anything about it. 

Lastly, favoritism is rampant. I won many awards for our store, had great grades, did a wonderful job yet I was overlooked for promotions and raises because my DO did not like me personally. He refused to give me a raise because he said my husband was successful and I just bought a house and he knew what I paid for it. He would belittle me in front of the team and not talk to me for months at a time when I would go to the regional director of operations about his unprofessionalism. Many other women complained about his behavior over the years yet nothing was ever done about it. Which leads me to believe it’s still a good old boys club. They only promote women when they need to meet that quota and that’s it. One of the only female DO’s in my region is awesome yet all the men complain and talk poorly about her. It’s sad really. 

One last thing, I made my issues known about how I was treated many times over the years. I know of 4 other women that did the same. 2 of those women were transferred to other stores after they made a formal complaint, and the other 2 quit after his behavior became even more hostile. I quit because I was not paid enough for the abuse and stress I encountered. It began to effect my health and mental well-being. 

To the owners and management. Please listen to your people and stop allowing men to treat women like it’s the 1950’s. There is a reason why there is a huge turnover rate for CA’s. The pay isn’t good for all the marketing and events they do. Give them a bonus structure as they drive business in. 



First off I do want to say that my experiences very well could have been just my store, and when things went well it was a genuinely very warm and fun place to work. However once things weren't going well (which was unfortunately the majority of my time) it was a very chaotic environment. 

As a cook at a very busy restaurant it was disheartening to see that as my time there continued our cook staff decreased heavily (which I later learned was due to them cutting there hours substantially so they left). I was left alone most shifts which made keeping up with rushes exceedingly difficult. Management staff rarely provided any support in this regard and choose to stay off the floor whenever things got busy.  As this was my first time in the food industry I figured this was just common and just did my best to keep up with the workload. It wasn't until the end of my time there that I was told by a higher up personally that this is not how it is supposed to work.  About halfway through my employment there I and the rest of the cooking staff (as well as some other staff members) aside from one new hire had gotten our hours cut in half and seeing two cooks working was a rare sight. We were constantly promised this was an error, or that it was only temporary, but no one ever got their hours back. 

It seemed my job responsibilities and expectations changed constantly. How we were to prepare the food was a constant back and forth between who was managing at that time, so to avoid reprimand you had to keep an eye on who was currently in eyeshot and switch up how you worked. Following company standards and how you were taught would be seen as an affront to whoever was managing and I had several different superiors take personal offense by me not doing it how they thought it should be done (even when shown company documents). 

They say the "culture" and not the pay is what makes Mission BBQ worth working at.  Well when you run your workers down to the point that they are having panic attacks every day, "culture" doesn't pay the bills.  The pay is very low for the amount of work you do.  Also considering the fact that you are expected to make deliveries and drive to venues that can be more than an hour away in your PERSONAL vehicle, the delivery fee should be going to you.  But it doesn't, it goes to the store.  You only get  $.25/mile for all the wear and tear this job puts on your car.

Don't make plans and don't have prior commitments because they do not respect your time here.  Even if you speak to a manager and get availability approved, expect them to try to force you to stay late anyway.  Expect them to give you weeks where they just say you're "on call".  Expect to work in every role but the one you were actually hired to do.  They are so understaffed that most of your shifts are as a cashier, and this is to your detriment, as you are unable to learn your role this way.  You are thrown into the deep end and expected to do things on your own even though you've barely been shown how to do anything.  Management is incapable and basically sets you up to fail.

This job was extremely mis-represented in the interview.  They really talk the company up and make it seem like a great place to work.  Don't fall for it.  When they brought up travel, they made it sound like you weren't going far and only went outside the Lehigh Valley on occasion.  This was completely untrue, I'd say over half of the places I delivered to were outside the Valley, and on some days I drove 80+ miles.  This was probably the most exhausting job I've ever worked.

No one wants to work here because similar businesses are paying so much more than they do.  If you want to work in food service, go anywhere else.

They have the nosiest people ever that invade their workers PRIVATE life which doesn’t involve them at all, if you are having a bad day and a coworker can cover you they won’t let you go home, all the managers are horrible and inconsiderate people that ruin everyone’s days and cause issues for themselves. All hypocritical and awful people. When I was a minor I worked till 1 AM! They are full of themselves and can’t seem to get a grip on how now adults work there besides them because one, they over work everyone, two cause everyone emotional stress and will yell at you constantly for the littlest things ever. They overwork minors in general and rely on teenage workers. If there is an issue they will have you crying in the dining room infront of customers since there is no break room, they honestly just embarrass you over time where you feel too anxious to walk around a dining room anymore. They are unfair and all around awful people disrespecting future military people as well but oh well their food is inconsistent and just bland to taste everywhere is disgusting in the kitchen and will make you puke 4 times in the parking lot. The manager will talk about his old stripper life and will say he’s on “h0 tik tok” when hes 40 and those girls are teenagers. They will degrade you and make you feel like you are nothing especially when they’d treat you like they like you but then switch on you and tell you when you’ve experienced something traumatizing and calling off the next day how you should’ve came in to “work through it” they only care if you work 24/7 they barely do anything until there’s no one there to help them. This company needs better representation than all these managers who don’t know how to treat someone like a human being. 

What is the best part of working at the company?
I loved getting to talk to customers and connect with customers. I loved being able to make someone’s day just by giving them the side they forgot to order or small things like that.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
The most stressful part was when I worked catering and I was a catering captain so I would be in charge of events. It was when something on an order was messed up and I had to figure out how to fix it or if the customer thought we were supposed to provide more for their catering but they were incorrect. It was stressful but support was always a phone call away.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
The work environment is friendly and supportive in general. Not every single person was overly friendly or offered to help but as a general rule most people were helpful and supportive. They were very supportive of the employees who were in school. They understood that not everyone was going to work in a restaurant their whole life so they supported their growth to reach their goal.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
I worked morning shift usually. I would come in to work and get ready to open the store. The last position I had was as a DRL and I was the opener. I would help get the front of house customer ready. Once we opened I would talk to the customers and help run food if needed. I would bus tables. I made sure the teas and lemonade were filled and the refills were stocked. I would bring our veterans their dessert. I made connections with customers through talking with them especially our regulars

Nice theme. Average pay but work can be tough for the wages. May be great for kids or those that don't pay bills. They give half shifts that can wear you out so you can't get a 2nd job. And as schedule changes, you can't juggle other work and commitments. Managers seem caring. Staff is 99% very young so alot of drama and cliquish and can sound out loud unprofessional which is bad for business. The guys are welcoming. Girls not so much and what they give seems phony. And you know how hard it is to work with attitude. They must hire fairly because there is one that is confrontational but I think some women are like that with certain other women. 

We are supposed to work together and do others' jobs til we all go home but I see some idle. Not their job maybe but we were hired supposedly based on our servant heart spirit. I dont see that with most. It is just a job to them they complain about. I have worked in many places and this is the most unwelcoming group of women I ever met. Gossipy cliques are a real problem in life and hiring and they snowball out of hand.  Their policy of hiring THE Nicest of spirit hearts  should prevent that. But I think not many want to work those few hours so this is it. Some of it is easy labor but much can be  super intensive & for that you can make better money wearing the body out less.  Great future if you are able to work odd schedule  . I wanted Part time so I could pursue other things but the hours and wearing me out & it makes it so I can't do much else.
I really like the place and theme. Just need to get rid of drama, the unprofessional kids and short shifts. 

Mission BBQ does a lot of good for the community, and it’s easy work- but the culture falls short. 

A lot of favoritism, experience and good attitude mean very little in the long run because you’re only as good as the next shift you take. You try to ask for additional opportunities or schedule modifications, time off etc, a simple conversation, and you get ignored, treated coldly, or snowed. Exceptions, better hours, the ability to call in sick and still stay in favor, warm camaraderie, etc are only reserved for people who make instant friends with management (sucking up I’m sure), happen to innately be the kind of person they’d hang out with after work. But they keep you guessing as to how to get there. 

And the communication really sucks there, especially with certain managers. They could be stressed for outside reasons, and take  it out on you, and they’re still prized. They could misconstrue everything you say and create thier own narrative and play favorites, treating each person different, and that’s fine I guess. They’re just like every other place out there, good work or attendance etc doesn’t get you ahead, certain personalities do. Bonus points if you’re in your late teens or early twenties. They’re just better at finding an angle and lying to you to make you feel special and stay. It’s a job for kids, and if you need more, and try to find side work elsewhere to supplement the differences, you get totally cut off, cold. 

Overall, not good for your mental health. 

Mission BBQ is a great place to work if your looking to get involved in the community and feel a sense of purpose. The most rewarding part of this job is being able to give back to the community (emergency responders) and military. Pay is fair but you need to ask for what you want to make and stay consistent with expressing wanting to move up and learn new skills. They do not tolerate lack of motivation and not being a team player, when you're there you work and you will be rewarded for that. The more you know the more they will pay you. Time off is challenging on weekends, and busy times. However, this company is closed on all major holiday and closes early for some other popular days. 

The mission, vision, and culture is extremely well laid out on paper  but it sounds better than what is actually happening in the workplace. Customer service training and all aspects of training at this company is amazing!  

This job is great for high schoolers, college students, or any one just starting out looking for part time hours and decent pay.  

This is a great place to work to feel a sense of purpose. The teammates are amazing and you will feel like your surrounded by friends and family all day. 

The food is amazing and you get a free meal every shift, and 50% when not working!!! :) 

Overtime is available, and pays as time and a half!

Pros:
Strong Corporate Foundation: On a corporate level, Mission BBQ has great core values and advocates for a high quality, supportive culture.
 Growth Potential (In Theory): The company itself is big on employee advancement and structured growth.
Cons:
 Management: The general manager, can be challenging to work under. Rather than practicing the company’s preached values, his leadership style can be condescending. If you approach him with a minor issue or a scheduling conflict, he frequently resorts to gaslighting. Often says unwarranted corrections and comments to experienced staff as if they are brand new. Shifts are often dictated by his mood; he becomes visibly irritable and tweaking when needing a smoke break. Furthermore, 1 on 1 meetings with the gm are usually turn one sided in my experience. Instead of being a safe space for employee self reflection and development, they are cut short and he uses the time to discuss his own personal problems with you, and push cup sales. The rest of the SHLs are pretty nice.

Gatekeeping Professional Growth: Despite the company’s emphasis on promotion, training at this location is entirely dependent on favoritism. If you are not on the gm’s good side, you will be completely barred from learning new roles. I asked to be trained for an overtly easy position and my abilities were then questioned by the gm, and why do I think I would be a good *position name*…

I worked as Great Service Representative for 5 years and Dining Room Leader for 3. I learned a lot of job experience in cash management and handling money, catering skills, training other employees, stocking, communication skills, phone etiquette, customer service along with the daily operation of the restaurant. The workplace culture itself is nice as it caters a lot to police officers, first responders and our Veterans and is shown very clearly with the environment and programs offered to the customers. The workplace culture of the management however lacks the same, instead of how Mission BBQ team culture was built with everyone being a team, there is now a clear divide on employer and employee. This is why I've given Mission BBQ the rating above. I don't believe there is any true hard parts of working at Mission BBQ, but what I liked most about working there was how at one point it was One Team One Mission. Don't let my review discourage you from joining the team though, as it very heavily depends on which location you apply for. It's a very nice and welcoming environment and you can learn a lot of skills from this job to use for a future career.   

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Restaurant manager 114 salaries reported	$54,636 per year
Line cook 225 salaries reported	$15.98 per hour
Cashier 147 salaries reported	$15.34 per hour
Prep cook 164 salaries reported	$15.99 per hour
Event staff 141 salaries reported	$16.24 per hour

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