cook

prep cook

dishwasher

supervisor

busser

Village Inn

I didn't want to write this review but it's been a while and I want to warn others of this place... My personal experience may not be like others but I'll never forget it, and it was awful. I worked here very briefly because it was so poorly managed, the turn over was out of control, even the general manager was fired and replaced about THREE times in the 2 months I was there. The trainers they have or had, is the absolute worst trainer I have ever had. So rude, disrespectful, and a THIEF! She put me down several times, running over me and my work every time, everything I did was wrong, or not good enough, even snapping at me several times. [I did cry, yes. Because I cry when I'm frustrated] They also liked to call me the "Millennial" because I was young, but I was 26.. and it was really uncalled for and really degrading. 
 Two employees there had mentioned their things were being stolen too (phones, money, etc) Eventually I noticed my tips were going missing, and it would happen extremely quickly. I'm not even sure HOW sometimes.. but when I was still training and I shared a server book with my trainer, my tips would just disappear.. Other times, she insisted I share MY tips with her because she was training me and "doing the work" which was 100% obviously untrue. I realized pretty quickly what a toxic environment this was and I QUIT! I've never just given up on a place but this place is disgusting. Physically, mentally, emotionally. I won't mention how gross the kitchen was, chefs eating food in the back, dropping food and putting it back on the plate, no sanitation, oh man I could go on and on... Please don't apply here unless you are really desperate.. but KEEP YOUR THINGS AT HOME! They aren't safe anywhere!

Food is decent though!

Serving is always fast paced. You need to get the food out, fill drinks immediately, and make sure to communicate with your table what their needs are. You aren't guaranteed to be cut at a certain time, so you could be at work for hours beyond what you were scheduled. Fortunately, they are understanding of extenuating circumstances, and are willing to help you find someone to cover your shift. Night management was poor. Played favorites, would seat out of order, would seat tables out of sections (and not tell you, the server), and would have other servers check off your night work (which, if the server didn't like you, would keep you there extra long). Wednesdays are the most stressful to work, as it is the busiest of days. The company keeps you on your toes with constant reviews. Secret shoppers, timed serving, having management review you often. You have to keep to a script and a 40 minute turn over average. Village inn acts like a fast food restaurant, so be wary of that. Tips at Village Inn aren't always great, but if you know your stuff, you can make good money. Waitresses aren't likely to help each other out, unless you've made friends. It's a very clicky environment, it's hard to get "In" with employees already working there as a newbie. Village Inn has a high turnover rate, and it's probably because of the night manager. On the upside, the company will pay you minimum wage if you don't meet it making tips. However, the opposite side to that is if you don't make good enough tips to meet minimum wage, they will fire you.

This is a very hard and physically demanding job with a lot of heat, noise, and people yelling at you for food constantly. Senior cooks see no reason to help clean, and think they deserve a pat on the back for doing the littlest of things. NO training is provided. You are expected to know what every ingredient and every pan is used for and when, and even how long to cook it for even it is your first day. My "trainer" had only been there a month and then quit. I was constantly chastised for not cooking eggs in the "right" skillet, although the difference in the pans was never explained to me, EVER (hint: THEY ALL LOOKED THE SAME. No kidding. All were the same size, with the same finish, except one that had none, which I was told was "bad" by some people and was told to "only use this one" by others). Cleaning procedures were never fully explained, which one can figure out pretty quickly, but this is very dangerous when dealing with a scorching hot flattop and other equipment that you have to guess how to clean. And, it seemed like no matter how much you did clean, the layers of filth still remaining by past crew members not wanting to clean still remained. While the pay was decent, I felt it was very unrewarding staying here. It would have been better if this company would actually invest SOME money in actual training of cooks instead of just throwing them in to this chaotic situation and having such a high turnover.

I was being worked between 10-8 hour shifts the  asked to stay an additional 2-4 hours so that the cooks taking over my shift would be able to take their breaks.  And I was having my hours shortened so they could make a loop hole in the labor system so it would seem like I was the one asking for hours or that they needed the help.  Everything was just disgusting so many health code violations disgusting meat that smell awful the grills we're always cranked to the max which would burn everything from pancakes all the way to the bread.  Un gloves hands were handling food without washing their hands after smoking a cigarette.  Breaks were either right when you clocked in or at the very end of your shift right when you're about to clock off and when you go to take it they just clock you in from break and clock you out adjusting your schedule.  I never had the same gm for more than 7 months before they would change and all of them were horrible.  Everything was a mess,  either food was bad,  notprepared, missing or misplaced,  or mislabeled. It certainly wasn't work the pay for the work I had to do.  And,  they treat you like a liar or as if you wounded them if you call out sick or have to change your schedule.  This isn't an ideal first job if stress bothers you but if you work here be prepared to be worked to the bone.  It starts off nice as sugar but turns bitter real fast. And tht half of meal I rarely got it because I could only have it in my break which rarely happened.

So, I was a Bus boy for a roughly short period of time. And by the sun it was awful, and since it was during heavy Covid restrictions it was even worse. For an average day it was full of cleaning tables, gather the table wear, hauling it to the back for the dishwasher, and pulling a bulky, long cart that was nearly impossible to maneuver in small places. 
Not only this, but I often had to do other workers duties such as the waitresses like getting take out boxes, asking if the customers were okay, etc. all while they stood in the kitchen chatting it up and drinking water as i ran around like a chicken. 
Management wasn’t much help either. Seeing as i wasn’t fast, the hot weather, and my body was under heavy strain, I’d often get reprimanded for not hurrying it up and not doing my job well. And i mean for minimum wage of $7.25 an hour? It was awful. 
Overall if your not exactly fit to a certain extent or fast, going as far as not willing to pick up the slack of other people I wouldn’t work it.

For managers, you must work a minimum 11 hours a day although you usually work 14, and a minimum 5 days a week. They will make you work 6-7 day weeks at least twice a month. You will be low salary (30-38k) and there is no additional pay for working extra. You can expect to work at least 65-80 hours a week. Every holiday is mandatory, including Christmas, so make sure you don't have family plans, you will be there all day. If needed you will have to work shifts that are 5:30 am to 2am, with no breaks. This position is strictly a no break job, you need to be able to eat on the go, if there is no time to, then you don't eat. Mornings are extremely busy. Nights are severely understaffed. You will be trained to cook, clean, dish, serve, pie prep and host. Ast. managers are primarily in charge of night shift so you will come in at 11am and close the store, so how ever long it takes to clean and close, but you don't close until 1 am. possible chance for bonuses each month, but higher ups implemented a new procedure, that discloses "They have the right for any reason to deem none bonused" since that, the store I worked at hadn't received a bonus in over a year. 

I enjoy being a server because of the guests and the fast paced environment. You have to be able to multitask in order to do the job efficiently! Morning shifts are usually busier and have more servers on the floor at once. Nights typically have about 2-3 servers. Some nights can get really busy. When you arrive to work, you need to do your opening side work before you're able to take tables. Always look around and ensure that everything is stocked, cleaned and ready for your shift. When closing you want to start breaking things down at least 1hr before closing to ensure you're not stuck there 1hr or more past closing. If you stay busy and productive your shift should flow smoothly!
Unfortunately, most days seem like you're back in middle school because everyone is gossiping about someone. You should be able to just keep to yourself and do your job so that it'll work in your pockets benefit but because there's favoritism, your section seems to get skipped more often than not. Management plays a bigger role in favoritism and it shows by how often your scheduled and which shifts you get, regardless of your requests.

VI is a regional company that has corporate and franchise stores and they can all vary from owners on how the overall experience would be.  I started as and remained a cook throughout my tenure, they have a pretty proven and sensical way of getting food out and a lot of their systems make sense.  They actually give vacation and benefits which is typically unheard of in these types of diner restaurants.  They'll show you the money if you do a good job and are reliable.  Management was fair the times I worked and do a good job for what they have to work with.  They'll work around your schedule if you have other pursuits like school. 

The co-workers were a mixed bag, you had some cool people that just came in to do their job then you had drama queens trying to make life difficult for you because you didn't give them enough attention or you didn't let them push you around.  Rumors are rampant but that's pretty much every job.  People in general live boring and meaningless lives so they seek to manipulate others so they can manufacture some excitement to it by gossiping or starting drama.  

You could do worse working at other places in the industry but you could probably do better in some.  

Village Inn is a fast-paced, friendly work environment, where relationships with customers are highly valued. Days often start before dawn, but fresh coffee is always brewing. Many of the clientele are "regulars," and most of the wait staff stay on for years, creating a community unlike many other restaurants.

My very first job as a teenager was at Village Inn, where I learned to multi-task very efficiently. Starting as a night waitress, I moved up to weekend mornings within two years, where the work pace was greatly increased. I learned to do my job quickly and accurately, and learned to stay calm in the face of very stressful working conditions. Sometimes food would not be made to the customers' standards for whatever reason, and I had to learn to speak up to the cooks politely yet firmly.

The most enjoyable part of working at Village Inn was the restaurant culture. I grew very close to my co-workers, although most of them were quite older than I was. My managers always supported the work I did, and when I put in an order incorrectly, they always understood and never lost their tempers, but pushed me to work harder.

Between the ticket times for the food being twenty minutes, the high turnover rate, and all of the unhappy people, there is a lot of unnecessary drama and struggle in this work place. It takes up most of your time, and you have to be fully dedicated to this job and nothing else since it takes up literally everything. They hold themselves to high standards, but when it comes to actually keeping to those standards, they crash and burn. Coming from a family owned restaurant that was really organized, Village Inn isn't very friendly and happy for their employees. However, as my friend once told me, because people who come into Village Inn are expecting bad service, if you can give them good service, they'll give you good tips. That much is true, but the end result, the stress, and the struggle of working at a place that is this disorganized, isn't worth it. Especially when they have you work over twelve hours in a shift, have you close, and then expect you to come in early the next morning. 

However, if you like pie, you have to try every pie they have while training to be a server there so you get to eat all the pie you want in the world your first week training as a server.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Cook 90 salaries reported	$15.71 per hour
Prep cook 29 salaries reported	$14.16 per hour
Dishwasher 48 salaries reported	$12.32 per hour
Supervisor 1 salary reported	$17.00 per hour
Busser 22 salaries reported	$10.95 per hour

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