cook

sous chef

restaurant manager

senior restaurant manager

line cook

Water Grill

Management is belittling and so disrespectful to all employees. They will throw you under the bus in front of guests. The hierarchy is palpable and makes for a miserable shift almost everyday. The amount of work servers have to do, for the pay and the constant disrespect... so not worth it. After working a long grueling shift where you are micromanaged the entire time (getting little to no help from your bussers), you get to sweep the entire restaurant with one other person, because they too cheap to hire an actual cleaning crew! All the management cares about is sales. If your not a top performer ALL the time (not sometimes), you will get treated like you don’t matter and your schedule will reflect it. Also the menu/drinks change all the time, like sometimes everyday. So if you like constant studying and constant testing/quizzes, you’ll love this job!  The management says they have open door communication and they want us to succeed... not the case. Stay as far away from this company as possible. I honestly don’t know how a huge company like this has stayed afloat for as long as it has, with the way it’s run and employee dissatisfaction. Only positive: the food is absolutely amazing and super fresh and easy to sell. (And you get 50% off food when your working).

Runs off of favoritism, 2-hour side work and no accountability unless they’re trying to get you out.  There’s a lack of training for support staff and for a lot of them it’s their first job so you’re consistently double to triple sat, grabbing your own bread, and even having to reset your tables on some nights. GM keeps the break room at like 90 degrees cuz he “likes it that way” while we all sweat which tells you a lot about company culture. Small kitchen gets overloaded when they accept 300 reservations in the span of 3 hours so you’re wondering where your food is. If management likes you, you can stand and chat at the terminals for as long as you’d like while those that they don’t like get can work hard and still get put in bad sections. No clear expectations as you can ask them what you need to improve and they’ll say there’s nothing, meanwhile they continue to place you in bad sections. Also corporate tips you 15% when they come in with no consequences. The toxic cultures systemic. 

There is a laundry list of reasons not to work here, but the main one is that you'll be treated like a moron and the drama will start right away.   It's a simple job of serving tables, but if you don't play into managements' egos and you don't get into a click right away, you're never going to make it.  

The staff is amazing and professional, some of the best people.  Leadership is transparent, phony and have no idea how to treat people other than being condescending and smarmy.  I think MITs take an actual class in how to talk to people like they're idiots and don't matter. You won't matter.  

Don't waste your time trying to get a job with a company like this that will tell you that they're looking for the best, only to hire you and make you question any service skill you've ever had.  They'll kill the hospitality biz for you, and it won't take long. 

I have had the pleasure of working for numerous hospitality employers.  Each has had a something more to offer, enabling me to grow in this particular industry.  Water Grill, specifically, has been especially beneficial to me, in a professional sense, because of its corporate concept. Being a large and successful restaurant group (Kings Seafood), their standard for hiring allows me to be surrounded by an overly competent group of professionals.  Attention to detail is key when working for a company with such particular standards- this has been my most extensive gain.  An ideal day demands quick multi-tasking ability, while keeping a cool head and friendly attitude.  Balancing work ethic and positive mentality can often be the most challenging part about any job in hospitality as well as an enjoyable factor.

What is the best part of working at the company?
The thorough seafood training. Great place to gain knowledge. 

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Weak/Novice FOH management, slow decision making,  maybe not the case at all locations. Denver is still new. Frustration was common, never with customers however.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Favoritism exists, I benefited from it yet it was not worth the rest of the experience.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
50% serving customers, making drinks. 40% cleaning and labeling.
10% stocking/checkouts.

This is one of my least favorite jobs that I ever had. They are so corporate that every single thing you do each day is scripted on a checklist that you are supposed to keep up with at every moment. This is bartending in the major leagues, you are expected to pump out service tickets and under 3 minutes and are tested on a regular basis in front of your peers to ensure that you can achieve the task. At work, it is busy most of the time-- money is good, But the labor is intense. It takes at least 2 hours in the morning to set up and at least 2 hours in the evening to break down and clean the entire bar

The money is amazing. Yes. I do agree.. But at what cost ? The management will make you feel stupid. The extensive menu comes with questions.  Managers not only don’t know everything but ACT as if they do. There are a few people who work there who actually have fundamental human interaction experience. The assistant general manager was the only personable person there.  This place will tare you down and make you never want to work in customer service again. If you have thick skin.  Give it a try but I saw multiple people walk out of shifts within 6 months. Please find somewhere else.  Seriously. Find somewhere else save yourself 

Only the servers that opened the restaurant have closing shifts and make good money. Everyone else is lucky to get one full turn. Plus, the side work is insane. You will absolutely have at least one, more likely two, and even three hours of sidework after your one turn of tables.
They are obsessed with the tiniest details and totally disregard the bigger picture, i.e. drinks taking 30 minutes and chefs and managers eating at the pass (right next to the guest's food coming out) in full view of guests. Very strange place. 

Constantly changing your schedule, belittling staff in front of staff and guests, lack of support on busy weekends, cut hours/shifts for searching for a second job, need I continue?  They’ll make it impossible to get a break, then give you a ‘talk’ when you report no break at clock-out.  Get in, get tips, get out.  The only way you'll last here is to keep your head down and be flexible and keep your mouth shut.  Unless you can get close with a manager of course. 

Pretty much the last manager standing gets promoted into upper management and the last employee standing gets promoted into management. This culture makes it nearly impossible to hold outside talent. As talent leaves the company is stuck promoting more from within creating a viscous cycle. Great training and a great focus on culture. I know they made some upper management changes since I left and they are always active in creating great culture, perhaps they have found a way to hold some outside talent.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Cook 10 salaries reported	$21.21 per hour
Sous chef 41 salaries reported	$83,455 per year
Restaurant manager 28 salaries reported	$76,578 per year
Senior restaurant manager 22 salaries reported	$87,500 per year
Line cook 16 salaries reported	$22.61 per hour

Working at Water Grill: Company Overview and Reviews

Water Grill

Water Grill Ratings

Popular jobs at Water Grill

Salary Satisfaction

Job Seeker Tools

Employer Tools

Browse

Stay Connected