GERARDO A MENDEZ
1724 NESTING PL
EL PASO, TX 79936
Career Objectives
Seeking a full time position with a well established company where I will be able to utilize my skills and experience
coupled with my high degree of motivation, I feel I would be an asset to your company. I am an assertive leader.
Summary of Qualifications
I have many areas of Customer Service expertise ranging from (Retail, Marketing, Public Relations & Restaurants). I
have Management experience in these areas and I am an assertive leader. I work hard to achieve success in my
jobs.
Work History
Red Lobster, EL PASO, Texas
Server/Certified Trainer/Assistant Manager Jan 15, 2013 - Dec 11, 2013
Server
Greet guests at their tables, keeping them comfortable. Provide efficient service by guiding guests through menus,
suggestively selling drinks, appetizers, entrees and desserts. Collect payments from guests. Write patrons' food
orders on order slips, memorize orders, or enter orders into computers for transmittal to kitchen staff. Prepare checks
that itemize and total meal costs and sales taxes. Take orders from patrons for food or beverages.
Certified Trainer
On-the-job training is provided by Certified Trainers team members who have completed certification to train others
who teach new employees the ins and outs of the job. On average, new team members receive 40 to 80 hours of
training (depending on the job) through video and hands-on instruction. Company values and expected behaviors
I must say, this is one of the better jobs I have worked for. Benefits are great if you work enough hours to get and retain. Hours are flexible, and time-off is usually easy to get except during the holidays. A typical weekday/night is usually pretty slow and easy, staff is generally friendly and fun to work with. Of course there are always a few sticklers. Weekends are generally busy and good money if you work as a Server or Bartender. Most people like to joke around and have fun at work, which provides both a relaxed and comfortable environment for the employees as well as the guests.
I have learned much from Red Lobster, namely it's a good job. I found this out the hard way when I went to work outside the company for a few weeks and experienced first-hand how horrible other jobs are. I have learned that the guests are the ones providing us with jobs and paying our bills and should always be treated with respect and dignity no matter how "difficult" they can be. Americans tend to be rich and spoiled, but most people are not rich and work hard for their money. We all work hard for our money, so when we spend it we like to feel appreciated. Most people are easy, but yes some folks can be extremely difficult, but hospitality is forte. Believe me, if you are able to make a difficult guest satisfied, they are usually overwhelmed with joy and happiness, and it's contagious they end up making you happy and sometimes cry . Of course, there are always a select few
Pros50% off of meals during shift 25 % discount on parties 10 or less so.
ConsEveryone is required to work weekends, No benefits or vacation pay unless you average 30 hours or more per week
Wonderful coworkers but a horrible management staff
I started at Red Lobster as a server in Florida. I only worked down there for about 2 months and had to move unexpectedly for personal safety reasons to Maryland. A month had passed and I still hadn't found a new job and my manager from the Florida store called me and told me he put an outstandingly good word for me at the Hagerstown Red Lobster where I then worked for a little over 2 years. While being there I broadened my knowledge throughout the restaurant and became a hostess, bartender, and an alley coordinator in the kitchen. I tended to be used as a backup employee if the restaurant was short staffed somewhere. My co-workers were and still are my friends who helped in anyway on the clock or off the clock. Most of the people I worked with I spent time with outside of work and we all got to know each other very well. Because I was experienced in different positions at the job, multitasking was a ritual for me. I could go in as a server, but I also hosted if I had a free minute, or I helped bar tend if the bartenders were backed up. A lot of the times if there was an extremely short staff and the manager was stuck in the kitchen, I would run the front of the restaurant and make sure that people were sat correctly and the servers were not swamped with overloaded work. I tried several different times to become a certified trainer and a PRO (Professional Service Specialist) but eventually realized that in this particular store it didn't matter how much time and effort one pu
ProsHealth insurance, Pet insurance, Dental Insurance, Vision Insurance, Discounts at specific phone companies and car lots, discounts on dining it at any Darden Location
Productive and stimulating workplace, but lacks wage/benefit increases over time
Working at Red Lobster provided me with a well-rounded professional experience, enhancing communication skills exponentially by constant exposure to strangers, reinforcing mathematics and technical skills with modern touch-screen computer systems, increasing my knowledge base regarding nutritional and legal matters that applied to the restaurant menu, and propagated newfound teamwork skills by maintaining constant communication with servers/managers/kitchen/bar tender staff members to achieve crew goals. It is a professional, organized, and clean social environment which helped to enrich our team’s efficiency and sense of community.
The management team was connected and committed to team-members, but were often stretched too thin, considering the small management staff an the large restaurant building.
Tending bar required constant compartmentalization and time-management skills because people are constantly sitting down, placing orders, and getting up the entire time and it requires quick wit and a positive customer service approach to mediate the chaos of constant arrival and departure.
The hardest part of the job was constantly compensating for the shortcomings of other co-workers. One would think that when all of your core responsibilities have been taken care of, the remaining labor would be a breeze. However, once I was finished with all of my bartender side-work, I still found myself stuck restocking salad-stations and rolling silverware for the restaurant i
ProsHalf off meals on days you work, Quarter off meals at all Red Lobsters nation-wide on days of, friendly and culturally diverse work-staff, convenient shift options, convenient schedule alterations, rational management staff, clean and organized environment, comfortable uniform policy
ConsNo guaranteed time of relief, inconvenient storage area, poor plumbing features, constrained kitchen space, limited promotion an wage-raise opportunities, Managers had limited power to compensate for mistakes, too lenient with punishment, machinery constantly malfunctioning
I started as a server assistant which includes generally helping the server bus tables and walk food. Some servers will take you for granted and expect you to bus all their tables and/or walk all their food while they gossip. You can expect to lift up to 50lbs trays when busy and up to about 30lbs when slower. If it's slow, they will cut you early. Sometimes you will be cut and not find out until you walk in. Pay started at $4/hr with 1.25% tip out from servers' SALES (not tips!) split between ALL SAs on duty that day.
I was supposed to become a server, but GM said I didn't know the menu well enough, but would let others with some to no serving experience become servers and soon after, allowed me to move into the kitchen as an alley coordinator. Alley coordinator NEEDS to know the menu (ironically) because they put final touches on food and have the final say before food is walked. Alley coordinator is also responsible for keeping alley clean (front of kitchen) and duties include prepping salads, wiping counters, tear down/set up alley for night/next day, etc.,
Servers tend to get impatient and will try to fix their food (add condiments, lemons, knives, sauces/toppings, etc.,) themselves. Some don't know what they are doing and will mess up and occasionally new entree will have to be prepped. Most servers at my location will bare-handedly touch food and claim they "just washed" their hands, even when they didn't. In my state, you HAVE to wear gloves or use tongs (if n
Pros25% discount off shift, 50% discount during shift, occasional free food
ConsBreaks are rare unless you are scheduled two different times in same day, then they are required
A typical day at work would be coming in greeting guest/making sure rotation of servers are in correct order/taking guest to their seats/occasionally taking carry out orders/ringing in the order and getting the food boxed up and making sure order is correct/cashing out the carry out order.
Our management team are pretty well liked. I could go to them for just about anything, if i have question about something they are sure to give me an answer and if they don't know right off hand they are quick to find me an answer. I've worked with the general manager the entire almost 9 years that i've worked with her and she's honestly like a mother figure to me. If i have a problem she is always there to help me out. She goes above and beyond to make sure I'm getting enough hours and if there is a problem with something she is easily approachable to talk to. We talk and sort the problem out and fix it.
I get along with the majority of my co-workers. We work as a team at red lobster. If anyone needs anything we are always there to help one another out for example if one of the servers needs a help walk to walk their food we are willing to help walk food. If a server needs us to get drink orders we will always help out and take them for them. Since i have been there for quite a while i do a lot of training of the new employees. I feel i am easy to approach if they have any questions and am more than willing to help them with anything they may need.
The hardest part of my job wo
Pros50% off discount if worked an hour before shift or an hour after shift, 25% discount for other Darden restaurants, vacation pay
I have never worked for a place where so many of the staff and management were as disrespectful as Red Lobster. The only manager who belonged in a position of management from what I saw, Saiid, was wrongfully fires for speaking the truth to corporate about how backwards this place is. This is the most ghetto and ratchet group of people I have ever worked with. Like a downright hood rat trashy place. And I’m not racist when I say that because half of them who acted that way were white. My problem is the disrespect and ignorance. One of the hosts there had an attitude problem with me from day 1 and literally kept her back turned when I was trying to talk to her. After saying hello can you hear me two or three times she turns around rolls her eyes hands on hips and says I can hear you know with the sassiest demeanor. I’m sorry but how did you get a job dealing with people when you clearly have no people skills? Managers roll their eyes not only at servers but one rolled his eyes AT MY TABLE! Managers yell and raise their voices at you and talk super messed up to employees like they are stupid unworthy employees and expect you to sit there shut up and take it then put you on their sh!tlist. After that it’s game over. You literally have a target on your back and don’t expect one day at work to go smoothly ever again. Not even just the treatment of this place but the area it’s located in you get some really bad tippers sometimes. I’m honestly surprised that the health departmen
I started during a big transition in the company when the need to maximize profits with fewer guests came into eat. I slowly watched them cut benefits and bartender pay to have the servers have an automatic percentage of their sales, not their earned tips, go to the bartender and server assistants. I also watched them get rid of vacation pay for certain employees, cut the employee stock program, and raised the rates of health care yearly but the insurance is HORRIBLE if you ever have the misfortune of having to use it. As far as advancement, I was promoted to Certified Server trainer within 3 months, but then they also got rid of the extra pay they used to give when you would trian. While training, you have no choice but to go at a slower pace and possible get fewer tables in order to ensure proper training of the employee, but apparently Darden does not value having properly trained employees or respecting the people that make sure they are trained according to Darden standards. This is a decent place if you don't plan to work here for a long time, but both General Managers I had for both restaurants I worked in were bullies and both have subsequently been terminated. They say there is an open door policy, but if the District Manager and Manager are friends, nothing will come of the report you make and it will also make your work life there much more difficult. You are promised the worst shifts until you quit. That is their way of firing you without having to pay unemploymen
Pros25% off you and 7 guests at any Darden restaurant
Growing up in the area Red Lobster was one of the few places my family never went to. I’ve been in the restaurant buisness for about 20 years, I’ve done everything from Hostess, Expo, bartending, serving, and a few other positions during my career. I am educated and very friendly and easy to get a long with, so normally I do well in any situation both stressful and fast paced and also easy laid back positions. This place has to be the worst place I have ever worked! The management team is horrible, there’s no type of organization, it’s ran like a circus, very unprofessional. When hired I was told scheduling would be done according to performance which was not true. The managers are rude and treat their employees terrible, the mock and make
Fun of other employees behind their back. Employees come to work under the influence, and management looks past it because of their relationship outside of the work place. There is a lot of discrimination and the female employees are really the ones who suffer the most because they get talked down to by both management and other male employees.
The scheduleing is unfair, only certain employees get shifts where the money can be made. You can’t confide in any management with issues going on because they will do things to taunt you, and put you in a position where u really have to watch your back they make false accusations to the point you are literally in tears and just want to quit your job. It’s such an uncomfortable setting to be workin
Be prepared for an unpleasant and stressful expirence
The Red Lobster in Montgomery, Alabama is not a great restaurant to work at. The clientele is horrible. The business is steadily declining. The managers don't care about quality or presentation of the entrées. The managers attempt to save money by overloading the bartenders and servers with multiple duties, and they are rarely around to assist.
Bartenders are charged with making bar drinks, server drinks, hosting, and takeout orders, which often leads to long ticket time for bar drinks or guest waiting to be greeted and sat.
Servers have no assistance with cleaning tables and often have to greet guest because the host is sent home to save hours. Servers often times have to dress their own entrées (causing guest to wait longer for food or to be greeted at tables) because the ally coordinator is sent home early to save hours, or has to bake bread and wash dishes because those employees are sent home to save hours as well. Rarely, if ever, does a manager step in to assist with these duties.
Schedules are never posted at a reasonable time for employees to plan their week in advance, and hardly any thought is applied in actually scheduling servers so they can earn a decent wage with the decrease in business. Servers are often times called minutes before their shifts, or turned around at the door due to over scheduling for the amount of business.
The restaurant is filthy most of the times because the staff is stretched so thin, which makes it nearly impossible to keep
ProsHalf off meals, friendly staff
ConsHorrible management, no consideration for staff welfare, inconsistent across the board, no advance schedules, kitchen not properly staffed at times
Questions And Answers about Red Lobster
What is the best part of working at Red Lobster?
Asked Nov 26, 2019
My coworkers and my amazing managers
Answered May 27, 2022
Servers that have been there for awhile run the whole FOH no room to grow
Answered May 25, 2022
If you were in charge, what would you do to make Red Lobster a better place to work?
Asked Feb 8, 2018
They need to have better work/life balance for managers. We also need to change the uniforms for foh to be more up with times
Answered Jul 26, 2021
Make the place more better place and having people be happy for coming
Answered Apr 17, 2021
What tips or advice would you give to someone interviewing at Red Lobster?
Asked Oct 6, 2016
I wouldn't even interview there, Red Lobster is not even close what it used to be just 5, 6 years ago, apply to a different company.
Answered Mar 10, 2020
Say what they want to hear, get some training for your resume, get out fast. Notice how restaurant managers are not there really after 4 years? Ones there 7+ .... Why are they not promoted
Answered Feb 28, 2020
do they drug test
Asked Apr 26, 2016
Nearly all the employees engage in drug use,and the managers as well.
