I recently had the privilege of working at the Buffalo Wild Wings restaurant in Prescott Valley, as part of my Hourly Americaroad trip, and the experience opened my eyes to what it takes to be successful in the restaurant business. In a word it would be, personality, but more on that later.
Hourly America is a cross-country road trip that my wife, Alyssa, and I have embarked on with the backing of national hourly-employment network Snagajob. The goal of the program is to shine a spotlight on the vital role that hourly workers — 75 percent of America’s workforce — play in the economy. During my seven-month journey, that will take us to every U.S. state, I will be working 50 different hourly jobs – one in each state. For my most recent job, I spent the day working at the Buffalo Wild Wings in Prescott Valley, Ariz.
Nearly every sports bar looks the same – the Buffalo Wild Wings in Prescott Valley included. Every wall is covered in massive HD televisions, featuring sports being played from all over the world. So, don’t be surprised if you walk in at noonon a random Tuesday for wings and a cricket match from Australia is being featured – when you have that many TVs airing sporting events non-stop, sometimes you have to get creative.
Walking into Buffalo Wild Wings for my shift, I saw a restaurant that looks exactly like the B-dubs in my hometown in Austin, Texas. The owner, Mike Belsito, instructed me on the phone earlier that morning to just jump right in and soak it all up – so I did.
Jamie Stancil, the general manager, greeted me with a big smile and by the end of the day, she’d feel like mom, (but now she’s the boss). I changed into uniform and was quickly thrown into the mix.
Throughout the day, I shadowed and assisted everyone on the staff—from the cook to the bartender to the server to the hostess. I expected to meet people working to put themselves through college or who just needed to put a little extra money in their pocket. But instead, everyone I met had worked for Buffalo for five, seven and even nine years, with no intention of moving on. They loved their business, their customers, and most of all they loved each other.
There were no cliques of cooks against servers and no sense of looming upper management. Everyone worked together as a true family unit and I could immediately see that there was a real bond between the entire staff.
“I think the hourly workers should be considered the same as management,” said Stancil. “I think if you treat people the way that they should be treated, you will have a phenomenal team.”
And they are a phenomenal team! While I may have only worked two out of my 50 hourly-paying jobs so far as part of this Hourly America journey, I can confidently say that these hourly workers here in Prescott Valley, Arizona, were more than ordinary restaurant workers.
To these employees, Buffalo Wild Wings is their second home and their second family. I was honored to be their adopted “Buffalo brother” for the day.
My key learning from my brief, yet very fulfilling (and not just because I couldn’t stop eating the wings), experience working at Buffalo Wild Wings was that a good personality is the key to success. Your customers are going to keep you on your toes and if you’re not quick, watch out. Some tables you serve will want to visit with you, others will want you to take their order and get out of their way. You’ll learn to tell in the first 15 seconds the kind of person you’re dealing with, one server advised me.
The restaurant business is fun and lucrative if you’re good at your job. Be nice to people, go above and beyond for them and before long you will be a pro. And if you decide to go to work at Buffalo Wild Wings remember, “If you’re not shaking your body, you ain’t spinning the wings fast enough.” (What I learned in the kitchen while saucing up the wings)
Written by Heath Padgett
With the help of Snagajob Heath is traveling across the country to work 50 hourly-paying jobs, one in each state to shine a spotlight on the vital role of hourly workers in America. You can follow his journey on Twitter and Instagram with @HourlyAmerica and at http://hourlyamerica.com.
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