<p>Not to manage a Holiday Inn or an Applebee’s, but if you want to be in charge of a 4-star restaurant or hotel, oh yes you do need a college degree.</p>
<p>Oklahoma State actually has one of the best hotel and restaurant administration programs in the country. I have a few friends doing it. The OSU school has its own section of the Student Union where they run their own 4-star restaurant (one of the only ones in Oklahoma) called the Rancher’s Club…best steak I’ve ever had, and not as expensive as people think, and they also operate a posh historic hotel called the Atherton Hotel. They have study abroad programs that they offer to Europe or the Caribbean.</p>
<p>osucowboys, you are so far from being correct.
Considering I have been in the industry for well over a decade and have worked in some of the highest rated restaurants in the country (Per Se, Aureole, Trotters, Mina), and currently work in a 5 star/5 diamond resort, I am not just typing for my health.
The hospitality industry places much more emphasis on people with experience and on the job training as well as the ability to work long hours for very small salaries. A college degree is not even the best way to get your foot in the door. An entry level sommelier certification is a better resume builder than a college degree for a front of the house restaurant position, and it costs a grand and takes less than a year.
General manager/Director level or higher is when you are guaranteed to make a good salary, and you get there by putting your time in, learning and perfecting the systems of the establishment and producing business enhancing results. I know more people without a college degree that are more successful than those with one in the hospitality/restaurant industry. I could go into a discourse on why that is, but it is irrelevant to this discussion.
The simple fact is that a bachelors degree in hotel management, restaurant management or hospitality and tourism is probably one of the biggest wastes on money you could embark upon in your life. That is just a fact among those that know this business at a high level. Training as a chef, however, does require some formal training in most cases, but not all.
To those thinking of a career in this industry… major in business, minor in spanish, study wine and spirits from around the world and get experience in a restaurant.</p>
<p>And, after working in upscale hotels and restaurants all my life in New York, Miami and now Las Vegas, I have never met anyone with a degree from Oklahoma State.</p>
<p>Since when did OKC have something 4-star? I thought the restaurant at the Skirvin was close to a 4-star rating but not quite. I don’t profess to have seen a list of 4-star restaurants, I’m only speaking from heresy, which is something I make no qualms about admitting! I’m obviously not a hotel/restaurant administration guru, so the only way I can be remotely helpful is by sharing what I’ve heard from friends that are doing it at OSU.</p>
<p>VegasSommelier, I don’t know what a Sommelier is, but it would seem like if you’re suggesting a city food handler’s permit course instead of a college degree then isn’t this thread a little beside the point for you? I’m not going up against your experience, but I’m sure the way you’ve done it is not the only way. There are always different routes to go for those who can’t go to a college for whatever reason, but the good jobs sure are drying up for non-college grads these days. It’s probably hard to get a job as a Starbucks assistant manager without some kind of post-HS background however minimal. lol</p>
<p>VegasSommelier, although I agree that Hotel Management is not the only way to go, it is a good start for some hoteliers. One thing I will definitely agree with is that unless one comes from a very wealthy family, paying a lot of money for a Hotel Management degree is a waste of money. However, if money is not an issue, Hotel school can be an effective way to get into the business.</p>
<p>If you do not know what a sommelier is, then how can you even be giving input pertaining to the upscale hospitality/restaurant business?
Easily put, It is someone who knows a great deal about wines and spirits. A properly trained sommelier will know how to manage a wine and beverage program efficiently to the benefit of a fine dining establishment or a hotel property. As you progress, sommeliers can be managers or wine stewards for an establishment early on, and with experience can go on to be Winery consultants, food and wine writers and journalists as well as Wine/F&B Directors at the corporate level.
A beverage program can be anywhere from 25% to 60% of the total revenue for a hotel or restaurant. The establishment I run has a total beverage revenue of 5 millions dollars annually, and the entire hotel has a beverage revenue of a quarter of a billion dollars. Inventory can be anywhere from 250k all the way to 5 million.</p>
<p>And what the hell is a city food handlers permit? That sounds like an Applebees degree to me.</p>
<p>Alexandre… I believe that a business degree (with a blend of accounting, management and human resource skills) with a minor in a foreign language (spanish for American managers), combined with work experience is better preparation for a hospitality/restaurant/hotel management career. It also hedges your bet in case the business is not for you in the long run.</p>
<p>The Hotel school students I knew at Cornell definitely took a fair share of Management, Accounting, HR and Finance courses (at least two semesters of each). I agree that a Business degree is more versatile than a Hotel Management degree, but for the purposes of working in the hospitality industry, I think some Hotel Management programs are excellent. </p>
<p>On a separate note, I am planning a trip to the US in July. I have made reservations at Per Se in NYC and Alinea and Charlie Trotters in Chicago. I also intend on having dinner at Daniel and Gramercy Tavern in NYC and at Topolobompo in Chicago. Any tips or recommendations?</p>
<p>Yeah, but once a year, I like going on a binge! hehe! Those restaurants are a bargain next to their French counterparts. They may not be quite as good, but they are roughly half the price.</p>
<p>Just to clarify are those inventory numbers for your restaurant or the whole hotel?</p>
<p>Alexandre,</p>
<p>Much like their French counterparts, many restaurants use July and/or August for downtime where the top chefs go on vacation. With smaller restaurants this is fine as they just close. Larger ones stay open (sometimes unfortunately). They know that their main clientele are taking vacations as well or even away at the summer homes so they know that most coming to dine will be tourists that won’t know the difference. I’m guessing you do know the difference so you might explore a bit more. There are plenty of forums for ‘foodies’ but you might try chowhound. Don’t let the name fool you, there are plenty of people that post there that really know their food. </p>
<p>ct- chowhound, much like this website, should be used for entertainment purposes only. They tend to be very accurate on some topics, and very incorrect on others. Also, i believe I gave the beverage sales stats for both restaurant and hotel, and the inventory stat was just an example of what a restaurant in Las Vegas would have in bev inventory at any given time.
An entire resort can have over $100 million in bev inventory at certain points. </p>
<p>Alex- Per Se is great, and you will be hard pressed to find anything that is not good if you are a true foodie. Also, if you like asian cuisine and you are in the $$ spending mood, Masa is a must. Do not be scared to try some smaller places in Greenwich Village and SoHo, they can be just as good without the grandeur. Trotters is very overrated, and Alinea is great… Grant Achatz may be the best chef in the country right now.
French Laundry in Napa still reigns supreme for American restaurants though… simply amazing.</p>
<p>I look forward to all the good food. Each year, I have one culinary escape. This year, I am having two (this sumer in the US and late November in Paris). I will definitely look up some of the smaller places in the Village and SoHo.</p>
<p>Other then OKstate, Cornell, UNLV, Michigan, are there any other schools with a good HM degree say for example, UH Hotel Management? I know it has a great program, but HOW great? And where does it rank?</p>
<p>Ive been accepted to PSU and UCF and now I’m trying to decide beteween the two. My dream school was UNLV, but I decided I’d go there for grad school. My ultimate career goal is to end up in a management position in the Disney World Resort, which is originally why I was looking into UCF. It will actually cost me more to go to UCF because I’m out of state, so now I’m just trying to decide what I should choose. Any advice would be appreciated!</p>
<p>Purdue, Michigan State(NOT UMICHIGAN), Penn. State, Florida State, Delaware, UCentral Florida, Cornell, NYU, Boston Univ., Johnson & Wales, UHouston, UNLV, Oklahoma State, Cal Poly-Pomona, and Depaul(Just started this past year but I see it being great soon).</p>