Search for 2011 UK Restaurant Manager of the Year

The search is on for top restaurant managers to enter the 2011 UK Restaurant Manager of the Year competition run by The Academy of Food and Wine Service (AFWS).

Excellent front-of-house and great people skills, combined with the ability to manage and inspire a team and a strong business acumen are the required talents of the potential winner.

The winner will receive a week in New York to complete a stage at one of restaurateur Danny Mayer’s Union Square Hospitality Group properties, staying in the top suite at  Manhatten boutique hotel The MAve, in the Flatiron District. Meanwhile, the winners’ restaurant will receive a 12-month subscription to the OpenTable reservation system.

Last year’s UK Restaurant Manager of the Year David Hennigan of The Crown at Whitebrook and Celtic Manor in Monmouthshire, spent a week at New York’s Michelin-starred Eleven Madison Park, as part of his prize. “Travelling to the US was a fantastic experience,” he said. “The focus at the restaurant was so much about communication and the sharing of knowledge. It was totally inspiring."

The line-up of judges for the 2011 competition includes the 2009 Hotelier of the Year Jonathan Raggett, managing director of Red Carnation Hotels; former Le Gavroche maitre d’ Silvano Giraldin, now director of Roux Consulting; Rémy Lysé, managing director, Rex Restaurant Associates; and Conor O’Leary, director of F&B, Hyatt Regency London – The Churchill.

“We had some very strong entries last year and for 2011 we hope restaurant managers from a broad spectrum of establishments will enter,” said Academy executive director Sophie Roberts-Brown. “Entering is a good way of testing your skills against those of your peers, a great way of networking with others in the industry and a chance to raise your profile and that of your restaurant.”

Entrants will initially be asked to complete a paper questionnaire from which the semi finalists will be chosen. On 28 February 2011 the semi finalists will compete at the Westbury Hotel, London, for one of the five places in the final, which takes place in London on 16 May 2011.

The competition is supported by Hospitality Benchmark through the National Skills Academy for Hospitality, the Savoy Educational Trust and sponsored by OpenTable.com.

Entry forms can be downloaded from www.afws.co.uk or call the Academy on 020 8661 4646. The deadline for entries is 18 February 2011.

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