CRM Operations & Staff Management 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A restaurant's food cost percentage is running at 38%, above the 30% target. Which action addresses the issue at the source?
- Raise menu prices by 10% immediately
- Conduct a waste audit and enforce standardized recipes and portion controls (Correct answer)
- Cut staff to offset the higher food cost
- Switch all proteins to lower-cost alternatives
Correct answer: Conduct a waste audit and enforce standardized recipes and portion controls
Waste audits and standardized recipes identify where food dollars are lost through over-portioning, spoilage, or theft before prices are adjusted.
Question 2: Under the FLSA, which of the following employees CANNOT be paid the tipped minimum wage?
- A server who regularly earns tips exceeding $30 per month
- A dishwasher who occasionally carries food to tables (Correct answer)
- A bartender who serves both drinks and food directly to guests
- A busser who participates in a valid tip pool with servers
Correct answer: A dishwasher who occasionally carries food to tables
Employees whose primary duty is non-tipped work, like dishwashing, must receive the full federal minimum wage even if they occasionally perform minor tipped tasks.
Question 3: Which opening checklist item is MOST critical for food safety compliance before a shift begins?
- Verifying the specials board is updated
- Checking and logging refrigeration unit temperatures (Correct answer)
- Confirming the background music playlist is set
- Counting cash in the register
Correct answer: Checking and logging refrigeration unit temperatures
Temperature logs verify that refrigeration maintained safe food storage overnight, which is a direct food safety requirement.
Question 4: A manager is creating a training plan for new hires. Which training method is most effective for teaching procedural tasks like table service steps?
- Assigning a policy manual to read independently
- Classroom lecture followed by observation only
- Demonstration by trainer followed by supervised practice with feedback (Correct answer)
- Online video modules watched at home
Correct answer: Demonstration by trainer followed by supervised practice with feedback
Adults learn procedural skills most effectively through observation followed by hands-on practice with immediate corrective feedback.
Question 5: When a health department inspector finds a critical violation during an unannounced inspection, the manager's immediate priority is to:
- Ask the inspector to return at a more convenient time
- Correct the critical violation immediately during the inspection if possible (Correct answer)
- Contact the owner before taking any action
- Dispute the violation verbally with the inspector
Correct answer: Correct the critical violation immediately during the inspection if possible
Critical violations pose direct public health risks and must be corrected as rapidly as possible, often on the spot, to protect guests and minimize penalties.
Question 6: A manager wants to improve kitchen efficiency by reducing ticket times. Which tool provides the most actionable real-time data?
- Monthly food cost report
- Kitchen Display System (KDS) with ticket time tracking (Correct answer)
- Annual employee performance reviews
- Weekly manager's meeting notes
Correct answer: Kitchen Display System (KDS) with ticket time tracking
A KDS tracks each ticket from fire to delivery in real time, allowing managers to spot bottlenecks and coach kitchen staff immediately.
Question 7: Which practice best ensures consistency when a restaurant introduces a new menu item?
- Letting each cook prepare it their own way until a standard emerges
- Creating a written standardized recipe with photos, yield, and plating specs before launch (Correct answer)
- Training only the head chef and having them train others verbally
- Running the new item as a daily special before adding it to the menu
Correct answer: Creating a written standardized recipe with photos, yield, and plating specs before launch
A documented standardized recipe with visual guides ensures every cook produces the item identically regardless of experience level.
CRM Operations & Staff Management 3
A restaurant's food cost percentage is running at 38%, above the 30% target.
Which action addresses the issue at the source?