Cafeteria Manager Job Description

Salary Range

$56,870 - $86,800

Experience

Assistant to full manager

Work Environment

School, hospital or campus cafeteria

What Does a Cafeteria Manager Do?

At the loading dock, first thing in the morning, a cafeteria manager counts cases and checks invoices before the cooks start on lunch. Menus, meal counts, food orders and staff schedules all run through this job, along with health department checks and a monthly budget report, in school districts, colleges, hospitals and company dining rooms.

Also known as: Assistant Cafeteria Manager

Other Job Titles for This Work

Workers in this occupation report titles such as Banquet Manager, Catering Manager, CDM (Certified Dietary Manager), Dining Service Director, F and B Manager (Food and Beverage Manager), Food Service Director, Food Service Manager, Food Service Supervisor.

Cafeteria Manager Duties and Responsibilities

The primary responsibilities of a cafeteria manager include:

• Plan cycle menus that balance cost, nutrition standards and what diners actually eat.
• Forecast meal counts and order food and supplies from approved vendors.
• Schedule cooks, servers and cashiers to cover breakfast, lunch and dinner service.
• Check food temperatures, storage and sanitation against health department rules.
• Track labor and food costs and prepare monthly budget reports for the dining director.
• Receive deliveries and verify quantities, quality and invoices before signing.
• Handle diner complaints, special diet requests and allergy questions at the counter.
• Train new staff in portion control, safe food handling and cash procedures.
• Oversee special events and catering orders prepared in the cafeteria kitchen.
• Arrange repairs for ovens, dish machines and refrigeration units when they fail.

Required Skills and Qualifications

To succeed as a cafeteria manager, you will need the following skills and qualifications:

• ServSafe Food Protection Manager certification
• Menu costing and budget control
• Staff scheduling and supervision
• Knowledge of allergens and special diets
• Food service software for ordering, inventory and point of sale
• Health code and sanitation standards
• A steady temperament during the lunch rush
• Friendly, firm communication with diners and staff

Education and Training

A hospitality degree alone isn't likely to land the job if you've never worked a serving line, but if you're one of several shift supervisors hoping for the post, that degree can be what prompts a dining director to promote you. Many health departments require a certified food manager. With experience, you could progress from assistant manager to manager of a larger cafeteria or to director of dining services.

Salary and Job Outlook

BLS expects employment of food service managers, the group that includes cafeteria managers, to grow about 6 percent from 2025 to 2035. In fact, the group should see roughly 38,800 openings a year, according to the same projection. Restaurant hiring often is tied to the state of the local economy, but hospitals, colleges and employers keep feeding people through slow years, so cafeteria jobs tend to hold steady.

Outlook source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections, 2025 to 2035, Food service managers.

Cafeteria Manager Pay Range

Highest-Paying States for Cafeteria Managers

The states with the highest median pay for this occupation are Washington ($95,190), Massachusetts ($92,240), Hawaii ($87,800), New York ($84,200), Rhode Island ($82,850). Pay is lowest in Mississippi ($59,540), Arkansas ($55,120), West Virginia ($54,800).

What the Work Is Like

O*NET surveys people who work as food service managers about their daily conditions. Of those surveyed:

• 99% say teamwork is very or extremely important in their job
• 91% work indoors in a climate-controlled space every day
• 82% spend more than half the workday on their feet
• 80% are on the phone every day
• 78% say being exact and accurate is very or extremely important
• 75% spend more than half the day walking or moving around
• 66% deal with rude or angry people at least once a week

Education Workers Say the Job Needs

Tools and Software Cafeteria Managers Use

Tools and equipment

• Computerized cash registers
• Laser printers
• Notebook computers
• Personal computers
• Personal digital assistants PDA

Software

• Microsoft Office software
• Facebook
• Google Docs
• Intuit QuickBooks
• Microsoft Excel
• Microsoft Outlook
• Microsoft PowerPoint
• Microsoft Project
• Microsoft Word
• Aestiva Employee Time Clock
• Apache Groovy
• Army Food Management Information System

Is This Job a Good Fit for You?

People who do well in this job tend to enjoy leading, persuading and making business decisions as well as organized work with data, records and clear procedures.

Skills O*NET rates most important: Active Listening, Speaking, Monitoring, Coordination, Management of Personnel Resources, Reading Comprehension.

Knowledge areas used most: Customer and Personal Service, Administration and Management, Food Production, English Language, Personnel and Human Resources.

Preparation: O*NET places this occupation in Job Zone 2 of 5, which means some preparation.

Related Careers

These jobs use similar skills, according to O*NET's related-occupation data:

• Assistant Catering Manager job description
• Food Operations Manager job description
• Restaurant Manager job description
• Assistant Restaurant Manager job description
• Beverage Manager job description
• Catering Manager job description
• Chef job description
• Sous Chef job description

Applying for a Cafeteria Manager Job

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