A typical chain restaurant job: great for students or people just starting out in a hospitality career - Server/Bartender Doherty Enterprises Employee Review

3.0
10 Feb 2025
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

The biggest pro of working for the Doherty location where I was employed, which was an Applebee's, was that of what you would find in any decently run chain: a hard skill focus on the basics of hospitality in any given role. What is expected of you will be gone over nearly ad nauseam during a slightly longer than average training period, usually consisting of five days. Continually through the seasons and campaigns (such as the infamous $5/$6 "mucho" drinks or unlimited specials), certain practices will be emphasized, and there are tons of sales contests regularly happening that allow tipped employees to win a little extra cash. While there were quite a few management changes, there was also no shortage of kind and effective leaders (also some not, so I will skip that in the cons section).

Cons

There are two main, unfortunately glaring, cons that prevent me from recommending this location (and perhaps company) to any front-of-house professional, as opposed to students and those new to this industry. One possibly expected: full-time hours are not realistic to expect in a nonmanagerial role. That will mean a lack of planning or not making enough in busy seasons to float one in slower ones will spell not being able to pay one's bills. If attaining a second job/gig, an employee may also find that communication amongst the managerial team, good leaders as many are, needs improvement. The biggest con I personally experienced, however, was the lack of control and, frankly, outright refusal to address regular harassment-level abusive speech from guests. Literal fist fights were the only time I ever witnessed minor guests asked to leave. With such a high percentage of guests being minors spending their parent's money, auto gratuity should be a standard, but when asked to implement such policies, the service staff was denied. That means servers are sometimes running non-stop for hours and effectively make a low hourly pay (as opposed to their peers in other restaurants, even chains) for the effort exerted. Servers are also expected to tip out 3% of their nightly pay, regardless of how many tables did not leave a tip. Servers in New Jersey are not paid the state or even federal minimum wage, and even the students and beginners I'd recommend this job to should stay cognizant of that.

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Doherty Enterprises Response
1y
We are sorry to hear you had a negative experience. We strive to deliver a WOW experience and environment for all our people and are disappointed to hear that was not your experience. Please reach out to our Human Resources Department by calling 1-866-DOHERTY; calling our EthicsPoint 24 hour hotline 844-942-2800; completing a web-intake at dohertyinc.ethicspoint.com; or completing a mobile intake at dohertyinc.navexone.com. We look forward to hearing from you and addressing the issue.

Explore other reviews about Doherty Enterprises

5.0
23 Jun 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

many long time employees. money is good. clientele is a lot of regulars which makes making money easy

Cons

hard to get benefits because hours aren’t easily given

5.0
15 Jun 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Excellent tenure. Employee retention. Growth within company itself is promising.

Cons

There are none. Managemt anywhere you go will have its obstacles it’s how you deal with daily stress

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