The Person Who Really Runs A Restaurant Isn’t The Owner Or Chef But Someone Who Often Goes Unnoticed & Unappreciated
Branislav Nenin | ShutterstockMost people automatically assume that the person keeping a restaurant afloat is either the owner or the chef. That assumption makes sense considering they're the ones who are usually the most visible, well-paid, and celebrated.
But people who actually work in a restaurant tend to have a different opinion about who actually ensures that everything runs smoothly. In a TikTok video, a restaurant owner named Robert McCrary explained that the person responsible for running the restaurant is actually an underappreciated worker who tends to be behind the scenes most of the time.
The person who really runs the restaurant isn't the owner or chef; it's the dishwasher.
"Let me tell you who actually runs the restaurant. It's not the owner. It's not the chef. It's not even the manager. It's the dishwasher," McCrary began in his video. "The person nobody sees, the one in the back, hands in hot water all day long, moving faster than anyone realizes."
McCrary explained that when a dishwasher fails to show up to work, the whole restaurant is thrown into chaos. Plates are now stacked up high in the sink, the kitchen slows down, and the food starts coming out later because there's nothing to plate them on. The servers can't serve, and then customers end up getting frustrated.
Before you know it, the whole place essentially shuts down. And it's all because a "low-level position" isn't getting filled, yet a dishwasher is the one job most people look down on.
"That's the job people say, 'I'm too good for that.' Well, let me tell you something. There is no such thing as a small role, only people who don't understand the impact of it yet," McCrary asserted. Adding, "Because the truth is, the people holding everything together, they're usually not the loudest, not the most recognized, not even the ones getting the credit."
Being a dishwasher takes skills that most people don't realize.
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Dishwashers might be integral to the success of a restaurant, but that doesn't mean their role is coveted or even compensated in relation to its importance. Some might argue that compensation is tied to skill, and dishwashing is a role anyone can take on, whether they've done it before or not.
That's not actually the case, however. The role isn't equitable to what you might do at home after a dinner party. It's physically demanding in a way most people couldn't comprehend. You must work fast and efficiently, which means you have to be a fast thinker and planner, as well.
Anthony Bourdain, who started his restaurant career as a dishwasher, famously stated, “[Working as a dishwasher] was the first time I went home proud of myself after a day’s work, the first time I wanted the respect and worked for the respect of others. Dishwashing was, in a world of gray areas, and ambiguity, absolute: Dishes went in dirty. They came out clean. You either kept up the pace or you didn’t. Merit was immediately and measurably apparent.”
Most dishwashers are not paid a fair amount.
In data from the Economic Policy Institute, more than 50% of dishwashers, food preparation workers, and cooks live below twice the poverty line. Food workers in general are usually the lowest paid in the food service industry as well.
According to the U.S. Government Accountability Office, 11.3% of workers in food preparation and service were enrolled in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). These food workers were ranked third highest for SNAP enrollment rates out of all occupations. Despite the fact that food workers, including dishwashers, are the lowest paid, they still show up to do the job that no one else wants to do.
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"If you feel overlooked, if you feel like what you do doesn't matter, just remember some of the most important jobs in the world are the ones that nobody's clapping for," McCrary insisted.
There's truly no way a restaurant could function without someone in the back making sure there are always clean dishes. Even if no one ever stops to thank them for it, their role is truly what keeps the restaurant from plunging into complete and utter chaos.
Nia Tipton is a staff writer with a bachelor’s degree in creative writing and journalism who covers news and lifestyle topics that focus on psychology, relationships, and the human experience.
