Toronto Education

Think of your favourite restaurant. Whether it’s Italian, Japanese, Indian, or something else all together, cuisine is probably not the only thing that comes to mind. You most likely love the atmosphere, the presentation of the food, the décor of the restaurant and, of course, the delicious aromas wafting from the kitchen. Although it may all seem to come together effortlessly, behind each of these memorable aspects is a professional who attended a Hospitality Management Program and chose to become a manager in the Food and Beverage sector.

These restaurant operation managers have a variety of duties that make your dining experience memorable, hopefully for the right reasons. First and foremost, they collaborate with other managers to plan, direct and coordinate day-to-day operations — whether that involves dealing with customers and employees, financial record keeping, hiring and firing people, and more. These hospitality management professionals are also responsible for kitchen operations such as: ensuring that all materials used in food preparation and serving are working properly, menu management, ordering new refrigerators, cookers or blenders or ordering repair services; marketing the restaurant and devising promotional programs, as well as interacting with customers and vendors to ensure that their needs are met.

With the Canadian Tourism Human Resource Council (CTHRC) anticipating that the food and beverage services sector will grow to employ 1.95-million people by 2015, now is a great time to get your career started. Centennial College offers a two-year program called Hospitality Management — Food and Beverage Catering.

The extremely hands-on program sees students learning everything from Menu Management and design, and kitchen management to beverage knowledge and bartending. This occurs through courses such as Introduction to Hospitality Accounting (students learn to apply basic cost control, basic revenue management, work with theoretical financial situations and increasing their understanding of accounting principles), Quantity Food Production (introduced are the basic principles of cooking and development of skills necessary for small and large-scale food production), Menu Management and Design (examines the concept of the menu as a marketing tool, its design and layout and how to evaluate it’s effectiveness and profitability), and more.

However, these courses are not just taught in a classroom. In order for students to prepare for their field placement and for the workforce, they learn by doing. Centennial College boasts an on-campus student training restaurant, a hospitality management centre and lab practice facilities. Meanwhile, placement occurs twice a week in the last semester. It gives students a chance to apply what they’ve learned and acquire new knowledge.

To apply for the Hospitality Management – Food and Beverage program, Centennial College expects students to present at minimum an Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD) or equivalent or be 19 years of age or older. Compulsory English 12C or U skills assessment, or equivalent is also required. Possession of minimum admission requirements does not guarantee admission to the program.