Manager - Anonymous employee Doherty Enterprises Employee Review

3.0
20 Sept 2016
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

The owner of the company is great and really values his people. The atmosphere is laid back and there is a lot of focus on teamwork. The home office staff is friendly and helpful.

Cons

The quality of life is terrible. Management schedules are posted monthly, but there is very little regularity with scheduled shifts. Work week is based on 50 hours, no overtime pay for management. Restaurants are open all holidays except Christmas and Thanksgiving, no extra pay for working holidays. Bonuses offered to management but goals are often hard to achieve.

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Doherty Enterprises Response
9y
Thanks so much for stopping by and writing a review. So glad you feel the environment is a positive! Not sure which brand you are speaking to but I thought I would try to explain why we cannot offer "regular" type schedules. We work on a rotating schedule so that we can rotate weekends off and the same manager doesn't get the closing shift on Fri/Sat or Sundays. Also for development purposes, to be able to have a manager observe inventory process may warrant an opening shift on a Tuesday/Wednesday, so if it was a regulated schedule it would be difficult for a manager to learn new areas of the restaurant for their continued growth. We are actually one of the few restaurant groups these days that remain closed on Thanksgiving and Christmas. We are always looking at Bonus structure and will adjust accordingly. Thanks so much for your feedback, we much appreciate it.

Explore other reviews about Doherty Enterprises

5.0
14 Nov 2025
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

I’m starting my fifth week of training and so far I can tell that Applebee’s is really a fun place to work for. Great manager team and noticed that many of the employees have a long tenure with the company.

Cons

No cons so far, I’m very happy with what I have been through. Great place to work!

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Doherty Enterprises Response
5mo
Thank you for sharing your experience. We’re glad to hear your training has been positive and that you’re enjoying the team and culture at Applebee’s. We take pride in developing our leaders and fostering long-term careers, and it’s great to know that’s coming through early in your journey. We appreciate the recommendation and look forward to your continued growth with Doherty Enterprises.
3.0
16 Dec 2025
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

I entered this job with five years experience already as a server, though with zero bar knowledge. The five day, planned and structured training modules and shadowing are helpful for those not familiar with restaurant work or certain aspects of it (such as I was). Frequent sales or other campaign contests made the shift fun and earned me some extra cash from time to time. I worked with many lively, friendly, funny, and otherwise fun people to be around.

Cons

While working with many people that were joys to be around, management's overall lack of conflict resolution left much to be desired when issues arose. Hours also varied in extremes between understaffing and present employees not getting help they need on the floor or behind the line and overstaffing when brining back students during the holidays/summer and giving a position to whoever walked in the door. The latter which led to loyal team-members seeking out secondary or other all together roles elsewhere.

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Doherty Enterprises Response
5mo
Thank you for taking the time to share your experience. We’re glad to hear you found value in our training program and enjoyed working with your teammates—creating a positive, engaging environment is important to us. We also appreciate your candid feedback regarding staffing balance especially during peak periods. Your input is appreciated, and we wish you continued success in your career.
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