Is Restaurant Associates a good company to work for?

Restaurant Associates has an overall rating of 3.9 out of 5, based on over 711 reviews left anonymously by employees. This rating has decreased by 11% over the last 12 months. 69% of employees would recommend working at Restaurant Associates to a friend and 72% have a positive outlook for the business. The best reviews about Restaurant Associates have been left by employees working as General Manager , Executive Chef and Assistant General Manager .

Does Restaurant Associates pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, Restaurant Associates employees rate their compensation and benefits as 3.7 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at Restaurant Associates. This rating has decreased by 14% over the last 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at Restaurant Associates?

69% of Restaurant Associates employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated Restaurant Associates 3.8 out of 5 for work life balance, 3.8 for culture and values and 3.9 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at Restaurant Associates?

Executive Chef (35) , General Manager (34) , Butler (25) , Cook (21) , Director (20) , Manager (19) , Cafe Manager (18) , Sous Chef (18) , Catering Manager (17) , Line Cook (13) , Chef (12) , Assistant General Manager (11) , Food Service Director (8) , Regional Director of Operations (8) , Catering Attendant (7)

What are the pros of working at Restaurant Associates according to real employee reviews?

"Good benefits when in union unit" ((in 64 reviews)); "Great people to work with" ((in 39 reviews)); "The pay is good and reliable." ((in 36 reviews)); "Great leadership and systems in place to succeed." ((in 20 reviews)); "Lots of overtime, great team to work with" ((in 10 reviews))

What are the cons of working at Restaurant Associates according to real employee reviews?

"Poor management; corner" ((in 33 reviews)); "Managers are horrible, they look for a reason to fire you before you get into the union" ((in 20 reviews)); "Long hours and you pay for parking" ((in 14 reviews)); "Little to no work life balance" ((in 13 reviews)); "Staff are being payed bare minimum and often work long hours above average 9" ((in 10 reviews))

What are employees saying about Restaurant Associates layoffs in 2026?

Explore Glassdoor’s employee reviews to understand what current and former employees are saying about Restaurant Associates layoffs and their outlook for job security at Restaurant Associates in 2026.

What Restaurant Associates locations have received the highest employee ratings?

Chicago , Atlanta , McLean , Jersey City , Kennett Square , New York , Cambridge , Boston , Philadelphia , Washington

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Restaurant Associates

Part of Compass Group USA

Restaurant Associates reviews

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3.9

69% would recommend to a friend

(682 total reviews)

Ed Brown

72% approve of CEO

72% positive business outlook

Ratings by category

4.1

Diversity & inclusion

3.9

Career opportunities

3.8

Culture & values

3.8

Work/Life balance

3.7

Compensation and benefits

3.4

Senior management

Restaurant Associates has an employee rating of 3.9 out of 5 stars, based on 682 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The Restaurant Associates employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Restaurants & Food Service industry (3.7 stars).

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

Sexual orientation

Disability

Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

Reviews by job title

682 reviews

2.0

Aug 4, 2016

DO NOT WORK HERE

Sous chef

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

The only benefit to this company is the M-F schedule and that doesn't always apply either.

Cons

Horrible pay scale. Abuse of management to work on a huge scale compared to pay. Average benefits package. The absolute worst corporate leaders and upper management that do not care about you until they need you for something. Stay away.

Restaurant Associates Response

Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts and experience about RA. We care very deeply for our associates and always looking for ways to improve. If you have any further feedback please email us info@restaurantassociates.com

5.0

Feb 6, 2015

Restaurant Associates review

Executive chef

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Great benefits for the restaurant industry. Good work life balance with an abundance of jobs in the more traditional Mon-Fri daytime scenario. Parent company is Compass group which offers the ability to move to other businesses within the same umbrella in other parts of the country.

Cons

Company is heavily focused in Business and Industry/Museums serving high volume cafe style food. We do it very well but leaves some chefs a yearning to go back into the fine dining side of the industry where food quality and presentation is king.

Restaurant Associates Response

We are so excited that you have chosen Restaurant Associates and took the time to let us know that your 8 years experience has been so positive. We are especially happy to hear of your confidence in the careers options and life style balance you have been able to create. At RA food is our inspiration; we continue to be passionate around creating enthusiasm and excitement in providing restaurant inspired food ; I would encourage you to reach out to provide further feedback , please email us info@restaurantassociates.com

2.0

Dec 3, 2010

Grass is not greener at Restaurant Associates

Manager

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Local hard working staff you work with. Benefits are okay.

Cons

Terrible work / life balance. Senior management expects blood from their managers and 12 hour days are the norm. Saturday meetings are not unusual. Managers are expendable and are measured by how much can be saved by eliminating their positions. There is little recognition and morale is low. Systems are antiquated.

Viewing 1 - 3 of 682 Reviews

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Jobs at Restaurant Associates

HOST/HOSTESS (PART TIME)

DISHWASHER (PART TIME)

HOST/HOSTESS (FULL TIME)

DISHWASHER (FULL TIME)

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DO NOT WORK HERE

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Grass is not greener at Restaurant Associates

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