Talented waiter takes on new role as Southsea restaurant Becketts opens for the first time in months

After starting out his hospitality career as a waiter, Conor as worked his way up the ladder at a Southsea restaurant.

He started at Becketts in Bellevue Terrace, Southsea as a front of house waiter in 2018, working there for eight months before moving to Michelin Plate restaurant, Restaurant 27 in Portsmouth.

After building up his confidence and experience and working to a Michelin standard, he returned to Becketts and has since received two promotions in the last year.

Conor, 24, hopes to bring a Michelin standard of service to Becketts and is implementing new options, such as wine pairings, to the restaurant to provide an even better service.

The restaurant has just received the Most Vibrant Restaurant award from the Restaurant and Bar awards 2021 by LuxLife Magazine – the second Restaurant and Bar award it has won in 18 months.

Conor is hoping to add to the restaurant’s awards portfolio.

He said: ‘Becketts has a great reputation as it is, but I want to ensure we’re constantly increasing the standard and raising the bar higher and higher to make us the best restaurant in the city. We want to become better known for what we do nationally and not just in Southsea.’

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Conor was promoted from waiter to duty manager after the first lockdown and spent the second lockdown in training for his second promotion and building his confidence, before being promoted to assistant manager in April.

He said: ‘It feels great to have been able to work my way up, especially over lockdown and I’m really excited to get back to working properly.

‘I want to show people that you can build your way up and if anyone wants to climb the ladder, then keep going, keep working hard, learn from people you look up to, take feedback on board and ensure you’re constantly improving. Most importantly, have the belief in yourself that you can do it. That goes for all industries and not just hospitality. You can work your way up if you put the work in – you just have to want it enough.’

He is responsible for ordering supplies, managing finances, creating the rotas and managing the team.

Becketts is set to reopen for dine-in today.

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

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