General Manager - Restaurant

General Manager

Eastbay Lodge & Event Center – Lake Holcombe, Wisconsin
Full-time | On-site
$75,000–$90,000 annually, plus performance incentives

A Different Kind of General Manager Opportunity

Eastbay Lodge is conducting a deliberate search for the next leader of one of Northwest Wisconsin’s most unique hospitality operations.

Our current General Manager has helped lead Eastbay through tremendous growth and will be advancing into another opportunity within our family of companies. We are not filling an unexpectedly empty chair. We are thoughtfully selecting the person who can help lead Eastbay into its next chapter.

Eastbay is much more than a lakeside restaurant. We operate a Wisconsin supper club, high-volume sports bar, casual dining restaurant, seasonal tiki bar, campground and full-scale event center. We host weddings, corporate gatherings, holiday celebrations, community events, live music and national entertainment acts.

Our summer season is a fast-moving, high-volume whirlwind. During the off-season, we pivot toward supper club dining, local patrons, private events and more intimate guest experiences.

In many ways, Eastbay operates as two different businesses—and both must be led exceptionally well.

The Opportunity

We need someone who can run Eastbay as a business—not simply manage shifts, create schedules or react to the problems of the day.

Our General Manager must think like an owner and understand how staffing, purchasing, pricing, inventory, process and guest service affect the financial health of the business.

The right person will be trusted with real authority and will accept real accountability for the results.

Key responsibilities include:

• Leading Eastbay’s restaurant, bar, event, entertainment and campground operations.
• Recruiting, developing, coaching and retaining a strong management and hourly team.
• Building a culture of professionalism, urgency, accountability and mutual respect.
• Managing labor, scheduling, purchasing, inventory and controllable expenses.
• Actively managing food cost, beverage cost, operating margins and profitability.
• Using financial statements, budgets, forecasts and operating metrics to make decisions.
• Establishing clear processes and ensuring consistent execution.
• Overseeing guest-service standards throughout the property.
• Planning for significant seasonal changes in staffing, volume and operating needs.
• Growing revenue through programming, events, pricing, service and business development.
• Communicating clearly with ownership about results, challenges, opportunities and action plans.

What Leadership Means at Eastbay

This is not a position for someone who wants to lead exclusively from an office.

Our General Manager must understand the operation from front to back and be willing to work alongside the people they lead. A closing shift cannot scare you. Neither can helping clear a table, pouring a drink, supporting the kitchen or cleaning a restroom.

At Eastbay, every job becomes your job when the team or guest experience requires it.

At the same time, we expect our General Manager to build effective systems, develop capable people and create accountability—not personally carry the entire operation.

What We Are Looking For

We are not hiring based on an arbitrary number of years in the industry. We are hiring based on demonstrated ability.

Strong candidates will bring:

• Leadership experience in a restaurant, bar, resort, event venue or similarly demanding hospitality operation.
• The ability to think like an owner and make decisions based on the long-term health of the business.
• Working knowledge of labor management, scheduling, inventory, food cost, beverage cost and operating margins.
• Experience reading financial information and turning it into action.
• A track record of improving financial performance, operational consistency, guest experience or team effectiveness.
• The confidence to make independent decisions while remaining aligned with ownership’s philosophy and standards.
• Experience recruiting, coaching and holding employees and managers accountable.
• Strong judgment, direct communication skills and consistent follow-through.
• High personal energy, emotional maturity and the humility to work alongside the team.
• Availability to work evenings, weekends and holidays when the operation requires leadership.

Experience with multiple food-and-beverage concepts, seasonal operations, events or entertainment is strongly preferred.

A degree is not required. Proven ability, measurable results, leadership character and business judgment matter more to us than credentials or years alone.

Compensation and Benefits

Eastbay Lodge offers:

• Base salary of $75,000–$90,000, based on experience and demonstrated ability.
• Performance-based incentive compensation.
• Health insurance.
• Paid time off.
• Meaningful authority and support from engaged ownership.
• Long-term professional growth opportunities.

For an exceptional leader who produces results, demonstrates the right character and commits to Eastbay for the long term, ownership is willing to explore opportunities extending beyond traditional employment, potentially including a future ownership pathway.

How to Apply

Apply through Indeed and include a current résumé.

Qualified candidates should be prepared to discuss:

• The most complex hospitality operation they have helped lead.
• Their experience managing labor, inventory, costs and financial performance.
• A measurable operational or financial improvement they personally created.
• Why an operation as diverse and seasonal as Eastbay Lodge interests them.

Applications and conversations will be handled professionally and confidentially.

We want the person whose current employer would fight to keep them.

If you are an experienced operator who still has the energy to build, the confidence to make decisions and the humility to work alongside your team, we would like to hear from you.

Eastbay Lodge has already become something incredibly special. Now we are looking for the leader who can help us write what comes next.

Eastbay Lodge is an equal opportunity employer.

Pay: $70,000.00 - $100,000.00 per year

Benefits:

• Dental insurance
• Employee discount
• Health insurance
• Paid time off
• Vision insurance

Work Location: In person