The maître d’hôtel (pronounced: [mɛːtʁ dotɛl]; often shortened to maître d’) in the original French language is literally the "master of the hotel". In a suitably staffed restaurant or hotel, it is the person in charge of assigning customers to tables and dividing the dining area into areas of responsibility for the various servers on duty. The plural form is "maîtres d'hôtel" or "maîtres d" if shortened. The maître d'hôtel may also be the person who receives and records reservations for dining, as well as dealing with any customer complaints. It is also their duty to make sure that all the servers and waitstaff are completing their tasks in an efficient manner. In small restaurants, the post might also be known as the headwaiter or host. This term originated from medieval courts, where the holder was an important courtier, like Olivier de la Marche in 15th century Burgundy.
In large organizations such as hotels or cruise ships where restaurants are more frequent, the maître d'hôtel is often responsible for the overall dining experience including room service and buffet, and customer satisfaction, while the headwaiters or supervisors are responsible for the specific restaurant or dining room they work in.
Historically, maîtres d'hôtel, such as Oscar Tschirky of the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in Manhattan, New York, would also play a part in the preparation of food, boning fish and mixing salads.[1]
In the United States, the position may be a part of the role of a manager or supervisor in charge of the "front of the house" operations.