Dining out and other household members at work

[oshizu]

I vaguely remember that when one sim opened the retail store, the job performance of other household members currently at work wouldn't increase as quickly as usual.
It this also the case with the new Dining Out restaurants?

Would it be best to visit a restaurant my sim manages only when no one else in the household is at work?
Also, what about visiting a restaurant? Does visiting a restaurant lot to eat or manage rob my working sims of their mood boosts?

I know I could test all my questions myself, but I imagine that some forum members have tested these scenarios already.

[Playalot]

I didn't really spend much time managing a restaurant with a full household but imagining how it might work in an ID I would only open the restaurant when my other sims were at work. I posted a few tips that might be relevant and/or helpful here.

Not really about the work mood boost issue as that really isn't something that should occur and yet we still don't have a bug fix for that, it's also rather random which save files it is going to turn up in.

[CuriousSim]

Somewhat related, I was wondering if it is possible for Sims to apply for a job at the restaurant? I started a new game, and placed the default restaurant. When I visited it, Eliza Pancakes was working there. Can other households apply? So far, I have allowed restaurants to operate autonomously. I haven't taken ownership of one, yet. So far, I'm pretty pleased with the expansion. I like customizing it, without having to manage it.

[Playalot]

I like visiting the lots as NPC run venues a lot too. Unfortunately the ability for your own sims to have a job in a restaurant is not possible. Even when you own a restaurant your sim is the manager and hires other non-played sims for the chef, waiters and host.

[oshizu]

I like visiting the lots as NPC run venues a lot too. Unfortunately the ability for your own sims to have a job in a restaurant is not possible. Even when you own a restaurant your sim is the manager and hires other non-played sims for the chef, waiters and host.

@Playalot
Thank you for replying to my original questions. I have a new one. 

What really scares me about the fact that we can only hire homeless sims (says I who have never actually run a restaurant yet) is that there's always the fear that our employees could get culled.
And if you put employees in a house so they won't get culled, you can't hire them.
Or is it not "homeless sims" but "unplayed sims" who can be hired?

[Playalot]

Hire your staff first then place them into a household, just make sure you don't play them after they are hired as this causes them to lose their jobs.  So yes, it's unplayed sims that can only be hired.

[oshizu]

Hire your staff first then place them into a household, just make sure you don't play them after they are hired as this causes them to lose their jobs.  So yes, it's unplayed sims that can only be hired.

Ahhhh, thank you so much! That makes sense now.

[CuriousSim]

So, Eliza Pancakes would likely lose her job, if I either bought the restaurant or managed her household?

[Playalot]

So, Eliza Pancakes would likely lose her job, if I either bought the restaurant or managed her household?

She would definitely lose her job if you played her. And I am not sure if she would appear in the hiring menu if your sim bought the restaurant, she may do but she wouldn't actually retain her NPC role as one of the first things you have to do as a manger is hire staff.

I had Eric SKL as a waiter in one of my NPC run restaurants and was pretty keen to keep him but I couldn't get him to appear in the hiring menu without deleting a lot of townies which I didn't want to do as I had just given all my townies make-overs just before Dine Out was released!

[CuriousSim]

It's kinda cool to have an official Pancake House, in the Sims. She started out as the hostess, then Windows Update ruined that game. (unsaved reboot) Now, she is the Chef. I gotta hope that her performance stays high, and she's never rotated out.