Restaurant wait staff and hosts and hostesses ensure dining customers have a satisfying experience. Waiters and waitresses, also called servers, take orders and serve food and beverages to customers in dining establishments. Restaurant hosts and hostesses greet customers and manage reservations and waiting lists. Servers may meet with supervisors to learn details about the menu and discuss food safety concerns. When serving alcohol, servers check customers’ identification to verify their age. In casual-dining restaurants, fast, efficient, courteous service is the priority, while in fine-dining establishments, servers and host staff emphasize personal, attentive treatment at a more leisurely pace. Some servers work in places other than restaurants. They may deliver meals to hotel or hospital rooms or even bring orders to customers in parked cars. Wait staff and hosts and hostesses are on their feet most of the time, and may carry heavy trays and hot plates. Even during fast-paced times, they must ensure that customers receive prompt service. Part-time work is very common, often with morning or evening shifts, including weekends and holidays. Some establishments are only open seasonally. In some restaurants, host staff are required to wear formal attire, and wait staff wear uniforms. Wait staff typically learn through on-the-job training with experienced servers, and in most cases, there are no specific education or experience requirements. Some states require safety training for staff who handle food.
What they do:
Serve food to individuals outside of a restaurant environment, such as in hotel rooms, hospital rooms, residential care facilities, or cars.
On the job, you would:
Place food servings on plates or trays according to orders or instructions.
Clean or sterilize dishes, kitchen utensils, equipment, or facilities.
Monitor food distribution, ensuring that meals are delivered to the correct recipients and that guidelines, such as those for special diets, are followed.
Arts and Humanities
English language
Business
customer service
Manufactured or Agricultural Goods
food production
Basic Skills
listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions
talking to others
Social
looking for ways to help people
Verbal
listen and understand what people say
communicate by speaking
Hand and Finger Use
hold or move items with your hands
People interested in this work like activities that include helping people, teaching, and talking.
They do well at jobs that need:
Attention to Detail
Self Control
Stress Tolerance
Dependability
Integrity
Adaptability/Flexibility
You might use software like this on the job:
Office suite software
Microsoft Office software
Data base user interface and query software
CBORD Nutrition Service Suite
Picis CareSuite
Enterprise resource planning ERP software
Capital Codeworks MenuMax
high school diploma/GED or no high school diploma/GED usually needed
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