Waiter/Waitress Job Description Template
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What is Waiter/Waitress?
A waiter/waitress, sometimes known as a server, works in the catering or restaurant business. Waiting staff ensure customers have a great time when dining by serving them from start to finish during their time in a restaurant. They have good knowledge of food and beverages and need strong communication skills to relay information between diners and the kitchen.
Waiter/Waitress Job Description Template
We are looking for a waiter/waitress to join our friendly team, serving lunch and dinner at Sample Company. If you’’re looking to develop your skills and work within a passionate team, then we would love to hear from you! At Sample Company we are committed to providing excellent customer service to our guests, and a vibrant and supportive environment for our team members. Ideally, we look for candidates with hospitality experience however having a great attitude is most important to us. If you’’re a people person and enthusiastic to learn, then we can teach you everything you’’ll need to know during training. Please get in touch if you feel you have the skills and ambition we are looking for!
Duties and Responsibilities
- Create a warm environment by welcoming customers to the restaurant
- Anticipate guests’’ needs by regularly checking and promptly clearing your tables.
- Use your excellent knowledge of our menu to give customers recommendations
- Take orders and allergen requirements, and relay information accurately to the kitchen
- Be a team player and support your colleagues during busy periods with a positive attitude
- Handle transactions and process payments using the POS system
Skills and qualifications
- Understanding of high standards of customer service
- Excellent communication and interpersonal skills
- Ability to multi-task and work well under pressure
- Basic numeracy skills
- Enthusiastic team player
Additional position options
- Tips shared amongst the team
- Meals included during your shifts
- Staff discounts at any of our restaurants
- 2 consecutive days off per week
Do you need to learn more about the Waiter/Waitress position?
Duties and Responsibilities
The primary role of a waiter is to make sure that every customer has a pleasant dining experience. A waiter's primary responsibility is to serve guests, so they must be able to greet them warmly, hand them menus, and recommend the best dishes on the menu. They are also responsible for clearing plates and handling payments at the end of a meal. Here’’s an extended list of responsibilities for waiting staff:
- Meeting and assisting customers as they take their seats and providing menus
- Taking orders from diners and passing them on to the kitchen
- Bringing food to the guests' tables, ensuring all dishes are accurate
- Making sure that clients are happy, handing out invoices, and conducting the payment process
- Keeping up to date with menu changes and specials
- Setting up spaces before service, cleaning and restocking them and preparing the restaurant for the following day’’s service
- Take precise food and drink orders using POS software
- Verify the age of your customers to ensure they are of legal drinking age.
- Adhering to Health and Safety policies, Food Handling & Hygiene standards, and Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) Regulations
Skills and qualifications
The ability to work under pressure, remain calm and collected, and communicate effectively are all important skills for a waiter to have. The following are some of the additional skills and qualities for a Waiter/Waitress position:
- Excellent written and oral communication abilities
- Close attention to detail in a fast-paced environment
- Good level of strength and stamina
- Excellent customer service and interpersonal skills
- Previous experience in the hospitality industry preferred
- Training and experience using ordering and POS systems
- Basic numeracy skills
- Putting the needs of the client first and being patient with them
- Good time management and ability to multitask
- Food safety certification is preferred.
Experience requirements
There are no specific experience requirements to become a Waiter/Waitress.
Education requirements
Waiters are often not required to have a certain level of schooling or qualifications. However, all waiting staff should attain the relevant health and safety, and alcohol regulatory certification in their area.
FAQ
Both waiting staff and food runners serve food, however, their responsibilities vary depending on their level of seniority. Waiters and waitresses, for instance, have higher status than food runners because of the nature of the work they do. They interact with customers face-to-face, take orders, check on tables and handle payments. Food Runners, on the other hand, are integral members of the Front of House team who work hand-in-hand with waiting staff to ensure that all orders are properly transported from the kitchen to the dining area.
Waiters and waitresses often report to work early on a daily basis. They have a pre-shift meeting to discuss any adjustments with the rest of the front of house team. Waiters and waitresses collect orders and relay those requests to the kitchen during service. Waiters and waitresses are responsible for keeping tabs on the processing of orders, as well as delivering meals to customers' tables. They will also check in with customers periodically to make sure they are enjoying their food. Guests are billed and receipts are issued after service is complete. Throughout the course of service, waiters and waitresses also assist runners by clearing away used glasses and plates.
Great waiters are able to provide a high level of customer service. It’’s also important that a waiter or waitress is able to juggle priorities and maintain composure during fast paced service. This helps waiters and waitresses provide consistent, on-time service, which is especially crucial during busy periods. Waiters and waitresses need to have good physical stamina as they spend most of their time on their feet, handling trays going to and from the kitchen.
When customers have comments or complaints about their dining experience, waiting staff will usually relay this information to the restaurant's General Manager for their help to resolve the issue.