Waiter

Waiters serve food and drinks to customers in restaurants and cafes, take orders and handle payments.

In this guide

What you'll do

Day-to-day tasks

As a waiter you could:

  • greet customers, give out menus and take food and drink orders
  • answer questions about the menu and give advice on ingredients
  • serve food and drinks, handle bill payments and clean tables
  • deal with any complaints and make sure customers are happy

Working environment

You could work at a restaurant, in a coffee shop or in a food outlet.

Your working environment may be hot, humid and noisy.

You may need to wear a uniform.

Career path and progression

With experience you could:

  • specialise in fine dining at formal events like weddings and banquets
  • progress to head waiter, restaurant supervisor or restaurant manager
  • move into kitchen management or stock purchasing

What it takes

Skills and knowledge

You'll need:

  • customer service skills
  • the ability to work well with others
  • the ability to accept criticism and work well under pressure
  • to be thorough and pay attention to detail
  • excellent verbal communication skills
  • a desire to help people
  • active listening skills
  • a good memory
  • to be able to carry out basic tasks on a computer or hand-held device

Most relevant

  • Food Preparation and Nutrition - Waiters need to understand ingredients, dishes, and dietary requirements so they can answer customer questions and give accurate advice about the menu. Knowledge of food safety, allergens, and how meals are prepared helps them do their job confidently and keep customers safe.

Also relevant

  • Modern Foreign Languages - Waiters in busy restaurants and tourist areas often serve customers who speak different languages. Being able to communicate in another language – even at a basic level – can make a real difference to the customer experience and is especially valued in fine dining.
  • Business - Waiters handle payments, manage tips, and contribute to the smooth running of a hospitality business. Understanding customer service principles and how restaurants operate as businesses is useful, especially for those who want to progress into supervisory or management roles.
  • Mathematics - Waiters regularly add up bills, process payments, calculate change, and split orders between customers. Quick and accurate mental arithmetic helps them work efficiently during busy service periods.
  • English Language - Waiters communicate constantly – greeting customers, explaining dishes, handling complaints, and passing orders to the kitchen clearly. Strong spoken communication skills help them build rapport with customers and ensure nothing gets lost during a hectic service.

How to become

You can get into this job through:

  • a college course
  • an apprenticeship
  • volunteering
  • applying directly

You could prepare for this job by doing a college course to get some of the skills you'll need.

Courses include:

  • introduction to employment in the hospitality industry
  • food and beverage service
  • professional food and beverage service

Entry requirements

Entry requirements for these courses vary.

More Information

You could apply to do a Food and Beverage Team Member Level 2 Intermediate Apprenticeship.

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

  • some GCSEs, usually including English and maths, or equivalent, for an intermediate apprenticeship

More Information

You could volunteer in a cafe run by a local community organisation or a charity like the Royal Voluntary Service to develop your skills.

You can also find more volunteering opportunities through Do IT.

You can apply for waiter jobs without experience as you'll get training on the job.

You might have an advantage if you've worked in customer service.

You can find out more about working in hospitality from Careerscope.

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