How to Effectively Serve a Table in a Restaurant
Have you ever gone to restaurant to sit down and relax for a nice meal, only to leave in frustration because the server had provide terrible service? Serving tables can be difficult if I do not complete stages of greeting, taking orders, preparation, delivering service, and presenting the bill. I keep these stages in a structured order and pay attention to what I am doing. As a result, my customers leave happy and I feel proud of the work I did. The following process is what I do consistently when serving a table.
The first stage involves greeting the customer. I greet the customer with a smile and tell them my name. I hand them menus and tell them the daily specials. I ask them if they would like anything to drink right away and list the drinks available if asked. I write down the order and tell them that I will get the drinks right away. I go to the bar and give the bartender the drink order. Then I go to the computer and start a bill for my customers. When I am done with that, I get the drinks from the bar and deliver them to the table.
The second stage is to take the customer’s food order. I ask if they are ready to place the order, writing down the order as they speak and gathering the menus as customers finish with their request. I repeat back the order when it is finished. This ensures that I have written everything correctly before I proceed with the third stage, preparing the order.
When the customer confirms the order sounds right, I tell them that I will have it prepared right away. I head to the kitchen and give the cooks my order. If the order has salad or soup requests, I prepare them myself at the designated station. I get the soup and salad ready for delivery on a serving tray. I gather wrapped silverware and breadbaskets, placing them on the tray with the soup and salad. I am now ready to begin the fourth stage.
The fourth stage I go through is the delivery of the meal. I...