Waitress / Waiter Interview
Questions & Answers

Waitress/Waiter Job Description & Person Specification

Although the job of a waitress/waiter does not require any technical abilities, you will need a number of very important attributes and qualities in order to perform the role to the required standard. A restaurant, café, pub or eatery relies on its customers leaving positive reviews on TripAdvisor, Google My Business, Booking.com and TrustPilot.com, and the only way they will achieve this is by providing two important things: great food and great service. There are many eating establishments that offer great food, but the overall experience is let down by poor service. During your waitress/waiter interview, make sure you focus on demonstrating the following competencies and attributes.

• EXCEPTIONAL CUSTOMER SERVICE AND CARE – As a waitress/waiter, you have to provide great service. This includes welcoming guests, sitting them down quickly, taking drinks orders, taking food orders and tending to their needs in a fast and efficient manner. Guests or visitors who are left for long periods of time with service will leave negative reviews.
• ATTENTION TO DETAIL – How many times have you ordered food or drinks only for the wrong item to be delivered? A competent waitress/waiter will take the order and repeat it back to the customers, just to confirm exactly what has been ordered.
• NUMERICAL SKILLS – As a waitress/waiter you will need basic addition and subtraction skills. Although you will most probably take payments via card, most people still enjoy paying for items using cash, and therefore basic arithmetic skills are needed within this role.
• A POSITIVE AND HAPPY ATTITUDE – When dealing with guests and visitors, it is very important to be happy, smiley and positive. A positive attitude and approach will contribute positively to guests’ overall experiences at the restaurant, pub or eatery, and it can also significantly increase your tips, too!
• DEALING WITH COMPLAINTS – There will be times when you need to deal with customer complaints. The important thing to remember, is to deal with them quickly, efficiently and in line with your employers’ guidelines.
• FLEXIBILITY – You will need to work unsociable hours as a waitress/waiter, and this can also mean working in the evenings and weekends. You are far more likely to be hired in this role if you can dedicate the required hours and are reliable and trustworthy.

If you would like to drastically increase your chances of passing your waitress/waiter interview, we strongly recommend you download a copy of our Waitress/Waiter Interview Questions and Answers guide!