The Responsibilities of Waitstaff at a Party

The waitstaff have multiple responsibilities at a party.

As a member of a team of waiting staff, or even as a single waitstaff, you will be required to keep customers happy and well served. There are also other groups that need to be satisfied with your skills. These include people such as the hosts, management and catering staff. The duties can be varied and quite extensive.

Basic Duties in a Restaurant

Waitstaff in any restaurant, regardless of its relative reputation, should have a good understanding of food generally and particularly about each item on the menu. When guests arrive for a party, you should be able to answer any questions regarding specific wishes that they may express and be able to accurately transmit this information to the catering staff. You should greet the guests when they arrive at a table that you are serving, help them with their preferred seating arrangement, and introduce them to the menu. During the course of their stay, always be discreet and watchful for a signal that a guest requires attention.

Silver Service - Preliminaries

If you are waitstaff at a party in a restaurant, you may be skilled in silver service. This is considered to provide a better, more personal and distinguished service than the average that customers might reasonably expect. You should engage in light and polite conversation with the guests if they are conducive to it and conduct services such as laying out warm plates and serving the guests at the table from a platter.

Silver Service - Serving

Remembering that each guest will require personal attention and time, without giving the appearance of rushing, is of the essence. This can be especially difficult if you are serving larger tables with, for example, 10 to 12 guests. As part of your silver service training, you will have learned about the Gueridon variation. This entails bringing a trolley to the table and serving the food to the plates from it.

Cocktail Parties

A cocktail party typically involves drinks and buffet food. Ensure that the food is properly displayed in a manner that reflects the order in which guests are likely to choose it. Also ensure that there are sufficient plates and utensils for the number of anticipated guests. During the party, your main function will be to serve drinks in an informal setting. While you would not be expected to take any personal verbal or physical abuse from the guests, you should take account of the fact that some may become increasingly inebriated during the party. Polite discretion is the best manner to adopt as the function develops.

References

• Waiter Training Manual Samples: Restaurant Training Manuals
• Theta: Tourism, Hospitality & Sport Education & Training: Provide a Silver Service