What does a waiter do?

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

How do you become a waiter?

You can get into this job through a college course, an apprenticeship and volunteering.

How much does a waiter earn?

Starter salaries are around £17,000 a year, rising to about £27,000 with experience.

How many hours does a waiter work?

Typically 30 to 42 hours a week.

Waiter

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

Also known as: Waiting staff, server

Starter salary£17,000 a year
Experienced£27,000 a year
Typical hours30 to 42 a week

What you'll do

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.

Skills and knowledge you'll need

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

How to become a waiter

You can get into this job through:

a college course
an apprenticeship
volunteering
applying directly

College

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.

Apprenticeship

You could apply to do a Catering and Hospitality Level 2 Foundation Apprenticeship, or Food and Beverage Team Member Level 2 Intermediate Apprenticeship.

Volunteering

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 .

Direct application

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.

Foundation apprenticeship

You can apply for a foundation apprenticeship if you're aged 16 to 21.

If you're aged 22 to 24, you can apply if you:

have an education, health and care (EHC) plan
are in care or have been in care
are in prison or have been in prison

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

no specific qualifications or experience to apply for a foundation apprenticeship
some GCSEs, usually including English and maths, or equivalent, for an intermediate apprenticeship

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

Career tips

Advertised pay rates are often listed as full-time equivalent (FTE). Actual pay will depend on the number of hours worked.

Guides for this industry

Hospitality & Catering: pay, interviews and getting started →

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