what is a food service worker?

Food service includes all activities from food preparation to serving meals to customers. As a food service worker, you are responsible for preparing meals, whether it's in a cafe or a restaurant. Your duties include taking orders and preparing and serving the food to customers.

Your responsibilities change depending on your working environment. For instance, working in a cafe-style restaurant involves serving the general public while, in schools, your customers are students. Some food service workers also serve food in hospitals, delivering the food items to various wards.

The job involves preparing different kinds of food, including salads, beverages, and, hot and cold foods for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. You also perform cashiering services and provide customers with relevant product information. That means you greet customers as they enter the restaurant and answer any questions about the menu items.

As a food service worker, you work in a fast-paced environment requiring multitasking skills and excellent customer service abilities to keep the customers happy. Attentiveness to detail is also crucial in food preparation since it ensures you are preparing the food items according to the recommended recipes and meet the desired health and safety standards.

Would working as a food service worker suit your customer service skills and multitasking abilities? Then read on to find out what competencies and qualifications you need to thrive in a food service worker role.

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average food service worker salary

According to the BLS, the average food service worker salary in the United States is $28,130. Educational and healthcare services tend to pay the highest wages for food service workers. In some positions, you earn tips in addition to your hourly wage. However, some employers combine part or all of their workers' tips and distribute them evenly among the qualifying workers. Some employers include meals, but others deduct it from your pay.

Wondering what you can earn as a food service worker? Find out immediately with the Randstad salary checker! You can quickly and easily see what the average salary of a food service worker is.

Womale bartender pouring a glass of orange juice.
Womale bartender pouring a glass of orange juice.
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types of food service workers

Some of the common types of food service workers include:

  • hospital food service workers: As a hospital food service worker, you prepare meals and serve them to patients, employees, and visitors. You also clean the kitchen equipment and dishes after meals. You stock the food supplies in hospitals and ensure patients eat healthy food.
  • hosts or hostesses: These food service workers welcome guests and manage the reservation desks at the front of the restaurant. Your job is to greet guests, lead them to their tables, and provide menus.
  • waiters or waitresses: You assign tables to guests and hand out menus. However, your primary role is to take customers' orders to the kitchen and serve food and drinks. You serve the meals to guests and clean their tables when they leave.
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working as a food service worker

As a food service worker, you assist in preparing meals and serving them to customers. Below are more responsibilities and the types of places you are likely to work:

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food service worker skills and education

Most food service worker positions don't require a formal education. A high school diploma or an equivalent is usually enough. Some students who are still in high school can also find a job as a food service worker. You typically receive short-term on-the-job training to learn the business's processes for serving food. In most states, you need to be at least 18 years old to serve alcoholic beverages even if you're working at a restaurant instead of a bar.

skills and competencies

  • customer service: You interact with customers as a food service worker, so it's essential to develop customer service skills. Good customer service skills help you have positive experiences and increase your chances of advancing to a higher position. A business typically loses customers if customers aren't happy with the quality of the service. Thus, employers look for employees who have good customer service skills. Working on your emotional intelligence, patience, and self-control help you succeed in this role.
  • communication: Clear communication is necessary for ensuring that customers receive the correct orders and preventing long waits. It's not just how you phrase sentences that matters but also your pronunciation. If people often have trouble understanding what you're saying, you may want to improve your pronunciation through training videos.
  • physical stamina: You usually stand on your feet all day as a food service worker. Other physical tasks include cleaning, preparing food, carrying food, and collecting trays and dishes. Regular exercise and stretching can prepare you for the physical demands of this job. Wearing the right shoes for being on your feet all day also helps with your comfort at work.
male preparing food in the kitchen
male preparing food in the kitchen
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FAQs about working as a food service worker

Here, you will find answers to the most frequently asked questions about food service workers.

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