Wait Staff - Food Servers
The wait staff or waiters are the people responsible for serving the catered food to guests during an event. They are usually hired by an event planning or catering company and wear some type of uniform to distinguish themselves from others so that guests can find them easily. Wait staff can either serve guests from the buffet line by serving them a portion of food from each chaffing dish. The wait staff can also serve guests in a sit down dining capacity and are trained to do either exceptionally. The wait staff is a part of the overall service of the event and it is very important that they exude a willingness to help the guests. You want to make sure that your wait staff is full with servers who are:
- friendly
- competent
- attentive to detail
- knowledgeable about the food selection
It really adds a nice touch if everyone is on the same page about all aspects of the dining experience. A wait staff can also be used at action stations to assist the cook in combining each guests requested food items to make the line more efficient. The wait staff is really the backbone of the catering aspect. The chef could interact with the crowd but has his hands full with cooking and supervising those who are cooking. The wait staff acts as a liaison between the chef and the guests and should be able to answer as many questions as possible without having to ask the chef, especially if it is a large event.
The wait staff is also responsible for the cleanup of the event. In a sit down dining experience, the wait staff is responsible for monitoring each table to see when everyone is finished with that course so that they can bring another course. The wait staff should notice when the bread baskets need to be refilled or when the water glasses are getting empty.
At a large event waiters are responsible for a lot of tables and should make themselves available to assist the guest with what they need. The wait staff would also pour coffee, dressing and add pepper or parmesan cheese to ones dish when requested to do so. In a buffet experience, the wait staff would answer questions about the food and ask the chef about special requests and dietary needs. Perhaps, there is a pasta action station and you have a guest who will only consume whole wheat pasta and wants to know if there is any. The waiter would be the one inquire with the chef and reply back to the guests.
