 The “how to” series continues this week with a lesson on how to fold a napkin.  I will start with the standard triangle “stand up†fold and then the more interesting “pouch†fold. This may be very remedial to some, but most restaurants in America still use the standard “roll up.â€Â For the benefit of […]
Tag Archives | Waiter
How to Carry Three Plates
 In continuing the “how to†series on this blog, we are turning from glasses to how to carry three plates. Carrying three plates in one hand is one of the first tricks many servers are required to learn. You can always spot a new server as they carefully walk through the dining room with two […]
How To Carry Three Glasses In One Hand
One of the first serving tricks that most servers learn is how to carry two glasses in one hand. This is a basic skill of serving and will save many unnecessary trips if you work in a restaurant that discourages trays. The shortcoming is that you are still limited to carrying three glasses at once. […]
Skill Focus: Selling As A Server
Of all of the concepts I have introduced on this blog and in my book, this week’s sales focus deals with the topic that I feel most strongly about. This is the one area I am most disappointed with how it is addressed by the restaurant industry. So many restaurant companies now refer to their […]
Skills Focus: Building And Maintaining Rapport
Learning how to build and maintain rapport with your guests A friend recently sent me a message on Facebook before his shift. He is fairly new to the serving game, but from what I can tell he is improving quickly. He told me he was heading into a shift and needed to make good money.He’s […]
About The Author
David Hayden was born and raised in Kansas City, Missouri. He took his first serving job in 1996. Since that time, he has worked for over a dozen different restaurant companies. He has held both hourly and salaried positions at independent and corporate restaurants. He has waited on over 100,000 guests and trained hundreds of servers. He has been named "Best Server in Kansas City" the last three years by the local weekly paper.