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What You Need to Know About Food Server
Job Description & Duties Serve food to individuals outside of a restaurant environment, such as in hotel rooms, hospital rooms, residential care facilities, or cars.
What Do Food Servers Do On a Daily Basis?
- Remove trays and stack dishes for return to kitchen after meals are finished.
- Examine trays to ensure that they contain required items.
- Place food servings on plates or trays according to orders or instructions.
- Monitor food distribution, ensuring that meals are delivered to the correct recipients and that guidelines, such as those for special diets, are followed.
- Stock service stations with items, such as ice, napkins, or straws.
- Take food orders and relay orders to kitchens or serving counters so they can be filled.
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What Every Food Server Should Know
Food Servers state the following job skills are important in their day-to-day work.
Monitoring: Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
Service Orientation: Actively looking for ways to help people.
Speaking: Talking to others to convey information effectively.
Active Listening: Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Coordination: Adjusting actions in relation to others’ actions.
Social Perceptiveness: Being aware of others’ reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
Other Food Server Job Titles
- Server
- Hospital Food Service Worker
- Teletray Operator
- Food Runner
- Room Service Waiter/Waitress
Food Server Job Outlook
In the United States, there were 263,800 jobs for Food Server in 2016. New jobs are being produced at a rate of 10.2% which is above the national average. The Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts 26,900 new jobs for Food Server by 2026. There will be an estimated 43,100 positions for Food Server per year.
The states with the most job growth for Food Server are Utah, Arizona, and Idaho. Watch out if you plan on working in Wyoming, District of Columbia, or Connecticut. These states have the worst job growth for this type of profession.
How Much Does a Food Server Make?
Food Servers make between $18,030 and $35,150 a year.
Food Servers who work in Hawaii, New York, or District of Columbia, make the highest salaries.
How much do Food Servers make in different U.S. states?
State | Annual Mean Salary |
---|---|
Alabama | $21,550 |
Alaska | $29,780 |
Arizona | $27,320 |
Arkansas | $20,560 |
California | $30,350 |
Colorado | $26,730 |
Connecticut | $28,690 |
Delaware | $24,700 |
District of Columbia | $32,740 |
Florida | $22,570 |
Georgia | $22,020 |
Hawaii | $38,480 |
Idaho | $23,740 |
Illinois | $24,450 |
Indiana | $23,050 |
Iowa | $23,870 |
Kansas | $20,390 |
Kentucky | $22,370 |
Louisiana | $20,860 |
Maine | $24,230 |
Maryland | $24,730 |
Massachusetts | $29,210 |
Michigan | $25,220 |
Minnesota | $27,660 |
Mississippi | $19,330 |
Missouri | $22,120 |
Montana | $22,340 |
Nebraska | $23,330 |
Nevada | $25,570 |
New Hampshire | $23,530 |
New Jersey | $25,190 |
New Mexico | $20,530 |
New York | $32,500 |
North Carolina | $21,180 |
North Dakota | $27,500 |
Ohio | $22,370 |
Oklahoma | $21,450 |
Oregon | $27,380 |
Pennsylvania | $23,250 |
Rhode Island | $25,880 |
South Carolina | $21,750 |
South Dakota | $26,930 |
Tennessee | $21,830 |
Texas | $21,170 |
Utah | $24,950 |
Vermont | $30,970 |
Virginia | $22,210 |
Washington | $27,040 |
West Virginia | $22,190 |
Wisconsin | $22,160 |
Wyoming | $22,410 |
Tools & Technologies Used by Food Servers
Although they’re not necessarily needed for all jobs, the following technologies are used by many Food Servers:
- Microsoft Office
- Microsoft Windows
- Point of sale POS software
- CBORD Nutrition Service Suite
How to Become a Food Server
Are there Food Servers education requirements?
How Long Does it Take to Become a Food Server?
Similar Careers
Are you already one of the many Food Server in the United States? If you’re thinking about changing careers, these fields are worth exploring:
References:
More about our data sources and methodologies.