Professional Waiter Training Course

A

• A la carte - ordering according to the menu. The guest can create his own one, two, three, etc course menu

• A la minute - prepared to order, not prepared in advance; short order (USA)

• A part (on the side) - The sauce, the gravy, the side dishes, etc. are placed/served in a separate dish or saucier

• Affinieren (affine, affinage) - To age cheese. To store the cheese in the cellar or in an aging room until it reaches the optimal ripeness

• Al dente - An Italian term for pasta but also used for vegetables that are still firm and slightly

• chewy. "To be firm to the bite" (The Italian etymology is “to the tooth”)

• Ambiente or ambiance - The overall impression, the surrounding atmosphere of an establishment. The interior, the service, and the food work together to create harmony.

• Amuse-Bouche - a small (bite-sized) savory appetizer, served before a meal. Usually served with

• the phrase "with the compliments of the chef". The waiter describes the ingredients of the amuse-bouche and explains how to be eaten if necessary.

• Announcing - To announce the order in the kitchen or to explain/describe the meals to the guests at the guest table.

• Aperitifs - An alcoholic drink taken before a meal as an appetizer. It could be dry, fruity, or bitter.

• Avinieren - To rinse the glass and the carafe with some wine before using them. This eliminates any minor odors

B

• Banquet - a commemorative event /festive event, a ceremonious meal

• Barbecue-Party - a garden event (an open-air event) at which all the meat meals, also fish and some vegetables are grilled/barbecued.

• Barista - A coffee specialist. He can master the espresso machine and knows about coffee

  blends/varieties. He can prepare the ideal coffee beverages.

• Bon - A non-fiscal receipt only for internal use (often printed to separate orders for the bar and for

  the kitchen)

• Brunch - A combination of breakfast and lunch meals. It is usually offered on Sundays and on Holidays, from 11:00 to 14:00 o'clock in the gastronomy area. The American term Brunch comes from Breakfast and Lunch.

• Buffet - The meals (and also drinks) are displayed/placed on a long table where the guests serve themselves. The buffet might be offered for many occasions like breakfast, brunch, lunch, or as a salad buffet.

C

• Canapes Small slices of bread in different forms and thicknesses topped with a savory spared. Their crusts are removed, and they are sometimes toasted, rectangular, triangular, square, etc.

• Carafe - Usually a large-bellied shape bottle sometimes with a glass stopper; it is mostly used for water and wine

• Carving - Meat carving is the right and professional cutting of poultry and whole pieces of meat

• Catering - The service of meals and beverages for an event in-house (Inside-Catering) or outside the house (Outside-Catering).

• Chafing dish - An utensil food keeping food warm at the buffet table

• Check cover - A folder for the bill presented to the guests

• Cocktail - A mixed drink

• Couvert - A table cover

• Croutons - Small cubes or slices of toasted (or crisply fried) bread (white or brown)

D

• Degustation - Tasting and evaluation of beverages, for example, wine tasting

• Degustation menu - A selection of courses accompanied by matching beverages

• Dejeuner - Lunch

• Decanting - To extract the wine from the depot; to pour an old red wine or vintage ports into a carafe leaving the depot on the bottle bottom

• Depot - Designation for the sediment which settles during the wine aging. The depot (sediment) remains in the bottle after decanting

• Digestive - The drink that is taken after a meal

• Diner, Dinner - Supper (evening meal)

• Display table - A presentation table (for example Wine-Display)

• Doily - A mat (lace paper placed under the cakes usually)

• Dressing - The English term for a marinade, usually for salad

F

• Filleting - To fillet fish means to take the bones out

• Finger bowl - A small bowl filled with warm water and a slice of lemon. It is served with a fresh cloth napkin when food is eaten with fingers

• Flambé - To flame with an alcoholic liquid when preparing seafood, meat, and fish dishes as well as fruits and desserts

• Flight - A selection of wines with a similar style for testing

• Fondue - a Swiss melted cheese dish served in a communal pot ( fondue pot) over a portable stove heated with a candle and eaten by dipping bread into the cheese using long-stemmed forks. There are different kinds of fondues depending on the base material:- cheese fondue -meat fondue, fish, and crustaceans fondue - chocolate fondue

• Frappe - A frappe is an iced beverage that has been shaken, blended, or beaten to produce a tasty, foamy, and refreshing drink

• Function sheet - Instructions or a route card. It contains all the information and guests' requests that are needed for a successful event. A function sheet is issued by the F&B department in a hotel or a gastronomy establishment. They hand it out to all the positions in charge of the event.

G-L

• Gourmet - producing or serving food that is very high quality

• Gratin - a widespread culinary technique in which an ingredient is topped with a browned crust, often using breadcrumbs, grated cheese, egg, or else

• Gueridon - a side table usually movable and used by the service staff to prepare dishes, to carve, to fillet, or to perform the wine service

• Hors d’Oeuvres - the first course (starter) variations

• Humidor - a cigar climate control cabinet /a cigar case in which the cigars are kept in prime smoking condition

• Jus - French: jus (juice) for example jus de fruits (Fruit juice), jus de viande (meat juice /gravy);

• English: fruit juice, gravy

• Kuvert - a place cover: a term for bread, butter, and a cloth napkin. There could be a cover charge (couvert charge) per guest. The price must be indicated in the menu

• Louche - a ladle (dipper) used for soups and sauces

M-O

• Marinate - To change the taste of salads, vegetables but also meat and fish by inserting marinades

  respectively dressings

• Menage - A cruet stand with vinegar, oil, salt, pepper, ketchup, mustard, Tabasco sauce, Worcester sauce, etc. placed on the table

• Menu - The "menu" refers to a menu sequence

• Mise en Place - "Putting in place" - organizing and arranging all the items you might need in service

• Molton - A tablecloth underlay /mat made of felt or plastic material

• Napperon - A small tablecloth usually placed over the tablecloth

• Office/Backoffice - The room previous to the dining hall/restaurant

P-R

• Paragon - A receipt with a carbon copy or two carbon copies

• Plateau - A big tray. The dishes are placed on that tray in the kitchen and brought to the sideboard in the restaurant/dining hall. They are also used for room service

• Raviers - Small plates of elongated form in which mostly the cold starters are served. The plates are placed on a serving dish or on the hors d'oeuvres trolley

• Rechaud plat - Electrical hot plates and plate warmers placed on the guest table or on the Gueridon

• Room service - Room service is when the staff brings the prepared food inside the guest's room for dining!

S

• Setup - A table setting (for example a Banquet- setup )

• Sideboard - A table used for serving or a cupboard with a surface for serving

• Signature Dish - It is a recipe that identifies an individual chef or creation/own recipe of a meal

• Signature drink - The best-selling drink that contains a branded liquor or a special ingredient

• Snack - A snack is a light meal or an intermediate meal

• Sommeliere /Sommelier - A wine expert. Today a Sommeliere /Sommelier is a particular profession in upscale gastronomy.

• Supper - A late dinner

• Storno - To reverse (to cancel) an order or a reservation

• Stewarding - The Stewarding Department is in charge of cleaning (washing the dishes) storage and provides all the inventory which is needed in the restaurant or for a particular event

• Sundries - A variety of piquantly flavored pastries usually served in a bar. (a crusty small bakery)

• Supplement - To add or serve something after the actual service. It is usually a side dish or a sauce. Could be extra meat for the main course.

T-V

• Table-d'Hote Services - Service for a great number of guests

• Tablet - A serving tray

• Tip - A gratuity given to waiters from their guests for a great service

• Tronc - The sharing of tips among the employees in the service brigade. In some establishments, tips are shared also with the kitchen staff

• Tumbler - A glass with a flat and heavy bottom, available in different sizes

• Vignette - The logo of the hotel or the lettering on the porcelain, glasses, cutlery, and tablecloths of the hotel and the restaurant

• Vinoteque (Enoteca) - A wine collection of very good wines often also a wine shop

• Voiture - A meat cart (trolley) equipped with a heating unit and a hinged cover to maintain the warmth of foods. It is also used for carving meat

• Voucher - A gift certificate that represents a claim for a particular service that is already paid in advance for example a food voucher

“Move from zero state to hero state, and your chances of success increase by 100%.”

There are three main types of service in restaurants: French, American, and Russian.

French Service

The French service is the most expensive and labor-intense in the Hospitality industry.

This service requires a large number of highly skilled and experienced professionals who can perform: carving, filleting, slicing, garnishing, and many other procedures in front of the guests with style and finesse.

The French Service nowadays is used only in the most expensive, lavish restaurants, and the guests are paying a very high price for their experience.

How it is done:

The partially cooked food arrives from the kitchen, usually carried on large platters, and is placed on a gueridon.

The final preparation is completed in front of the guests by the waiters.

The food is arranged on heated plates and served to the guests on the table one by one.

The French Service is time-consuming; however, the guests receive the highest level of service and special attention. Not everything is prepared and served in front of the guests in French Service! Mostly this is done for the main course or entree course. For example, salads and small appetizers could be served from a platter directly into the preset plate in front of the guests, or the platters are placed in the middle of the table, and the guests help themselves!

Service procedures and duties:

Chef de Rang:

Greets and sits the guests

Takes the orders

Prepares the meals in front of the guests: Deboning and Carving, Filleting, Flambeing, Tossing and Mixing, Sauce preparations.

Serves wine (in the absence of a sommelier) and beverages

Controls the smooth running of the service throughout the whole evening. Presents the check and takes care of the bill.

Commis de Rang:

Taking the order from the Chef de Rang to the kitchen

Preparing the additional silverware (if any is necessary)

Bringing the Gueridons and the food platters to the dining room

Serves the dishes as they are prepared by the Chef de Rang

Clearing the table and assisting through the evening

Russian Service

Created by the Russian tzar to impress his guests, the Russian service is distinct with lavish settings, gold plates and cutlery, style, and great attention to the guests. It was based on formal French service, and both are very similar with some key differences. Nowadays, the Russian service is greatly modified and is used in the best international restaurants or hotels in banquet operations and cruise lines, where the guests are served the same selection of foods.

Service procedures:

The menu is announced in advance, and the tables are set accordingly! The meals arrive on silver platters from the kitchen properly arranged with all the necessary meat and side dishes to serve the whole table ( usually 8 or 10 people)

The highly skilled waiter presents the platter from the left side of the guests and serves directly onto the guest's plate with the right hand using a fork and spoon!

The waiters may work in pairs, and the head waiter serves the meat with one side dish as the second waiter follows the Chef de Rang with the second side dish and the sauce!

On a cue from the 'Restaurant Manager, the waiters place the hot or cold plates in front of the guests (depending on the meal served) and bring the prearranged platters with food from the kitchen to the tables!

The platters are introduced to the guests from the left side, and a complete portion is served on the guest's plate with the right hand using a fork and spoon!

The server should be able to carry and serve the whole table with one platter!

After completing the table, the server returns the empty platter back in the kitchen and takes the next full platter for the next table!

The plates are cleared once all the guests at the table are done eating! This circle is repeated till the last meal is served and cleared!

American service

The most common service in a la carte restaurants around the world is the American service. Here the food is pre-plated in the kitchen and brought to the table by the servers.

Serving procedures:

A head waiter greats the guests and takes the food and drinks orders Back up waiter prepares the proper silverware for every guest according to the guest's order and serves the drinks prepared on the bar

The head waiter presents and serves the wine bottle ( if the restaurant has no sommelier or they are busy)

The first meal is served as soon as the kitchen has plated it

The plates are cleared once all the guests at the table are done with their meal

The second dish is called and served as soon as the kitchen prepares it

This is repeated until all the meals the guests have ordered have been served and cleared.

Greeting the guests and taking the order

Greeting is the first contact you have with the guests and can make or break your relationship with them. When greeting the guests, every little detail matters.

• Make eye contact before approaching the guest

• Give them your best smile

• Let them know they are welcomed

• Step forward to meet the guest, don't wait for them to approach you

• You should greet the guests first, don't wait for them to greet you

• Greet with a polite and welcoming tone

• Address the guest by name if you know it

• Shake hands only if you know the guest really well

• If there are many guests in a group, treat everyone equally

• Lead your guests to the table and assist them with the chairs

• Allow the guests to sit comfortably and adjust themselves to the atmosphere in the restaurant before you bring them the menu cards

• Hand the menu open on the first page

• Give the menu first to the ladies and then to the gentlemen

• Hand the wine list to the host of the party, or ask who would like to choose the wine

• Present the chef's specials, if there are any

• Suggest aperitifs as you name five different cocktails or beverages

• Advise the guests that you are their waiter and you are always available if they have any questions or desires

• Let them make their choice

• Send the drink order to the bar and serve the drinks as soon as they are prepared

• While serving the drinks, ask if there are any questions about the menu or if the guests are ready to order

• Acquire if the guests have chosen the wine

• While taking the order, start with the ladies first, then the gentlemen, and at the end, the host of the party.

• Write the order down

• Once you start with one guest, write the complete order down and then move to the next guest

• Make sure you write the food order by the correct seat number the guest is sitting on (if the restaurant has the seat position implemented)

• Circle the special orders, so you know that there are some special requests about this particular meal and pay attention to it when you are booking it

• Repeat the order to the guests to ensure there are no misunderstandings, and send it to the kitchen

• Order the bottle of wine and proceed with serving it when it arrives

Greeting and taking the order has ended. Proceed with the steps of service throughout the rest of the evening

WHY STEPS OF SERVICE

To deliver excellent service to every guest from every employee the best companies in our branch implement the Steps of Service! Following the Steps will guarantee you professional and competent care of your guests and increase your daily income (TIP). Add to that a genuine smile and friendly attitude and you will be the best waiter in The World!

1. Acknowledge the guests upon arrival with eye contact and a smile

2. Greet the guests with a smile and friendly positive attitude within 2 minutes after seating. Use the name of the restaurant and your own name: “Ladies and Gentlemen welcome to Grand Lux Café, my name is Ned and I will be taking care of you today

3. Make sure you are shaved (for male waiters), with a proper haircut and a clean uniform

4. Suggest cocktails and take a drink order

5. Deliver the food menus and the wine list

6. Present the specials of the day

7. Serve the drink within 4 to 6 minutes of the order! If not ready check with the bartender! Advise the guests that the drinks are coming right away

8. Take the food order, repeat the order for clarity and ask about the wine.

9. If needed make a suggestion about the wine and repeat the wine order for clarity.

10. Send the food order to the kitchen with proper seat positions for every meal!

11. Bring bread and butter to the table

12. Maintain visual contact with the guests at all time

13. Remain friendly and attentive to the guests during the whole evening

14. Prepare the proper silverware for the guest’s order

15. Assure the appetizers are served within 6 to 8 minutes of the order. If not check with the kitchen. Advise the guests

16. Ask for a refill of drinks upon arrival of the appetizers or refill glasses periodically if the guests have ordered a bottle of wine

17. Within 2 minutes or two bites (whichever is first) ask the guests if their meals are well prepared and tasty. Take immediate action if a guest is not happy with his/her meal! Advise managers!

18. Wait for all the guests to be finished with their meals before cleaning the plat

19. Call the main course and assure all the guests have proper and clean silverware in front of them

20. Remove the bread, the butter, and the butter plates from the table if the guests are not going to use any more bread with their main course.

21. Assure that the main course is served in a timely manner! 18 to 25 minutes. If not check with the kitchen

Advise the guests.

22. Ask for a refill of drinks after serving the main course

23. Wish the guests gut appetite and stay attentive in case they need something

24. Within 2 minutes or 2 bites (whichever is first) acquire if everything is well prepared and testy with their meal. Take appropriate action if a guest is not happy with his/her meal. Advise a manager

25. Wait for all the guests to be finished with their meal before removing the plates!

26. Remove all the silverware and condiments from the table

27. Suggest dessert and coffee and prepare the proper silverware for the order. Bring sugar if coffee is ordered. 28. Assure the tea or the coffee is served in a timely manner. Check with the bartender if not.

29. Assure the dessert is served within 6 minutes of the order. Check with the kitchen if not. Advise the guests

30. Ask the guests if everything is well prepared and tasty, 2 minutes or 2 bites after delivering the desserts.

31. Remove empty coffee cups immediately from the table

32. Wait for all the guests to be finished with dessert before removing the plates

33. Remove everything from the table

34. Suggest digestive and ask if the guests have some other wishes

35. Bring the check immediately if they don’t have any other wishes

36. Take care of the payment immediately

37. Thank the guests for their visit and welcome them back with a smile and friendliness

38. Prepare the table for the next party immediately after the departure of the guests

39. Repeat �