Waiter Resume Examples & Guide (+Skills & Job Description)

Your waiter resume has to make employers' mouths water. No matter how well you can schmooze, carry food, and sling booze, restaurant managers won’t know it unless you prove it. But it’s just a wafer-thin sheet of paper. How can it do all that without leaving them feeling hollow?

It’s simple. Make your resume into a menu for your past performance that serves up Zomato-worthy achievements with all the trimmings.

Sound impossible?

You’re about to see a resume example for waiters you can adjust to fit any waiter job you want. You’ll also get a quick plan to write a resume for waiter jobs that’ll land 10x more interviews than any other.

Here’s a waiter resume example made with our builder:

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Waiter resume made with our builder—See more templates and create your resume here.

Before we start, here are some other waiter resume examples and guides:

• Server Resume
• Banquet Server Resume
• Restaurant Server Resume
• Bar Manager Resume
• Food Service Resume
• Fine Dining Resume
• Barista Resume
• Starbucks Resume
• Bartender Resume
• Busser Resume (Busboy / Busgirl)
• Waitress Resume
• Server Resume
• Line Cook Resume
• Chef Resume
• Fast Food Worker Resume
• Restaurant Resume
• Restaurant General Manager Resume
• Catering Resume
• Culinary Resume
• Dishwasher Resume
• Hospitality Resume
• McDonald’s Resume
• Sous Chef Resume
• Restaurant Manager Resume Example
• Best Resume Examples

Sample Waiter Resume (Text Version)

Here’s how to write a waiter resume step-by-step:

1. Start With the Right Format for a Waiter Resume

If a table wobbles, most restaurant guests won’t sit at it. Your waiter resume can’t wobble, either. If your resume margins, spelling, font, and line spacing lack atmosphere, you may as well close up shop before you start. If you want the best waiter jobs, pay attention to your resume format.

Here’s how to format a waiter resume template:

• Resume format:reverse-chronological resume format.
• Section headings: clear titles make it easy for restaurant managers to find what they need.
• Resume margins: 1-inch on every side of your resume for waiter jobs.
• Resume fonts: write with professional resume fonts such as Calibri or Arial.
• Font size: 11–12 pt for main text, 2–4 points larger for headings.
• Line spacing: single to 1.15.
• Appearance: include plenty of white space for readability.
• File type: PDF resumes are best unless the restaurant mentions Word files specifically.
• Don’t put a picture on a resume in the U.S. Resume photos can open employers up to anti-discrimination lawsuits. Photo resumes get tossed!

Include these parts of a resume:

• Resume header: your name with the relevant contact information.
• Resume profile: a sampler of the choicest selections from your waiter resume.
• Work experience: your best picks from past job responsibilities and accomplishments, from waiting tables and other jobs.
• Education: your schooling in brief, with highlights.
• Skills: a list of your best job-matching abilities.
• Extra sections: volunteer work, awards, certifications, etc. to fill it in.

Can there be only one format? See our guide: Best Resume Structure

Don’t get bogged down writing the top part of your waiter resume. Start with the main course—work experience. Then come back and create appetizers and garnish.

2. Start Your Restaurant Waiter Resume With Work Experience

Waiter jobs will increase by 6% from 2018 to 2028 according to the U.S. BLS. That’s good news, but only a few will be in establishments like San Francisco’s Pearl 6101. To beat the mob applying to the few great restaurant jobs, your resume needs to fit the restaurant manager’s tastes.

What are the right ingredients?

Here’s the strategy to make a work history section for a waiter resume that gets jobs:

• List your newest job title first.
• Write the restaurant’s name, its location, and your start and finish dates.
• Add a 2-line waiter job description that describes your duties.
• Create up to 6 bullet points describing your best restaurant achievements.
• Customize your resume to fit it to the waiter job requirements and posting.
• Use numbers to show the restaurant manager that yes, you’re as good as you say.
• To make your waiter job description for resumes hit home, use the PAR (Problem-Action-Result) formula.
• Start each line with resume action words for added power.

Here are two waiter resume samples that show the plan in motion:

Waiter Job Description for a Resume

You don’t need a degree from the Culinary Institute of America to know why the second waiter resume example doesn’t work. It’s bland, with no details. It shows your job duties, but not how well you executed them. That first sample though is a smorgasbord of achievements. When can you start?

Read more: How Far Back Should a Resume Go

Now—

What if you’re looking for your first waitering job? An entry-level resume with no experience (or not much experience) can use the same recipe. The difference? You have to show you learned things in past jobs that can make you a great waiter. Those are called transferable skills.

See these entry-level waiter resume examples:

Entry-Level Waiter Resume Samples [Experience]

Check that out. This candidate was a dishwasher and busser in a past life. But in the first waiter resume sample, he thought hard about the job duties that make sense for a waiter. The bad resume example looks like someone with no table-waiting experience at all. Your resume accomplishments are everything.

Pro Tip: Waiter jobs deserve a one-page resume. If your resume is longer, trim the fat until it all fits on one page. A resume should be the tastiest bits, not infinite refills.

When making a resume in our builder, drag & drop bullet points, skills, and auto-fill the boring stuff. Spell check? Check. Start building your resume here.

Create my resume now

When you’re done, Zety’s resume builder will score your resume and tell you exactly how to make it better.

3. Add Your Education (It’s Not So Straightforward!)

You don’t need a doctoral degree to get hired for waiting tables. But—you have to show your education the right way. If you don’t, restaurant managers won’t get the right message from your waitering resume. If you have lots of experience, keep it simple by listing your degree, school, and completion date.

See this waiter resume example:

Waiter Resume Example [Education]

But—

If you your watering experience is lacking, expand your resume education section, like this:

Voted girl’s choice of brother

If your college degree is in your rearview, leave high school off your waiter resume. Also—what if you have no (or little) waiter experience but a solid education section? Move your education higher, to above your work history. That way, your waiter resume puts the yummiest course first.

Pro Tip: Can you put an internship on a resume for waiter jobs? Absolutely. Internships show you’ve got dreams and goals. Applicants like that work harder when they’re hired.

4. List Waiter Skills That Fit the Restaurant and Role

You can memorize a 12-drink order (with special instructions) and handle a dinner rush with a smile. But—you can’t add every ability in your apron to your waiter resume. Which skills should you list on a resume for waiters to get hired? That depends on what the restaurant wants.

For an appetizer, see this list of skills for waiter resumes:

Waiter Resume Skills (Hard Skills)

• Serving Food
• Taking Food and Beverage Orders
• POS Operation
• Food Safety
• Serving Drinks
• Customer Service
• Vacuuming, Sweeping, & Mopping
• Menu Knowledge
• Restocking Supplies
• Food & Wine Pairing
• Opening & Closing
• Types of Dining (French, Italian, etc.)
• Teamwork
• Interpersonal Skills
• Verbal & Written Communication Skills
• Active Listening
• Decision Making Skills
• Presentation Skills
• Time Management
• Problem Solving
• Organizational Skills
• Leadership Skills
• Critical Thinking

But—

Here’s how to choose the best waiter skills for a resume:

1. Make a list of all your waiter skills.
2. Also list the abilities in the restaurant’s job posting.
3. Look for talents that show up in both lists. Those are the right resume keywords.
4. Use your bullet points to prove you have those skills.
5. Add both soft skills and hard skills for the right mix.

See this waiter resume example:

Say the waiter job ad mentions efficiency, POS operation, and customer service.

Then prove your skills like this:

Waiter Resume Examples [Skills]

Are you experienced or not? The way you list waiter skills changes depending on your work history. See these examples:

Waiter Skills Resume Example (Experienced Candidate)

Waitering Skills Resume Example (No Experience Candidate)

Notice how some waiter resume skills can come from non-waiter jobs or life in general, such as friendliness or basic math.

Pro Tip: Don’t use boring resume words like “responsible for.” Start sentences with resume action verbs like achieved, operated, and served to whet their appetites. 

5. Add Bonus Sections to Your Waiter Resume

Picture this—you serve sizzling ribeye. But there’s no seasoning, side dishes, or beverage. Where’s the flavor? Additional resume sections are the salt & pepper that give it zest. They also show the restaurant manager you’re more than just a robot slogging through a job.

Here are some examples of tempting extra sections to add to a resume for waiter jobs:

Waiter Resume Samples: Extra Sections

1. Resume Licenses & Certifications

Food safety certifications and other licenses can prove key skills to restaurant managers. They’re especially useful if you’re new. Here are some of the best in the business:

• Certified Food Protection Professional: Association of Nutrition and Foodservice Professionals (ANFP)
• ServSafe Food Handler Certification
• Food Safety Certification: San Francisco Department of Public Health
• Alcohol Seller-Server Certification

2. Resume Volunteer Work

Have you volunteered as a waiter or in any other role? Listing volunteer work in a waiter resume is a great way to show you have energy to spare. Put food-related volunteering under work experience, and other free work in a special section underneath your education.

3. Trade Association Memberships

If you have a membership in a food service association, list it in your resume for waiter jobs. An association membership shows you aren’t just slumming in the industry. Here are a few examples:

• Association of Nutrition & Foodservice Professionals (ANFP)
• National Restaurant Association (NRA)
• American Culinary Federation (ACF)
• Society for Hospitality and Foodservice Management (SHFM)

4. Languages on a Resume

Do you speak a foreign language? Language skills on a waiter resume are image-boosters, especially if it matters to the restaurant. (Think: Spanish in a Mexican restaurant or Mandarin in a Chinese neighborhood.)

5. Hobbies on a Resume

In a thin entry-level resume for waiters, pastimes and interests can raise your street cred. You can add cycling, running, ballroom dancing, or even gardening to a resume. Even stamp collecting can show organizational skills—particularly if you’ve collected 1,000 rare stamps or created a new storage system.

See these waiter resume samples:

Waiter Resume Examples [Other Sections]

For more ideas to add extras to your waiter resume, see this guide: What to Include on a Resume: 20+ Top Examples

6. Blend the Best Bits Into a Waiter Resume Objective or Summary

Now that you’ve filled in the main courses of your waiter resume—what next? You’ve got to add the streetside sign and colored lights that bring in customers. In other words, add a resume heading statement that makes managers want to read about you. You’ll write either a summary or an objective.

What will you put in it? You’ll look at the rest of your resume and make an appetizing sampler from all its tastiest concoctions. Make sure each piece you put into your introduction will matter to this restaurant manager. Add your best achievements relevant to the position.

If this is far from your first food-service rodeo...

Here’s how to write a resume summary:

1. Start it with an adjective like efficient or personable.
2. Add a job title (waiter).
3. Include your years on the job (2+, 7, etc.).
4. Share your goal for the job (Seeking to become a valued waiter...)
5. Add the restaurant’s name.
6. Share your tastiest achievements.

See these waiter resume summary examples:

Waiter Resume Summary

Ouch. Example #2 is like a fly in the soup. The restaurant manager will grimace and move on. It’s good that you’re eager, but it sounds desperate. Also, it makes a lot of claims without a shred of proof. Meanwhile, example #1 is like an entrée by a 5-star chef. Get ready to be hired.

But— 

Is this your first time waiting tables?

In an entry-level waiter resume, write a career objective. Back in the days of “family dining,” you were supposed to talk about your goals. Today, you must entice the restaurant manager with achievements that prove you’ll make it as a waiter. Get them from non-waiter jobs or life in general.

See these career objective examples:

Entry-Level Waiter Resume Objective

That second waiter resume sample will get sent back. It’s got the right attitude, but you’re relying on the restaurant manager to “take a chance” on you. Show you’re not a risk, like in example #1.

Need more tips for how to start your waiter resume? See this guide: Resume Introduction Examples

7. Write a Job-Getting Waiter Cover Letter

Should you send a cover letter with a waiter resume? Absolutely. Without a letter, it can look like you’re just firing resumes at every waiter job that comes along. In other words, you don’t care about this restaurant. Your restaurant cover letter is the right place to show the manager you care.

To write your waiter cover letter:

1. Format your cover letter before you write a single word.
2. Start your waiter cover letter with the restaurant manager’s name.
3. Write a scrumptious cover letter introduction.
4. Show you know the job duties by mentioning them in your letter.
5. Put your most appealing resume moments in your letter.
6. Always end a cover letter with an interview request.

Read more: How To Write A Cover Letter in 8 Simple Steps and How to Make a Resume: A Step-by-Step Guide

Plus, a great cover letter that matches your resume will give you an advantage over other candidates. You can write it in our cover letter builder here. Here's what it may look like:

See more cover letter templates and start writing.

Key Takeaway

Here’s a recap of how to write a waiter resume:

• Format your waiter resume template in reverse-chronological order.
• Start with your work history. Prove your restaurant skills with your choicest accomplishments.
• Include numbers to show that yep, you’re as skilled as you say.
• Add your education and some school achievements.
• Find waiter skills in the job posting online.
• Add volunteering or certifications if you have them.
• Write a waiter cover letter to improve your hireability.

That’s it! Now, we’d love to hear from you: 

• What scares you about writing a waiter’s resume? 
• Does writing a waiter cover letter make you roll your eyes?
• Are you worried other candidates will have more experience?

Let’s chat below in the comments, and thanks for reading!