
How to Write a Resume According to Science in 2023
How do you write a resume? With so many conflicting opinions out there, we’ve set out to find the ultimate answer to this question.
You’ve got table waiting skills, a friendly demeanor, and an impressive background. Show the restaurant manager and score an interview with the perfect waiter or waitress resume.
From serving adorable couples at two-tops to troublesome parties of seven, you’re the best waitperson they could hire.
Thing is, they don’t yet know it.
You need a waiter or waitress resume that shows you’re a catch as rare as a New York strip still mooing.
Want that job? No prob—
In this guide:
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Jasmine Young
Restaurant Waitress
jasmine.young@gmail.com
(215) 888-8895
linkedin.com/in/jasmineyoung
Summary of Qualifications
Friendly waitress with 2+ years experience at busy restaurants in Center City. Skilled at serving large parties, adept at pushing menu specials, and educated on extensive French and Italian wine list and proper pairing recommendations. Capable of serving 30+ tables and 120+ dining guests in a single shift. Seeking to leverage knowledge of fine dining and Central European fare to become the next waitress at Fiorello’s Restaurant.
Work Experience
Restaurant Waitress
May 2018–July 2019
Luigi’s on Littman St., Philadelphia, PA
Key Qualifications & Responsibilities
Key Achievements
Restaurant Waitress & Hostess
March 2017–April 2018
Quentin’s Restaurant, Bar and Grill
Key Qualifications & Responsibilities
Key Achievements
Majoring in Hospitality Management
Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA
Expected Graduation: 2022
Relevant Coursework: Dining Room and Bar Management, Hospitality Industry Managerial Accounting, Food Operation Management, Food & Beverage Operations, Hospitality and Tourism Operations, Restaurant Business Fundamentals, Food Service Industry Laws & Ethics.
High School Diploma
Central High School, Philadelphia, PA
Graduation: 2017
Key Skills
Certifications
Memberships
Languages
Now—
Here’s how to write a waiter resume or waitress resume of your own:
Like any eatery about to open for dinner, you have to prep things on your resume before you begin to write.
It needs to be as organized as a kitchen on the brigade system.
So—
This is how to format a waitress resume template:
Make sure your resume has an eye-catching design. Know what to include and what to leave out, and don’t cram a ton of tiny print in there or push out the margins to the edge just to fit it on one page. While what you say on your resume is paramount, how you format and design your CV can make a big difference, too.
Expert Hint: Save your resume as a PDF. The PDF format can be read on any device the restaurant manager views it on, unlike a Microsoft Word doc, which sometimes looks funny on certain screens.
When a dinner guest firsts walks into a dining establishment, the restaurant hopes to set the tone with appropriate lighting, scrumptious smells wafting from the kitchen, and a pleasant ambience.
The resume heading statement, an objective or summary, has to do the same thing—lure the employer in rather than turning them away.
But which introduction paragraph do you choose?
If you have years of restaurant serving experience, choose the resume summary.
The summary statement whets their appetite with a quick recap of your waitstaff experience and server skills. It adds a cherry on top by offering up a number or two to quantify your achievements.
Here’s how to write a waitress or waiter resume summary:
This first one comes from a resume personalized to one specific job offer, and that’s a key attribute of interview-winning resumes. On top of that, it offers up examples of just how good this person is as a waitress with the use of numbers.
But—
When you have little or no serving experience, use the resume objective.
The objective statement talks up any unrelated experience you have and transferable skills to make the case that you’d be better than any of the other waiters applying for the job. It then states your career goals at the restaurant or other establishment.
It also includes a numbered accomplishment to prove your talent.
Here’s how to write a waitress resume objective statement:
As in our previous set of examples, the first one here is tailored to the job and uses transferable skills to show how their earlier job sets them up for success as a waiter. Also, here we used achievements, in the form of the awards, to immediately be their top candidate.
Expert Hint: Write this resume profile statement when you finish all the other parts of your resume, even though it is positioned at the very top. This way, you’ll have a clearer image of the best items to talk about for maximum impact.
Think of your resume as a many-course meal, each course being a particular resume section.
In that case, you’ve just come to the main dish—
The waiter or waitress work history section.
Here’s how to describe previous work experience on a resume for waiter jobs:
Now, here are waiter or waitress resume examples of job descriptions:
Restaurant Waiter May 2018–July 2019 Otto’s on Olivera, Philadelphia, PA Key Qualifications & Responsibilities Key Achievements Restaurant Server May 2018–July 2019 Frank’s Diner, Philadelphia, PA Restaurant Job Responsibilities:
How about that?
If you compare the first example with the second one, you’ll easily see what makes one far more palatable than the other. In the good example, we spelled out waiter duties in detail, removed any obvious ones, and added quantifiable achievements.
One’s medium well, while the other is well done.
Another thing to keep in mind—
Many larger and more modern restaurants use an ATS (Applicant Tracking System) to manage the dozens of server job applications they receive each day.
An ATS helps the employer screen large amounts of resumes for waitresses and waiters by digitally scanning them for particular resume keywords.
And, if your waiter or waitress resume lacks a keyword, it could mean you’re 86’d right out of the candidate pool.
How to find the right keywords to use on a resume for waitresses and waiters?
Go back to the job ad.
The original job description tells you exactly the kind of applicant this restaurant is searching for. Look at the job responsibilities section of the advertisement, in particular. If you’re having doubts about how to phrase such-and-such, use the wording from the ad to be on the safe side.
After a waiter or waitress description for resumes, it’s time to list the skills for a resume to pair alongside.
According to the National Restaurant Association, the restaurant industry hired more than 1 milion people each month in the last 12 months.
You’ve got a lot of competition, and you need to portray yourself in a way that gets their attention.
That’s where a server skills list comes in.
Here is a list of sample waitress and waiter resume skills:
Don’t just pick any server skill you think of and add it to your resume. Remember to tailor it to this one waiter job by looking at the job ad.
Use the job responsibilities section to understand the kind of waitress they’re looking for. If you are blessed with a skill they value, add that to your restaurant server or cocktail waitress resume.
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Expert Hint: Always add a healthy mixture of both hard skills (those you can build, such as knowing how to use the POS) and soft skills (those you develop through life, such as communication skills).
Not adding your education correctly on resumes for waitress jobs is a quick way for you to be removed from their “specials” board.
Since you don’t want that—
Here’s how an academic entry should appear on your resume for waitressing:
Majoring in Hospitality Management Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA Expected Graduation: 2022 Relevant Coursework: Dining Room and Bar Management, Hospitality Industry Managerial Accounting, Food Operation Management, Food & Beverage Operations, Hospitality and Tourism Operations, Restaurant Business Fundamentals, Food Service Industry Laws & Ethics.
To break it down, here’s what we did:
Finally, if you have completed a degree in college, don’t add high school. If you’ve never been to university or are in the middle of working on a degree, add high school as a secondary entry.
Expert Hint: Is your education more impressive than your work history so far? If you have an impressive academic section but no real-world working experience, place your education area above the employment section.
Show the restaurant manager you’re an item from the secret menu rather than any ol’ blue-plate special.
How?
By including a few additional resume sections to really impress them.
Here are some of the best extra sections you can add, followed by some prime waiter and waitress resume samples:
Double your impact with a matching resume and cover letter combo. Use our cover letter generator and make your application documents pop out.
Want to try a different look? There's 21 more. A single click will give your document a total makeover. Pick a cover letter template here.
Expert Hint: Want to know the best side dish for any waitress or waiter resume? A waiter or waitress cover letter. How important are cover letters? More than 80% of recruiters and hiring managers prefer it.
Haven't written your cover letter yet? See:
It’s not so hard to serve up a plate of your skills, experience, and education as a mouth-watering resume.
But it’s not so hard to mess it up, either.
So, to recap—
Here’s how to write a resume for waiter and waitress jobs:
Have any questions on how to write a waitress job description resume section or how to make waitressing sound good on a resume? Need more waiter resume samples? Let’s chat below in the comment area, and thanks for reading!
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