26 Degrees in the Shade . . .

How to be a Good Waitress, bar in Spain

What is the highest skill that a waitress needs?

Well there are several:

• The social skill to relate to customers from the very get-go!
• The ability to say a few words when she passes a table that are having to wait for their food (If she chats even a little with them, they feel attended to and forget that they are actually sitting there waiting)
• She must remember to write down every  single drink and every food item that she has taken an order for. This must be written on the bill for the appropriate table. (Remember what doesn’t get written down, doesn’t get paid for)
• The most important skill is to control the flow of orders to both the bar and to the kitchen. When you are really busy in your bar/ restaurant  in Spain, a good waitress will discourage people from ordering cocktails and encourage them to order a simple bottle of wine or a jug of Sangria (only if it has been pre-prepared)

Buy encouraging people to order items that you can deliver quickly, you not only get more sales, but you keep the customer happy.

Controlling the flow of incoming food orders

By chatting just a little to customers, you can get them to sit and be happy just having a drink and not worrying about having their order taken quickly.

Most customers try to order food and drink at the same time and this causes several problems.

• The waitress has to concern herself with processing both food and drink orders at the same time and even looking after a few tables she soon starts to feel under stress, has no time to chat and starts to make mistakes
• When she separates food and drinks and takes the drinks order first, it’s a lot easier for her and the kitchen buys time to clear existing orders, before she goes back to the table to take the food order 15-30 min latter.
• Using this system customers start to enjoy having a drink and often will order a second round. More profit for you bar/restaurant in Spain..

In mid August when you have 300% of normal trade, you waitress may have to stop taking food orders for a period of say 30 min to give the kitchen a chance to clear existing orders. In such a case she must tell the clients honestly that there will be a wait and NOT take their order until the kitchen has freed-up.

Finally

At busy times she should not take orders for long lead items, such as frozen Lasagna. Even if you have it, she must be instructed to say that it’s off the menu

Remember

that a customer times his/her food order from the moment your waitress writes it down, so writing the order down as late as she can get away with, will lead to less unhappy customers.

If she serves them a drink or two before taking their food order, they will already be a little merry and in a better humour.

Teach me How to Choose Staff Bar/Restaurant

Teach me How to Choose Staff Bar/Restaurant Spain

Having good staff in your bar/restaurant in Spain will bring in extra trade

and lead to increased profits, so it’s very important to learn the correct criteria when choosing staff.

Bear in mind that most clients will like or dislike a waiter/waitress based on the first impression

that the member of staff gives them. If they like your staff, they will return to eat and drink in your bar restaurant regularly and if they don’t like your staff, you will probably lose their custom.

When you interview a person to be a waiter in your bar/restaurant, I would recommend that you take a minute at the beginning of the interview to sense the first impression that they give to you, because if you are put-off them in any way, your clients will react in the same way.

Here are some negative points that I personally would use to move an applicant down my short list as an employee.

• Slouching or lazy posture
• Scruffy appearance
• Heavy smoker or drinker
• Unduly shy
• Mumbles when speaking
• Not much personality
• Only speaks his/her mother tongue and is unwilling to study a second language

I have listed some of the criteria that would render an applicant unsuitable for bar/restaurant work. There are other criteria, but basically, if you don’t take a liking to the applicant after 5 min the rule of thumb is simply;

keep looking

Positive criteria, in no particular order. I look for all these qualities in each of my staff members;

• Trustworthy (Ask for references)
• Shows alertness
• Basically attractive Physically
• Basically attractive personality
• Smart appearance
• Good upright posture
• Clearly has the ability to converse freely (articulate and not shy)
• Speaks a second language at least basically and is prepared to study that language
• Punctual
• Not adverse to working extra hours
• Shows some ambition to learn new skills, like pizza making etc

The right person for you bar/restaurant, who is going to help grow your business will have all the above qualities and that person potentially you will be able to train up with new skills and develop into a valuable long term employee.