Advice for first time waitress??

Hey guys, tomorrow I'm starting my new job as a waitress at a sports bar and I am sooo nervous.  I'm nervous about everything from being shy with the customers to remembering everything I'm supposed to do and getting everything right, and carrying things without dropping them etc etc.  Any advice or tips/tricks from people who have waited tables?  I'll take anything I can get!  I wouldn't even be taking this job if they weren't paying me minimum wage plus tips instead of the usual waitress pay.  I neeed the money.  I want to love the job and be good at it but I'm really pshycing myself out!!

I waitressed at a 19+ Lounge, and I would never waitress agai.

I am sorry I cant give you any help, but a few tips to remember would be not to try to carry more then you are comfortable with, you will be asking to drop something. Even if other girls carry more, dont try to, until you are able too. It is better to make two trips, then to drop everything and have to start the order again.

Aside from that, have fun, enjoy your new job /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />

I'm going to be working at Beef o Bradys.  It's a family friendly sports pub that the owners decided to only serve beer and wine, no liquor.  So Im hoping the atmosphere will be pretty friendly.  Anyone out there actually enjoy waitressing lol??

It gets easier as time goes.  I've never waitressed but I have delivered pizza and I've managed fast food restaurants. 

I loved delivering pizzas as I was going to school.  It was easy and the $ was immediate because I kept the tips every night.  Don't gauge how you are doing by the amount that each customer gives you.  Some people are just cheap while others are generous.  You could be working your butt off and doing an awesome job and you'll still get nothing from some people because they think you are already getting paid.  Its better to be slightly nervous but accurate and fast than chatty, charming, wrong and slow unless they are single guys.  You'll learn to read people when you become more familiar with the clientelle.    I hope they gave you a copy of their menu so you can memorize it.  Be completely familiar with the menu because it makes it easier to take the orders.  There's also a trick about giving people's change back.  Make it easier for them to tip you.  If they pay with a $20 on a $14.95 bill, give them 5 x $1 bills and a nickel.  They'll give you something.  You give them a $5 bill, you may get $5 or you may get a nickel. 

Good luck.  Wear comfy shoes. 

I love Beef O' Bradys. There's one near my house. I have never waitressed but I hope it is going well!

i had a waitressing job once when i was 18. i hated it to death.. 

you make more money in the smoking section i found and with people who are drinking alcohol.

never let a glass get near empty- even if its water.

always be prompt and always be busy, do your side work as you go so you aren't staying late after they cut you.

remember you are the one that gets the most crap.. from the customers, managers, cooks...it seems they always blame the server.

be nice to the hosts/hostesses. they will be mean to you and not give you tables or seat you with 3 parties at once if they don't like you.

if you date your coworkers plan for trouble.

let the bartenders show you how to open wine bottles and practice as much as you can about wine presentation and opening.

always smile and don't let the jerks phase you.

don't add gratuity without first asking your manager and remember that it could be good (you already have cheapskates at the table) or bad (if you get people that planned to pay separately and tip that way, you could screw yourself over and make less $$.)

the only thing i liked about waiting tables was walking fast.. i lost weight and my legs toned up.

Well the very first advice I can give is try to find another job /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />

Being a waitress is headache. Atleast for me. Don't think that I am demoralizing you, but yes it is a headache job.

I've been doing this for a few days now and I have mixed feelings about it.  The first day I came home and cried, and sat in my car and tried not to cry before my shift the next day lol.  Since then I've got the hang of it, it's not hard to do at all but it does suck, and it's a lot of work.  I enjoy working with lots of my friends, we have a lot of fun and many of the customers are delightful. Others are just bleh.  But I just don't like it.  It kinda makes me feel like a 2nd class citizen serving other people and being bossed around and yelled at by the managers to do things you've already done and this and that.  Not saying I'm too good to be a waitress, I just kinda feel objectified and stuff and I dunno if I'm the kind of person to deal with that the right way, haha.  I thought I could talk to my customers and have fun with them but most of them seem to just want me to serve them and not talk at all.  I dunno, we'll give it some more time and if I still hate it I'll look for another job.

My feet hurt so bad!!!!

I would stick around long enough to use it as a work experience for other jobs.  Although you may not like it, work it to your advantage for the future.  Although it may be a job that you hate but it does provide a source of different experiences that other employees are looking for - cash handling and customer service.  You can also take that restaurant experience to work at a different restaurant with the atmosphere that you are looking for.  Find comfy-er shoes.

yeah there's actually entire brands of shoes made for people who stand on their feet at work all day that look work appropriate, so they have the feel of tennis shoes but still look employee worthy.

But definitely stick through it at least a couple of months...it always takes at least a month or two to feel "alright, I can do this, I'm familiar with everyone and how they are, and I know what I'm doing!"

Especially if you need the money, stick with it until you can find a job with another employer and show them that you actually kept a job (instead of being someone who had a job for a week or two then quit!)  at least stay long enough to be able to learn things and master things that can get you that next job up.

I remembered some of my friends in college -- they worked their way up in the table waiting world...you get yourself enough experience to be in like a 5 star steakhouse, where the bills end up being hundreds of dollars, it's not unusual to get a $20-50 tip or more for a table.  (I remember them telling about how some of the rich folks would drop a $100 tip sometimes!)

Many of my friends also waited tables in college and they would usually clear about $200-300 on a weekend night - $400-500 for friday, saturday and sunday job only.  I delivered pizzas while going to school.  I made about $300-400 wage+tip for friday-sunday.  It paid for my school expenses and some tuition.  You can't make that working at a clothing store.

enjoy your new job /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />

Shew I wish this place would allow me to rake in that much.  It's like super busy at dinner and lunchtime but the rest of the day it's completely dead.  So far the most I've made on a night shift is 60 bucks and like 20 on a day shift...hardly feels worth it sometimes.  But it's still nice walking out with more money than I came in with.

Originally Posted by divadoll /img/forum/go_quote.gif

Many of my friends also waited tables in college and they would usually clear about $200-300 on a weekend night - $400-500 for friday, saturday and sunday job only.  I delivered pizzas while going to school.  I made about $300-400 wage+tip for friday-sunday.  It paid for my school expenses and some tuition.  You can't make that working at a clothing store.

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$60 on a 7 hr shift is still $10/hour because you are not taxed on gratuities and you'll add your hourly wage on top.  I don't think that is chump change either.  For someone without waitressing experience, its pretty good.  What's minimum wage in your area?  Ours is $8.00 in BC, so if you are making minimum in BC, you'll be at $18 an hour.  There are people working in offices for much less than you are that have more educational requirements and experience.
 

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Originally Posted by kaylin_marie /img/forum/go_quote.gif

Shew I wish this place would allow me to rake in that much.  It's like super busy at dinner and lunchtime but the rest of the day it's completely dead.  So far the most I've made on a nquiight shift is 60 bucks and like 20 on a day shift...hardly feels worth it sometimes.  But it's still nice walking out with more money than I came in with.s

taxes are odd in the states -- a lot of employers will pay less than minimum wage, and expect that the wait staff supplement their income with their tips (tips are "supposed" to be all reported and taxed like the rest of the income too)  I think I've heard some places only paying $2-3/hour, but they're expected to earn the rest of the minimum wage in tips.

Haha I make 2.13 an hour. And 60 is the most I've made so far on a 7 hr night shift. So far its typically been about 40 which added with my hourly pay is less than minimum wage here.

In Canada, 15% of your tips are 'expected' to be reported.  I don't really think people keep close tabs on reporting anything at all. A lower wage less than minimum wage is only for those restaurants where higher tips are expected.  Working at a fancy restaurant, you'd working for tips only but tips would be expected at 15%+ of a high tab.

It's definitely not like that in the US.  I don't know any waitresses or waiters that make minimum wage except maybe pizza hut or sonic or something where people rarely even tip anyway.  Most wait staff makes between 2-3 bucks an hour, and minimum wage here in Tennessee is 7.25 I believe.  I'm trying to get a job driving for this local pizza place that's really popular.  My friend delivers for them and he makes $5 an hour and makes around $100 a night in tips.  Better than 2.13 an hour and 50 in tips if Im lucky...

Delivering pizzas are definitely much easier than waitressing, that's for certain.  You'd have to be careful about crime tho.  I was held up at gun point once...same night as some guy delivery driver was shot. 

Advice?

Yes don't spill anything on anybody.