Restaurant server job description template

What a restaurant server does

Servers set the tone for a meal. They're salespeople, hosts, problem solvers, and sometimes peacekeepers, all at once and on their feet for hours. Good servers ask about the section size, the tip pool, and how tips are paid before anything else, so those details belong in the job description. Tipped pay is also one of the most heavily enforced areas of wage law, so get the language right.

Restaurant server job description template

Copy the description, replace everything in [brackets], and cut any line that isn't true for your job. The duties and requirements are a starting point written by HR practitioners, not a legal standard, so edit them to match the real work.

Restaurant server

Details
- Department: [Department]
- Reports to: [Manager title]
- Location: [City, State, or remote]
- Employment type: [Full-time, part-time, or seasonal]
- FLSA status: Nonexempt
- Pay range: [$X to $Y per hour]

About [Company]
[Two or three sentences about what your company does, who it serves, and why people like working here.]

Job summary
We're hiring a server to give our guests friendly, attentive service, guide them through our menu, and make every visit one they want to repeat.

What you'll do
- Greet guests, present menus, and explain specials and menu items.
- Take accurate food and beverage orders and enter them in the POS system.
- Recommend dishes and drinks, including add-ons and desserts.
- Serve food and drinks promptly, and check back throughout the meal.
- Check ID for alcohol orders and serve responsibly.
- Handle payments and close out checks accurately.
- Set, clear, and reset tables and help with side work.
- Communicate allergies and special requests clearly to the kitchen.

What you'll need
- Friendly, upbeat communication with guests.
- Ability to carry trays, stand, and walk for an entire shift.
- Minimum age to serve alcohol in [State], if the role serves alcohol.
- Availability for nights, weekends, and holidays.

Nice to have
- Previous serving experience in a [casual or fine dining] restaurant.
- Food handler card or responsible alcohol service certification.
- Wine or cocktail knowledge.

Skills
Hospitality, Menu knowledge and upselling, Multitasking, Memory, Teamwork with the kitchen, Composure during a rush.

Physical demands and work environment
Restaurant dining room. Requires standing and walking for the full shift, carrying trays up to 25 pounds, and working in a hot, busy environment.

Pay and benefits
[$X to $Y per hour], based on experience and location. [List benefits, such as health insurance, retirement plan match, paid time off, and training.]

Equal opportunity
[Company] is an equal opportunity employer. We consider all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status, or any other status protected by law. If you need a reasonable accommodation to apply or interview, contact [name] at [email or phone].

How to customize it for your job

• State the hourly cash wage and whether tips are pooled.
• Say how tips are paid, such as daily or on payroll.
• Describe section size and covers per shift.
• List meal benefits and schedule flexibility.

Then check it against the HRTally job description standard, our 10-point checklist, and run it through the inclusive language swap list. Both take about five minutes.

How much to pay a restaurant server

Half of US waiters and waitresses earned more than $16.94 an hour in May 2025, and half earned less, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That national figure is a starting point, not a pay range. Pay for the same job can differ by 30 percent or more between metro areas, so check the BLS occupation profile for state and metro data before you set your range.

For hourly roles, the legal floor matters as much as the market rate. Check the current rate where the job is based in our minimum wage by state table, and the state's overtime and break rules in our state labor law library.

To convert between hourly and annual pay, use our salary to hourly calculator. If you hire in a state or city with a pay transparency law, the range must appear in the posting itself. Our pay transparency laws guide lists where, and our guide to salary bands explains how to set ranges you can defend.

Exempt status, licenses, and legal notes

FLSA status: Nonexempt (overtime eligible). Job titles don't decide overtime eligibility. Duties and pay do. Our guide to exempt vs non-exempt employees walks through each test, and the overtime calculator shows what a nonexempt employee is owed.

Federal law allows employers to pay tipped employees a cash wage as low as $2.13 an hour if tips bring them to at least $7.25, but many states require a higher cash wage, and several, including California, Washington, and Minnesota, don't allow a tip credit at all. Since 2018, managers and supervisors can't keep any part of employees' tips, and employers that take a tip credit can only include tipped staff in a mandatory pool. Explain tip pooling in writing at hire.

This is general information for US employers, not legal advice. Laws change and vary by state and city, so confirm the current rules or talk to employment counsel before you rely on them.

Interview questions to ask

Ask every candidate the same core questions and score answers against the same criteria. Structured interviews are fairer and predict job performance better than open conversation.

1. Tell me about a time a guest complained about their food. What did you do?
2. How do you handle a table with a severe food allergy?
3. Walk me through how you'd manage five tables seated at once.
4. How do you recommend a dish without sounding pushy?

When you're ready to schedule, use our interview invitation email template. For a full hiring process, read the recruitment process guide.

Frequently asked questions