what do restaurant hostess do? whats the difference between hostess and waitress?

Question

any tips on getting a hostess job is also appreciated!
thanks guys :)

Answer 1

To me there one in the same.

Answer 2

Hostesses direct the patrons to their table, and hand them their menus. Their main job, beside greeting people and making them feel welcome, is to make sure the servers (waitresses) are not everwhelmed by too many customers are once. They should be able to keep a nice balance between the servers. There will always be servers who are not able to handle as many patrons as others. If the Hostess is on the ball, she will recognize this fact, and keep that servers load lighter.
To get a Hostess job, the most important requirement employers look for besides experience, is grooming. The Hostess is the first person patrons see when they enter the restaurant. Thus, she makes the first impression. Next would be the ability to be polite in all situations.
The difference between a Hostess and a Waitress (server) is that the servers take the food and drink order, know their menu to enable them to offer suggestions, have the ability to remember who order what at the table, and should be able to serve the meals correctly, while anticipating their patrons further needs.
A good server should be able to do so without appearing stressed, while at the same time being friendly without being overly friendly, as well as courteous.
Good luck to you.

Answer 3

A hostess usually greets and seats customers.

In the restaurant where I worked the hostesses could be called upon to help the waitresses if they needed it. So a hostess would greet and seat guests, sometimes help bring items to the table if a waitress was too busy, and they also cleaned and bussed tables on busy nights.

Waitresses are the main person waiting on the guest. They get the guest all items that they need. Sometimes a waitess may delegate a hostess to bring an item over, but it is still the waitress who is taking care of the guest.

Answer 4

hostesses greet people at the door, take names if there is a waiting list, seat people, take reservations, and serve the customers their drinks and/or anything that is free (like breasticks, bread,etc...)

Waitresses take and deliver your order. some places waitresses bus the tables as well. Waitresses also have to give the hostess a percentage of their tip in a lot of restaurants(and hostesses get a bigger wage)

As far as geting a job, go to local mall or wherever there might be a lot of restaurants in your area and look for Now hiring signs. In most cases, if you just walk in to any restaurant you can ask if they are hiring for hostesses and they will probably tell you YES!!

Answer 5

(I LOVE Alexandra's answer)

As a fine dining head host & reservationist, I place reservations and plan large group events. I check coats, I maintain restrooms, I make sure the kitchen is aware of any special arrangements (allergies, preferences, that guy that wants an engagment ring baked into a dessert, etc.) I plan the seating arrangements for the evening (If a guest has reserved a table for 3, I make the the servers have removed that extra setting from a 4 top.) I confirm reservations. I make sure all my servers get seated evenly and sparadically. I plan special events to get guests to return (like beer or wine dinners or benefits) I keep the restaurant in stock of beauty treatments (i.e. flowers, cleaning supplies, candles, etc.) I run food, I bus tables (I am an employee first and a hostess second!) I am the first and last face a guest see's. I make sure they enter and leave happy. I anticipate a guests needs. I try to handle complaints before they go to a manager.

The host I would be most likely to hire would be able to think & react quickly and positively in stressful situations. My current one one is not able to nor is she very self sufficient. So she's gotta go.
I would reccomend learning OpenTable. Alot of restaurants are getting rid of the old reservation book and using that computer program. A host should be soft spoken but should still be able to command respect when needed.

Answer 6

First of all they are the first thing you see when you go inside a restaurant, so they gotta be very neat and nice, this doesn't mean preety or skinny, they just need to take care of their hair and attire, now a waiter is the one that serves the food and they get tips! they also have to look good, meaning a clean look. To be a hostess you gotta be prepared to deal with children screaming, angry managers, and very rude people that want to be sitted right away. You gotta have a good memory and a lot of patience. Basicly the same thing aplys to a waitress except they depend on that to meake money, because if they don't have those three they don't get a good tip :(

Answer 7

as a hostess/host you are in charge of meeting and greeting customers and fullfilling any specialrequirements they have, once the customer is seated you then have the most important job of all making sure thier stay is a pleasant one and they will return time and time again, hopefully with many new clients. as a waiteress/waiter your job is to present menus and give suggestions and answer questions about the fare on offer, you are the main link between the customer and the kitchen so makeing sure you get the orders correct is vital, you dont want an angry chef or customer yelling at you. most important to both jobs is to smile and be sincere most people can pick up on fake waiters. good luck the hospitality industry can be very rewarding for the right people.

Answer 8

A hostess greets and seats customers and gives them their menus, while a waiter or waitress takes the customers' order and then brings the order to the table. To be a hostess you must be good with people and able to handle pressure from customers and the waitstaff.

Answer 9

hostesses usually greet and seat customers. waitresses actually take orders and bring the customers their food. depending on what restaurant you work at, you will recieve a pay check, AND the wait-staff will tip out a certain portion to you on nights when you do things that they would normally do. this will most likely happen on the nights that the place is the most busy. they do it this way to make sure everyone gets off work as quickly as possible, and so that no one person or couple of people stay a lot later than they have to.

as far as advice goes, make sure you take your biggest smile to work everyday!

Answer 10

There is a big difference. On the surface, they appear to be the same and I would agree that almost anyone can serve a dinner tray or drink. However, flight attendants are very well trained for the "what ifs" so to speak. Many people don't make it through training because they "freeze" when it comes to practicing for emergencies. Examples....if you have to prepare the cabin for an emergency landing, you've got to be calm and keep it together. When a passenger has a heart attack, you are the one who has to perform CPR. If a passenger is angry, you are stuck there dealing with it until things are resolved. You can't just comp his dinner and say goodbye. I have sat down in a seat to calm a child who was out of control screaming and the mother did nothing. A friend of mine did use the AED on a man and he died. She had to comfort his wife the best she could for the remainder of the flight. That was the toughest day for her. So, you see, these things don't happen everyday, but we are trained to handle a boatload of things that the passengers wouldn't even think about when they get onto an airplane.

Answer 11

I believe that the hostess is the person standing at the door and takes your name if there is a wait. They are also the ones that seat you and give you your menus. A waitress takes your order and gives you your food, drinks, etc.