Teamwork

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Chapter Four

Initiating the Service

Objectives After reading this chapter, you will be able to:

✔ Understand how to seat guests to control the traffic flow in the dining room.

✔ Discuss how to approach guests who are seated.

✔ Identify techniques for taking orders.

✔ List many questions to ask guests who are ordering.

✔ Describe two techniques for taking orders.

✔ Identify four methods of taking orders.

✔ Discern between appropriate and inappropriate topics of conversation.

✔ Prepare to answer common questions guests may ask.

✔ Know how to make suggestions and increase the size of the guest check.

✔ Manage the timing of the service and meal.

✔ Identify the methods of placing orders in the kitchen.

✔ Describe ways servers are notified that their orders are ready to be served.

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62 CHAPTER 4 Initiating the Service

Initiating the service means beginning the service. It includes greeting and seat- ing the guests, taking the orders, timing the meal, and placing and picking up the orders in the kitchen. Appropriate conversation, answering questions, and making suggestions to increase sales are also important parts of the initial service.

Seating Guests

WHO SEATS GUESTS?

Guests may be greeted and seated by the maı̂tre d’hôtel, the host, or the head server, who keeps track of open tables, assigns waits, and seats people as their turn or reservation comes up. This process can make guests feel immediately welcome and give them a good first impression of the restaurant. It also allows the maı̂tre d’hôtel or host to control the traffic flow of guests in the dining room by seating guests evenly among stations and staggering the seating. Some restaurants use seating management software on their computer to help the host track reservations and seating (see Restaurant Reservations and Table Management in Chapter 7). Guests are allowed to select their own tables, booths, or counter spaces in some restaurants.

WHERE TO SEAT GUESTS

Common sense dictates where parties of guests should be placed in a dining room. Utilize tables according to party size. For example, seat a large family at a large round table and a couple at a smaller table for two, called a deuce (Figure 4-1).

Public health is protected by law. Clean indoor air statutes prohibit smoking in public establishments in many states. Other states limit smoking to designated smoking areas of restaurants. These areas must be set aside from nonsmoking areas and posted for smoking. Seat smokers in smoking sections and nonsmokers away from them in nonsmoking sections.

Loud, noisy parties may be placed in private rooms or toward the back of the dining room so they do not disturb other guests. Elderly guests or guests with disabilities may wish to be near the entrance to minimize walking distances. Young couples like quiet corners and good views. Of course, if guests request a specific location, you should try to accommodate them.

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Seating Guests 63

FIGURE 4-1 Table for Two: Seat two people at a table for two called a deuce. Photo by S. Dahmer

HOW TO SEAT GUESTS

Approach guests with words of greeting, such as “Good evening.” Guests will inform you when they have reservations. When they do not have reservations, ask them, “How many are in your party?” and, if appropriate, “Would you like to be seated in a smoking or nonsmoking area?” When there appears to be one person, ask, “Table for one?” instead of “Are you alone?” If guests must wait for seating, take a name or provide a coaster pager (see Guest Paging in Chapter 7), and tell them you will notify them when a table becomes available. If there is dining seating available, take clean menus and lead the guests to the table.

When women are in the party, a maı̂tre d’hôtel or head server seats one or more of them in the seats with the best view (Figure 4-2). The men in the party usually assist in seating the other women present. A female host or server generally pulls out the women’s chairs to indicate where they may be seated, but does not actually seat them. When patrons will be placed at wall tables with banquette seats on one side, the tables may be pulled away from the seats by the maı̂tre d’hôtel or host so that guests may be seated easily. An open menu is presented to each guest, and friendly conversation is carried on throughout this initial service. At this time,

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64 CHAPTER 4 Initiating the Service

FIGURE 4-2 Woman Being Seated: The mâıtre d’hôte or headserver seats the women in a party of guests, although the men in the party may assist some of the women themselves. Courtesy of Hennepin Technical College, Eden Prairie, Minnesota; Photo by S. Dahmer

remove table settings that will not be used, bring booster chairs or high chairs for children, and supply missing serviceware. Fill water glasses or have them filled by a busser.

CONTROLLING SEATING

To control the traffic flow in the restaurant, the greeter should avoid seating two groups of guests in the same station at the same time. Instead, parties should be seated in different stations so that any one server is not overburdened and the guests receive better service. The greeter should also stagger the seating of large parties so that servers will have equal opportunities to serve large groups without having too many of these groups at one time.

On a busy day, many restaurants are so popular that guests have to wait for a table. The waiting areas can be mini-destination areas, where guests enjoy first courses and beverages before moving into the dining room for the main course. The greeter should be sure guests are seated in order of their arrival and registration. Guests with reservations should be given seating preference at their appointed times.

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Taking Orders 65

Approaching the Guests The server should approach the guests after they have had time to look at the menu. Approach the host of the party first, because he or she may wish to order for the guests. The host is the spokesperson and will address the server for the entire group. He or she is the person most attentive to the welfare of all the members of the party and often takes the seat at the head of the table. Approach the host first from the left, and if he or she does not wish to order for the others, begin taking the order from the next person to the right.

When approaching guests to begin service, greet the party of guests with a friendly, appropriate greeting such as “Hello” or “Good evening.” Some restaurant managers like you to announce your name and that you will be the server for the meal. Inform the guests of unlisted specials and your recommendations at this time, and then ask, “Would you like to order a cocktail or beverage?”

If you are busy with another table when the newest party of guests is seated in your station, approach the new group and tell them you will be with them shortly. They will appreciate your attention and be patient knowing you will be with them as soon as possible.

Taking Orders

TECHNIQUE OF TAKING ORDERS

Stand erect to the left of the guest with the order pad supported in the palm of your hand and a sharp pencil ready (Figure 4-3). Never place your book or order pad on the table to take an order. Use one of the two following techniques to help you identify the first person who orders and to know where to start serving when you bring the food:

1. Make a mental note of the first person who orders. If you are taking the order on paper rather than on the guest check, you may write down a unique characteris- tic identifying the first person. For example, note hair color, glasses, clothing, or tie. Then from that reference person, proceed taking orders counterclockwise around the table. When you serve the meal, you can serve exactly what each guest ordered without asking questions.

2. Note and circle the seat number of the first person who orders. Seat numbers should be understood in advance. For example, the seat on the kitchen side of the table can be known as seat number one, the seat to the left of this seat going counterclockwise is seat number two, and so forth. If all servers use this system,

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66 CHAPTER 4 Initiating the Service

FIGURE 4-3 Taking the Order: When taking the order, the server stands erect and holds the order pad in the palm of the hand. Using a sharp pencil makes orders easy to read. Courtesy of PhotoDisc, Inc.

any other server or restaurant employee can deliver food to your table when you are busy.

Write clearly and systematically for your own benefit and that of the kitchen staff, who must prepare the order exactly according to your instructions. Take the order completely. A few of the many questions you may have to ask the guests are as follows:

� Whether drinks should be iced � Choice of salad dressing � Choice of vegetable or side � How meat should be cooked � Sour cream or butter on baked potatoes � How eggs should be cooked � When to serve coffee

Use common abbreviations known to kitchen staff when you take orders. Some common abbreviations are shown in Figure 4-4. To prevent error, you may repeat

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Taking Orders 67

Tuscan Chicken Soup - Ch soup Filet Mignon - F M

Mixed Greens Salad - Mx greens Rare cooked - r

Caesar Salad - Czr Medium rare cooked - mr

Hamburger - Hamb Medium cooked - m

French Fries - ff Medium well cooked - mw

Chicken Scallopini - Ch scal Well cooked - w

Cedar Planked Salmon - C P Salm Tiramisu - tira

Strip Steak - Strp stk Key Lime Crostata K L pie

FIGURE 4-4 Example of Menu Abbreviations: Servers and kitchen staff should agree on menu abbreviations. Using abbreviations speeds up writing and interpreting the order.

the order back to the guests for their confirmation, especially when the order is given in an irregular fashion. Retrieve the menu from each guest after you write his or her order.

METHODS OF TAKING ORDERS

There are four methods of taking orders in restaurants:

1. A checklist order system. With a checklist order system, the server simply selects the food choice from a preprinted list of menu items (Figure 4-5). The server indicates the quantity and size of each item and multiplies quantity times unit price to get the total for that item in the right-hand column. The right- hand totals are added for the guest check total at the bottom. This system is used in short-order, fast-food establishments with a limited menu.

2. A guest-check order system. With a guest-check order system, the server hand- writes the order directly on the guest-check form (Figure 4-6). The bar order is written on the back, and the food order is recorded on the front of the check, or the bar order may be taken on a separate check. The food check is placed in the kitchen and filled by the chef in turn with other orders. It is returned to you when you pick up the meal from the kitchen. The bar total is added to the food total, and the check is presented to the guest for payment. Taking the order directly on the guest check is most satisfactory when the menu is printed with numbered meal combinations such as breakfasts and lunches. This method is

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FIGURE 4-5 Checklist Order Form: A server needs to indicate the quantity or size of each item selected and extend the amount of the charge on a checklist order like this.

best used when the kitchen is a single unit, so that the check does not have to be excessively handled.

3. A notepad order system. With a notepad order system, the server makes a chart on a blank pad of paper. Each food course is listed at the heading of a column, and guests are noted down the left margin. The choices that the guests make are then noted under the appropriate headings (Figure 4-7). A glance at a column quickly indicates the entire party’s choices of cocktails, salads, entrées, or other

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Taking Orders 69

FIGURE 4-6 Guest Check: The server writes the order neatly and legibly on a guest check form like the one shown here. Courtesy of PhotoDisc/Getty Images

FIGURE 4-7 Example of an Order on a Pad of Paper: A server-written order may be taken on a pad of paper in chart form, as shown here.

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70 CHAPTER 4 Initiating the Service

food courses. Carbon copies are made, parts of the order are rewritten, or the order is keyed into the computer for the kitchen staff (See Taking Orders Using a POS System in Chapter 7), and the original order is retained by the server, who uses it to serve cocktails, appetizers, salads, and other items. After the meal, the server summarizes the order on a guest check or prints a guest check on the computer and presents the check to the guest for payment.

A notepad system of taking the order is advantageous when the guests order full-course meals and the servers are responsible for plating and/or garnishing some courses, such as soups, salads, and desserts, and serving them in the proper order. This method of taking the order is also used with a multiunit kitchen consisting of separate chefs for steam table foods (stews, soups), grilled foods (eggs, steaks, chops), and cold foods (salads, appetizers, desserts).

4. Handheld computer order system. With a handheld computer order system, an order is taken directly on a handheld computer by touching prompts or writing on the screen with a stylus (see Handheld Order Terminals in Chapter 7). The order is sent electronically to the kitchen and bar.

Appropriate Topics of Conversation Brief conversation with guests, or small talk, is a pleasant part of your job and makes the guests comfortable in restaurant surroundings. Keep comments and topics positive in nature; you can always find something nice to say. Small talk may include complimentary comments about menu items, food suggestions, and opinions about the weather. Avoid any negative comments, such as those that may concern coworkers or the restaurant owners and the specifics of problems in the kitchen. Also resist the temptation to discuss your personal life or that of the guest. Keep small talk short and pleasant while attending to your work as a server. If guests are busy talking among themselves, attend to your business of serving without entering into the conversation.

Answering Questions As a server, you are asked questions about food, the restaurant, the community, and even the state. Prepare yourself to answer questions by reading and listening. Be knowledgeable enough to answer questions intelligently and “suggestive sell” (discussed in the next section). You should know the following information about your restaurant:

� The hours, phone number, and address of the restaurant � The restaurant’s Web site

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Making Suggestions and Increasing Sales 71

� The menu and the ingredients in every dish served. Know the special of the day. Also know the general menu of other dining rooms and coffee shops on the premises and the hours they are open.

� Historic facts of interest about your restaurant and community � Events and attractions in the community, area, and state

If you are asked a reasonable question that you cannot answer, get the correct answer from someone who knows. For example, when a guest asks whether there are onions in the beef bourguignonne and you do not know, say, “I don’t know, but I’ll ask the chef.”

Many restaurants have a staff meeting at about 11:00 A.M. or 4:00 P.M. so that the host or maı̂tre d’hôtel can go over the menu for the day and announce changes in service. At this meeting, you are informed of the specials, soup selection, and dessert assortment, as well as about large groups that have reservations. In other restaurants, food and service changes are posted for you to read when you come to work.

Making Suggestions and Increasing Sales Suggestive selling is an extremely important task of servers in a restaurant. Suggestive selling means recommending the restaurant’s food, beverages, and ser- vices to guests to improve their restaurant experience and to increase the size of the guest check. Larger guest checks translate into increased profits for the restaurant and larger tips for you. Happy guests become regular patrons.

Suggest cocktails before the meal and perhaps cold or hot appetizers to enjoy with cocktails. Ask, “Ice water or bottled water?” Suggest side orders that com- plement the entrée, such as ham with omelets and mushrooms with steak. Also suggest beverages, desserts, and after-dinner cordials. Suggesting from dessert ta- bles is particularly advisable, because the mouthwatering display of desserts should almost sell themselves. Some dessert displays are on trays or mobile carts that can be wheeled directly to the guests’ tables for presentation. If you know that guests are celebrating, suggest the wine list or a birthday dessert or cake if your restaurant offers one. Another service is to suggest bringing an extra plate to divide a regular portion between children or to suggest children’s portions or menus.

During a special training session or periodic sessions in conjunction with menu changes, the manager or trainer may actually let you taste the foods served in the restaurant. This is a wonderful way to become acquainted with foods so that you can answer any questions and make recommendations. When asked to help a guest choose between two menu selections, say why you would recommend one. Do not degrade the second choice. Another way of helping a guest select is to describe the

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preparation and accompaniments of each, thus letting the guest decide according to the additional information.

Avoid being overbearing or pushy about suggesting foods and beverages. Sug- gest only in a helpful way, and be sure your suggestions are appropriate to the meal. Be specific when you suggest a food. Questions such as “Will there be anything else?” and “Would you like dessert?” are too general. Ask specifically whether the guests would like menu items such as the crème brûlée or the strawberry cheesecake. When they ask you what is good today, reply with a specific suggestion instead of saying, “Everything is good.” Or you might say, “Everything is good here, but my personal recommendation for today is .”

As you master the art of making specific suggestions, you can whet the guests’ appetites by using appropriate adjectives that tempt the palate. For instance, say, “Would you like to begin your meal with our crispy tostada appetizers topped with roast pulled pork, cilantro, lime, and onions?” or “May I suggest our wonderful signature dessert, coconut cream pie with brûléed bananas and caramel?” Or you may have an opportunity to describe a food item in appetizing terms such as “Our roast pork is made of the finest choice pork tenderloin with a maple fig demi glace” (Figure 4-8).

FIGURE 4-8 Dessert: To increase sales, whet the appetite of the guest by describing specific foods, such as this dessert, in mouthwatering terms. Courtesy of PhotoDisc, Inc.

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Placing Orders in the Kitchen 73

Timing the Meal The server has the responsibility to time the entire meal so that the pace of the meal is smooth, comfortable, and neither rushed nor delayed. You are the sole communication link between the guests and the kitchen. If guests indicate they are in a hurry, guide them to menu items that can be prepared quickly instead of rushing the chef.

After taking the complete order, the server must decide when to place it in the kitchen. A good rule of thumb is to submit the entrée order just prior to serving the appetizer. Hold the order for a short time when you see that the guests are lingering over cocktails.

In a single-unit kitchen, the chef sees that the entire order is ready at the same time. The only responsibility of the server is to submit the order as soon as possible. In a multiunit kitchen, the server coordinates the meal and submits the order in accordance with the length of time necessary to prepare the entrées. The meal order may have some entrées that take more preparation time than others (see Preparation Time in Chapter 3). Submit these orders in separate stages so that they are ready at approximately the same time. For example, knowing that pork chops and a medium steak take 15 minutes, a chef ’s salad takes 10 minutes, and beef burgundy is ready immediately, submit the grill order first, the salad order 5 minutes later, and the steam table order last. By placing the orders in this fashion, they are ready simultaneously, ensuring that hot foods are hot and cold foods are cold. In larger restaurants today, an expeditor coordinates all of the orders coming out of the kitchen. Dessert orders should be submitted and picked up immediately after the meal.

Placing Orders in the Kitchen The method of communicating orders to the kitchen staff varies among restaurants, depending on the size, type of kitchen, type of service, and availability of a computer system. There are three methods of communicating orders to the kitchen:

1. Spoken. In some restaurants, you orally communicate the order to the kitchen by entering the kitchen and clearly giving the order to the proper chef, who may write down the order.

2. Written. In some restaurants, the order may be written on a checklist or guest check and given to the chef, who can arrange all of the orders to be filled in sequence. Occasionally, in restaurants with larger or multiunit kitchens, servers

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TO GRILL CHEF

TO STEAM TABLE CHEF

TO SALAD CHEF

FIGURE 4-9 Example of Separate Orders to Kitchen Prep Areas: In some restaurants, servers have to rewrite parts of an order for the various food preparation areas in the kitchen.

use notepads and must rewrite parts of the order for the separate kitchen areas, as described previously. Separate kitchen area orders are shown in Figure 4-9.

3. Entered. In other restaurants, the order is keyed into a computer terminal and sent to the chef electronically (see Getting Orders to and from the Bar and Kitchen in Chapter 7).

Some forgetful servers put orders back in their jacket or apron pockets and neglect to submit them. Regardless of the method you use, chefs do not prepare orders until they receive them.

FIGURE 4-10 Pager: One of the several ways in which a server is notified that an order is ready is by pager. Courtesy of PhotoDisc, Inc.

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Picking up Orders from the Kitchen 75

Picking up Orders from the Kitchen There are various ways in which you may be notified that your order is ready to be picked up from the kitchen. A lighted number on the wall of the dining room may indicate that your order is ready, or the chef may take the responsibility of orally notifying you. Some servers wear pagers, electronic devices that signal them by beeping or vibrating, when their orders are ready (Figure 4-10).

Compare the food with the order to see that the order is complete. Be sure the food is attractively arranged and garnished. Remedy any of your mistakes or those of the chef at this time. Arrange the plates on the tray so that they are well balanced to carry to the table.

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KEY TERMS

Deuce Checklist order system Guest-check order

system

Notepad order system Handheld computer

order system

Suggestive selling Pagers

REVIEW

1. Which restaurant personnel are responsible for seating guests? 2. What determines the smoking policy in a restaurant? 3. Why is it advantageous to seat guests instead of allowing them to seat

themselves? 4. What are some of the clues that may help you identify the host of a party of

guests? 5. Describe one or more methods to help you remember the items each guest

ordered. 6. Why is the notepad order system most popular for dining rooms with table

d’hôte selections on the menus? 7. Why do order methods differ from one restaurant to another? 8. What topics are appropriate for conversation with guests? 9. What suggestions would you make in the following instances?

a. A guest orders apple pie. b. The guests have ordered cocktails before their meal. c. A couple is celebrating their anniversary. d. A guest orders a club sandwich.

10. Suggest the following menu items in appetite-whetting terms: a. Bruschetta b. Monte Cristo sandwich c. Veal and Pork Bolognese d. Cedar-planked salmon e. Baked Alaska

11. Explain the procedure for timing the following entrée meal order in a restau- rant with a multiunit kitchen: chateaubriand, red snapper, lamb chops, and lasagna.

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Case Problem 77

PROJECTS

1. Role-play seating the guests. Include conversation with the guests, placement of parties in the dining room, removal of extra serviceware, provision of water, and other services to make the guests comfortable.

2. Meet with service and kitchen personnel and agree on abbreviations for food items on the menu. Make a list and post it in the kitchen. Or, as a trainee group, make a list of common abbreviations from a menu. Discuss the necessity of uniform use of abbreviations by all personnel.

3. Practice taking orders from fellow trainees posing as guests. Be sure to include suggestive selling.

4. Describe the order-taking method used in your restaurant. Or, as a trainee group, select a familiar restaurant and discuss its order-taking methods.

5. Investigate community events and attractions that would interest your guests. Get information from city hall, the chamber of commerce, service clubs, news- paper, radio publicity, and historical societies.

6. Go to restaurants of various sizes and types and ask service personnel how they place and pick up orders in the kitchen. Bring the information to class and discuss it with other trainees.

CASE PROBLEM

Initiating the Service

A female executive is seated with her male client in your station at 1:00 P.M. She tells you they are celebrating the culmination of a large business deal, and they are ready to relax after a month of hard work. They are discussing the menu, and the executive is considering ordering a shrimp cocktail (an appetizer) as her lunch. Her guest is considering ordering a pasta entrée and a side salad selection. A topic of conversation is calories and how they both like to maintain healthful eating habits. They seem to have plenty of time to enjoy their lunch. Answer the following questions:

� What signs do you look for to identify the host? In this case, whom would you approach?

� What words would you use to initiate service? How would you use suggestive selling?

� How would you time this meal? � To whom would you present the check?