Steps of Service in Fine Dining
1. Acknowledge the guests upon arrival with eye contact and a smile
2. Greet the guests with a smile and a friendly positive attitude within 2 minutes after seating. Use
the name of the restaurant and your name:
“Ladies and Gentlemen welcome to Grand Lux Café, my name is Ned and I will be taking care of you
today
3. Make sure you are shaved (for male waiters), with a proper haircut and clean uniform
4. Suggest cocktails and take a drink order
1. The first thing we try to sell to the guests is the daily specials! ( ability to do so will increase your
authority in front of management and the chef tremendously!)
– knowledge – learn everything about the specials in detail. If the guest sense that you don’t know
what are you selling, you lose their trust!
– talk with confidence – it is better to test the product to be able to sell it with confidence but that is
not the case with us every time. You know your chef and if you have confidence in him sell his special
with the same confidence to the guests!
– bring sparkles to your eyes, be passionate about the specials and describe them in a personal way.
For example:
“Oh, it’s totally amazing. Our Chef is from Perugia, Italy and he prides himself on doing everything
authentic Italian!
“I will just tell you that our pizza Chef is called Gerardo Pizzi and he is from Napoli. Everything this
guy is doing comes from the heart!”
-make sure that you can answer any question that the guests may ask about the food!
2. The second thing we could try and sell to the guests is aperitifs! – The easiest way here is if the
management has thought about daily cocktails we can suggest and sell. If not we should ask the
guests if they want a cocktail or a drink as we name a few of the best aperitifs we serve in the
restaurant:
“- May I offer you a cocktail or a drink? Maybe a glass of prosecco, a glass of champagne, or would
you like to start with a bottle of water?”
A lot of guests don’t know what they want to drink until they hear it from you. I have figured it out
that a glass of prosecco is the most ordered drink once they hear you saying the name!
Don’t feel bad about selling drinks and being pushy! The people go out to eat, drink and have fun!
We try to enhance their experience by giving them ideas and options they might not think about at
the moment! …and the few other people…just don’t worry about them!
3. The third thing we are required to sell is appetizers, salads, or soups! – Here is where we have to
be careful not to come as pushy! Not everyone can eat a three-course meal!
The best approach is to simply ask! If the guest orders directly main course we ask:
“- You are not having a salt or an appetizer?” – just to make sure we have not missed something.
Then when everyone has ordered the food and only one or two people from the party have ordered
appetizers I apply a simple but effective trick. I tell the guests what is going to happen next!
“- So ladies and gentlemen I am going to first bring the appetizer for this gentleman, and after that,
all the main courses will be served together! Is that fine with you?
50% of the time some of the people on the table will order an appetizer as well because they just
realized that they have to wait while someone else is eating and they don’t want to!
Only once (in my entire career) the person with the appetizer has given up on it so the others don’t
wait!
4. The fourth and probably most important thing we have to sell is wine! – A nice bottle of wine
increases your check average and enhances your guests’ experience like nothing else!
To be able to sell wine you need knowledge! Learn the wine list in the restaurant very well!
Wine selling and up-selling as a waiter:
– Bring the wine list to the table but don’t suggest you help the guests make their choice! Some
guests have better knowledge than us and some get offended that we think they are not capable of
choosing their own wine! Here is what I exactly say:
“- Here is the wine list. We have some excellent local wines in there and of course some hidden
Italian gems!” – This tells the guests that you know the wine list very well and you are ready to help
them. Believe me, they want to find those excellent local wines or those Italian gems for their dinner!
When the guests ask for your suggestions you can start with some of the best bottles you have on
the list ( and most expensive) without really suggesting them and then move to lesser, more
affordable wines:
-What would you suggest for us tonight?
-Well, I would love to suggest the Sassicaia 2006 which is one of the best wines ever made and we
just happen to have a bottle of it here but if you are not looking for something so special I would
suggest you try some of the local wines. What kind of wine do you like to drink?
Always acquire what is the guest’s preference before you really suggest a wine!
5. Selling dessert and coffee – those are very profitable items and the management loves to see we
are selling them to increase the profit!
The best thing is to engage the guests when they are finished with their main course and you are
cleaning the plates. Ask them if they are satisfied and let them know what an exceptional dessert is
awaiting them next! Choose one dessert that you think is really world-class in your restaurant and
concentrate on it. Talk about it with passion and excitement:
“-How was everything? Is everybody happy and satisfied?
“-Oh yes! It was wonderful!”
“Great! Nice to hear that because now it is getting even more wonderful once you try our world’s
best Tiramisu! I have never eaten anything like that before and I love tiramisu!”
Then, no matter the guest’s decision you suggest espresso or cappuccino and mention that they
could end the dinner with nice digestive by naming a few of them: Limoncello, Grappa and etc.
5. Deliver the food menus and the wine list
6. Present the specials of the day
7. Serve the drink within 4 to 6 minutes from the order! If not ready check with the bartender!
Advise the guests that the drinks are coming right away
8. Take the food order, repeat the order for clarity, and ask about the wine.
9. If needed, make a suggestion about the wine and repeat the wine order for clarity.
10. Send the food order to the kitchen with proper seat positions for every meal!
11. Bring bread and butter to the table
12. Maintain visual contact with the guests at all time
13. Remain friendly and attentive to the guests during the whole evening
14. Prepare the proper silverware for the guest’s order
15. Assure the appetizers are served within 6 to 8 minutes from order. If not check with the kitchen.
Advise the guests
16. Ask for a refill of drinks upon arrival of the appetizers or refill glasses periodically if the guests
have ordered a bottle of wine
17. Within 2 minutes or two bites (whichever is first) ask the guests if their meals are well prepared
and tasty. Take immediate action if a guest is not happy with his/her meal! Advise managers! (This is
probably the most important step from the whole sequence of service!)
18. Wait for all the guests to be finished with their meals before cleaning the plates.
19. Call the main course and assure all the guests have proper and clean silverware in front of them
20. Remove the bread, the butter, and the butter plates from the table if the guests are not going to
use any more bread with their main course.
21. Assure that the main course is served on time! 18 to 25 minutes (for well-done steaks). If not
check with the kitchen. Advise the guests.
22. Ask for a refill of drinks after serving the main course.
23. Wish the guests’ gut appetite and stay attentive in case they need something.
24. Within 2 minutes or 2 bites (whichever is first) acquire if everything is well prepared and testy
with their meal. Take appropriate action if a guest is not happy with his/her meal. Advise a manager
25. Wait for all the guests to be finished with their meal before removing the plates!
26. Remove all the silverware and condiments from the table
27. Suggest dessert and coffee and prepare the proper silverware for the order. Bring sugar if coffee
is ordered.
28. Assure the tea or the coffee is served promptly. Check with the bartender if not.
29. Assure the dessert is served within 6 minutes from the order. Check with the kitchen if not.
Advise the guests.
30. Ask the guests if everything is well prepared and testy 2 minutes or 2 bites after delivering the
desserts.
31. Remove empty coffee cups immediately from the table
32. Wait for all the guests to be finished with dessert before removing the plates
33. Remove everything from the table
34. Suggest digestive and ask if the guests have some other wishes.
35. Bring the check immediately if they don’t have any other wishes
36. Take care of the payment immediately
37. Thank the guests for their visit and welcome them back with a smile and friendliness
38. Prepare the table for the next party immediately after the departure of the guests
