People interact with the food service industry in one way or another on a daily basis — whether it’s by eating at a restaurant, ordering takeout, or getting food delivered through an app like UberEats or GrubHub. While we get to enjoy the convenience of these services, what happens behind the scenes after a food service employee clocks in can be a real eye opener. From dining-in to counter service to deliveries, these jobs are done by millions of people that more often than not, get taken for granted.

My proposal: everyone should work at a restaurant, cafe, bar or fast food joint for AT LEAST a month. People would learn about the daily life of food service employees, how their food gets treated and what it’s like being on the other side of the counter or table.

1. Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezy

Not only is getting a job in the food service industry one of the easiest things to do, but also easy to keep and excel at. So far I’ve been hired at three different places (a national restaurant franchise, a frozen dessert shop, and a local restaurant), with none to little experience. I walked into each place and basically got hired on the spot. Or if you want to deliver food, nowadays all you need is a car/bike and the UberEats app. When it comes down to your job responsibilities, you are expected to serve food, give exceptional customer service, and clean up after them. For the most part these are all things lots of people already do – when they cook at home or work with customers at their own 9-5s. 

2. Cha-ching!

Depending on where you work, you could walk out the door with some big bucks! Waiters and waitresses rely on their tips as their source of income, and if everything adds up right, you could end up with several hundred dollars in your pocket every week or even every night. Your attitude and quality of service are extremely important, but factors like how busy it is and prices of food/drink items also play a part in how much your tips will be. But beware of those who will still stiff you, phenomenal service or not! Some restaurants take care of this problem by adding a gratuity to every single check automatically, some only for bigger parties, while others leave it completely up to the customers. When I worked at the franchised restaurant, I would leave with an average of $50 dollars a shift, working slow shifts and with most items on the menu being under $10. After one crazy busy shift and being the only server on the floor, I left with $150. However, at the local restaurant, it was easy to make over $100 on a slow night, and over $300 on the weekends. When it comes to working at counter service shops, it’s standard to be paid hourly, with a pooled tip jar.

3. My Food Was WHERE???

When you go out for dinner at a restaurant, or decide to grab a treat at a cafe, you expect it to be prepared and served with the same quality and cleanliness, if not better, than food at home. As a food server, I’ve seen what happens to food from the moment it is delivered to the store to when it is on a plate heading to customers. Unfortunately, the right precautions when it comes to food safety aren’t always taken (not saying you should doubt every single restaurant you walk into). For example, there are chefs that have placed containers with raw meat or food on the floor. Food is supposed to be stored at least six inches above the ground. When you eat at a restaurant you normally don’t worry about these things, but after working in food service you definitely become more aware.

4. The Customer is Always Right?

Amazing customer service is an essential part of working in food service. How can someone expect to enjoy their experience (as an employee or customer) if they have a bad attitude? When things go wrong, most people are nice and understanding, but servers and food service employees still have to take care of rude customers. I’ve been working in the industry for about a year and a half now, and I have encountered my fair share. (There are thousands of examples online about crazy customers and their demands.) In most cases, customers only interact with the server or delivery driver regarding any issues that may arise with their food or drinks. Yet, these people aren’t necessarily making your food or drinks and chances are, they have nothing to do with the issues you may be experiencing. A negative attitude towards food service workers can negatively impact everyone involved. 

 

5. Why You Should ALWAYS Tip Your Server

Like I mentioned before, servers rely on their tips to make their money every day. Some people might not know this, but the hourly wage for servers is a measly $2.13 an hour. This can vary (by a dollar or so) based on the role within a restaurant, but either way, if minimum wage isn’t considered a livable wage, there’s no way this should be. Another thing that people might not realize is that servers DO get taxed on their tips – cash AND credit alike. So think twice the next time you want to stiff your server, for something that might not even be their fault. 

After only a month at my first waitressing job, I had enough time to experience everything amazing and terrible that comes with working in the food service industry. And it’s definitely enough time to change any person’s view on how food service employees are treated. Like with any career, there are obviously pros and cons.