Restaurants count on servers to provide exceptional customer service regardless of the situation. Interviewers will be looking for candidates who are skilled in communicating, multitasking, and maintaining a friendly attitude under pressure. Make sure to be familiar with the restaurant's menu items, understand standard restaurant operations, and know how to respond to an unsatisfied customer.
Here are three top server questions and how to answer them:
How to answer: This question, or variations of it, are popular in server interviews. Talk about how you would try to calm the customer down in a polite and respectful manner before asking management for assistance. Try to avoid any response that might involve you showing aggression toward the irate customer. Focus on effective conflict resolution, an important skill for servers to develop.
How to answer: Questions like these are designed to measure your skills in task and time management. Highlight your ability to quickly decide which tasks need priority over others. You might touch on your ability to stay calm in high-stress situations such as having to serve multiple tables at once.
How to answer: Before you go into a server interview, be sure to research the company you're applying to so that you'll be prepared to answer questions like these. This question is designed to see if you're truly interested in working for this company or simply interested in having a server position anywhere.