Is a waitress resume different from a server resume?

No. It is the same job and the same resume. Use the title the restaurant uses in its posting, server or waitress, so your resume matches it.

Do I need a certificate to be a server?

Most servers learn on the job in a few days to a few weeks. Some states require food safety training, and if you serve alcohol, most states require you to be at least 18 (some older) and some require a short alcohol training. Check your state's rules.

Should I put tips on my resume?

Usually not. Covers, section size and check average say the same thing more clearly, and you can talk about sales in the interview if they ask.

How do I get a serving job with no serving experience?

Start from the jobs around it: host, busser, food runner, counter or fast food. Write what you did in restaurant words, and say in your summary that you want to move to the floor.

Server resume: examples, skills and summary

What a restaurant manager looks for

Servers greet guests, explain the specials, answer menu questions, take orders and serve food and drinks. A manager reading your resume wants to know:

How busy you can handle. How many tables, how many covers on a Friday night.
What kind of place. Family restaurant, casual chain, fine dining, banquets.
What you know. The menu, allergens, wine or cocktails, the POS.
Whether you can serve alcohol. Your age and any alcohol training your state asks for.
When you can work. Nights, weekends and holidays are the busy shifts.

Say it in restaurant words

Managers read these words fast. Use them.

Instead of	Write
"Served many customers"	"About 35 covers on a Friday night"
"Waited on tables"	"Five-table section"
"Helped close"	"Closing side work and tip-out"
"Used the computer"	"Toast POS" (or whichever system you used)
"Knew the food"	"Know every dish's allergens"

Where to find your numbers: your end-of-shift report on the POS usually shows covers and check average, or ask your manager. Section size is on the floor chart.

Server resume examples: lines to copy

Work a five-table section, about 35 covers on a Friday or Saturday night. Know every dish's allergens and walk guests through the 12 wines by the glass. Trained four new servers on the menu, the POS and closing side work. Close out checks and tip-outs on Toast at the end of each shift. Served up to six tables at a time in a 140-seat family restaurant. Covered the host stand and ran food when the floor was short. Served parties of up to 20 in the private room, with set menus and split checks. Kept a check average above the restaurant's goal by suggesting appetizers and desserts.

Change the numbers to yours. If you are not sure, take a normal busy night, not your best one.

Server resume skills

Hard skills	Soft skills
Table service	Friendly and quick
Menu and allergen knowledge	Calm when the kitchen is behind
Wine and beer basics	Teamwork with the kitchen and bar
Suggestive selling	Remembering orders and regulars
POS (name yours)	Handling a complaint well
Cash handling and tip-out	Reliable on weekends
Large parties and banquets	Speaking a second language

Summary examples

Experienced server:

Server with four years in busy restaurants, from a 140-seat family place to a full-service bistro. I know the menu cold, keep a full section moving on a Saturday, and look after the new hires.

First serving job (coming from host, busser or counter work):

Host for a year at a busy family restaurant, ready to move to the floor. I know the menu, the table numbers and the regulars, and I already cover the floor when it is short. Available nights and weekends.

Certificates

If you have them, list them near the top:

ServSafe Alcohol, National Restaurant Association, 2024 ServSafe Food Handler, National Restaurant Association, 2024

Most states require people who serve alcohol to be at least 18, and some states set a higher age. Some states also require food safety training or a short course on alcohol laws. Check what your state and county ask for, and get it before you apply if you can.

First serving job

No floor experience yet? The jobs next to it count. Write them like serving jobs:

Host: "Seated about 200 guests on a Saturday and kept the waitlist moving."
Busser or food runner: "Reset tables for a 30-table floor and ran food for six servers."
Fast food or counter: "Took orders and payments during the lunch rush."

Mistakes to avoid

No numbers at all. Covers and section size are the numbers that count. Sales growth percentages are not.
Only "customer service." Every job says that. Say what you knew: the menu, the wine list, the allergens.
Missing your alcohol certificate. If you have one, it saves the manager a question.
Every restaurant job since you were 16. Keep the last three, or the ones that match.
More than one page.

You can build this on your phone here and download the PDF with a free account.

Server and waitress resume examples that sound like a real shift

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