How to hire dining room and cafeteria attendants and bartender helpers
A job description you can copy, interview questions tied to the real work, and what to pay. Free.
Job description template
Copy it, fill in the brackets, and remove anything that does not fit your job. Keep only must-haves you would really turn someone away for.
[Job title] at [Company name] [City, State] · [Full-time / Part-time] · [Pay range] About the role [Two or three sentences about your team, the work and why it matters.] What you will do • Clean up spilled food or drink or broken dishes and remove empty bottles and trash. • Greet and seat customers. • Maintain adequate supplies of items, such as clean linens, silverware, glassware, dishes, or trays. • Run cash registers. • Scrape and stack dirty dishes and carry dishes and other tableware to kitchens for cleaning. • Serve ice water, coffee, rolls, or butter to patrons. • Set tables with clean linens, condiments, or other supplies. • Wipe tables or seats with dampened cloths or replace dirty tablecloths. What you bring • [Required license, certification or years of experience, if any] • [Education, only if you truly need it. Typical to start in this job: No formal educational credential] • Strong active listening skills • Working knowledge of customer and personal service • [Anything else you would really turn someone away for] Pay and benefits [Pay range]. For reference, the U.S. median for this job is $16.34 an hour ($33,980 a year). [Benefits, schedule and anything else candidates should know.] How to apply [Apply on JAI Bot. Every applicant hears back.]
Interview questions for dining room and cafeteria attendants and bartender helpers
Ask every candidate the same questions, in the same order, and write down what they say. Questions about past work show what someone has actually done.
- Tell me about a time you had to clean up spilled food or drink or broken dishes and remove empty bottles and trash. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
- Tell me about a time you had to greet and seat customers. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
- Tell me about a time you had to maintain adequate supplies of items, such as clean linens, silverware, glassware, dishes, or trays. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
- Tell me about a time you had to run cash registers. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
- Tell me about a time you had to understand a request or problem that was explained poorly. How did you make sure you got it right?
- Why this job, and why now? What would make you stay here for the long term?
Good answers name a real situation, what the person did themselves and what happened. Avoid questions about age, family plans, religion, health, national origin or anything else unrelated to the job.
What dining room and cafeteria attendants and bartender helpers do
- Clean up spilled food or drink or broken dishes and remove empty bottles and trash.
- Greet and seat customers.
- Maintain adequate supplies of items, such as clean linens, silverware, glassware, dishes, or trays.
- Run cash registers.
- Scrape and stack dirty dishes and carry dishes and other tableware to kitchens for cleaning.
- Serve ice water, coffee, rolls, or butter to patrons.
- Set tables with clean linens, condiments, or other supplies.
- Wipe tables or seats with dampened cloths or replace dirty tablecloths.
Skills that matter most
Education, experience and outlook for dining room and cafeteria attendants and bartender helpers
- Typical education to start: No formal educational credential (BLS)
- Related work experience most have: Up to 1 month (O*NET)
- Training on the job: Short-term on-the-job training (BLS)
- Job outlook: +5.3% over ten years, faster than average · about 95,300 openings a year (BLS)
What to pay dining room and cafeteria attendants and bartender helpers
Pay depends a lot on where the job is. Highest and lowest median yearly pay by state:
| State | Median yearly pay |
|---|---|
| Hawaii | $51,200 |
| Washington | $41,420 |
| District of Columbia | $39,080 |
| Maine | $38,560 |
| Maryland | $37,020 |
| Mississippi | $23,180 |
| Alabama | $22,470 |
| Texas | $21,550 |
See dining room and cafeteria attendants and bartender helpers pay in every state
Related hiring guides
- Food Servers, Nonrestaurant
- Fast Food and Counter Workers
- Waiters and Waitresses
- Food Preparation Workers
- Hosts and Hostesses, Restaurant, Lounge, and Coffee Shop
- Dishwashers
- Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners
- Bartenders
- Cooks, Short Order
- First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers
Post this job on JAI Bot. Free to start: JAI Bot reads every applicant against your must-haves, shows the resume evidence behind each one, and helps you reply to everyone. People make every decision.
Post a job freePay by areaJob duties and skills: O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license; O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. JAI Bot has modified this information; USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. Pay: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS, May 2025. Interview questions and the job description template: JAI Bot, based on the duties and skills above.