Server resume: a restaurant example and how to write yours

Example resume

Example

Kayla Nguyen

Restaurant Server | Upscale Casual and Brunch | Available nights and weekends

kayla.nguyen@example.com · (512) 555-0182 · Austin, TX

Summary

Restaurant server with 4 years on the floor, from a 24-hour diner to an upscale casual dining room. Runs a 6-table section of about 110 covers on Friday and Saturday dinner, with a $48 check average per guest. Fast on Toast and Aloha, trained on allergens and responsible alcohol service. Open availability, including doubles and holidays.

Experience

Apr 2024 - Present

Server, Upscale Casual Dining Room (140 seats)

Juniper Table · Austin, TX · Full-time, evenings and weekends

• Serve a 6-table section, about 110 covers on Friday and Saturday dinner and 70 at Sunday brunch.
• Raised my check average from $41 to $48 per guest in 6 months by suggesting appetizers and wine pairings from the seasonal menu.
• Sold the most bottles of wine on the team for 4 of the last 6 months.
• Trained 5 new servers on Toast handhelds, table numbers and the allergen checklist.
• Named in 30+ online reviews in 2025 for service and menu recommendations.

May 2022 - Mar 2024

Server, then Host and Busser

Copper Kettle Diner · Round Rock, TX · Part-time during school

• Started as host and busser, promoted to server after 4 months.
• Served up to 9 booths and the counter on weekend breakfast rushes, about 150 guests a shift, on Aloha POS.
• Closed out the register and side work for the overnight shift twice a week.

Education

Aug 2018 - May 2022

High school diploma

Westbrook High School · Round Rock, TX

Mar 2025

Food handler certificate and seller-server alcohol training (valid through 2027)

State-approved online courses · Austin, TX

Skills

• Table and section management
• Menu knowledge and upselling
• Wine and cocktail recommendations
• Allergen and dietary requests
• Toast and Aloha POS
• Cash handling and split checks
• Responsible alcohol service (ID checks)
• Training new servers

Languages

• English native speaker
• Vietnamese B2 · fluent

Interests

Home baking · Weekend farmers market volunteer

Kayla started as a host and busser at a diner, became a server there, then moved to a larger upscale casual restaurant. Her server resume is one page, and a manager can see in the first lines what kind of room she works, how busy her section is, and that she is free on the nights that are hard to staff.

What this restaurant server resume does well, and you can copy:

• the headline says the type of restaurant and the availability, the two things a scheduler sorts by;
• each job gives the size of the room or the section and the covers on a busy shift;
• the numbers are the ones a manager follows: check average, wine sales, reviews;
• the promotion from host to server shows that the first employer trusted her;
• the point of sale systems are named, so she needs less training on day one.

You can start from the same layout or pick another one among our resume templates, and switch at any time without retyping.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) calls the job waiters and waitresses, “also called servers”. The work: greet guests and explain the specials, take orders and send them to the kitchen through the point of sale, serve food and drinks, check on the table, verify that guests are old enough to buy alcohol, prepare the check and take payment, then set and clear tables. Before service, servers often meet with the manager and chef about the menu, the specials and food allergies.

Behind those tasks, a manager reading your server resume has five questions:

• Can you handle our pace? A 24-hour diner, a sports bar, a hotel restaurant and a tasting menu are not the same job.
• How big a section? Tables, covers a shift, the busiest service you have worked.
• Do you sell? Check average, add-ons, wine or dessert sales.
• Are you legal to serve alcohol and handle food? The certificates the city or state asks for.
• When can you work? Nights, weekends, holidays, doubles.

The BLS counted about 2.3 million waiters and waitresses in 2025, 85 percent of them in restaurants and bars, and projects about 423,100 openings a year through 2035. Most of those openings come from servers who change jobs or leave the labor force, so restaurants hire often: a clear one-page resume gets you a trial shift faster than a long one.

1. Header: name, city and state, phone, email. No photo and no full address.
2. Summary: three lines with your years, the type of restaurant, your section and one number, plus your availability.
3. Experience: newest job first, with the restaurant type and size in the job line.
4. Certifications: food handler card, alcohol service training, with the expiration date.
5. Skills: service, sales, POS systems and the skills from the posting.
6. Education: high school diploma or GED, or the program you are in.
7. Optional: languages (a real asset with tourists and in many neighborhoods), volunteer work.

Large restaurant groups and hotel chains often take applications through an online portal with an applicant tracking system (ATS). Standard headings, one column and the words of the posting help your restaurant server resume get through it to a manager.

Two or three lines: your years and the kind of room, your section and one number, your availability or a certificate. More examples by career stage are in our resume summary guide.

“Took orders and served food” is on every server resume, and it tells a manager nothing. Swap the duty for the size of your section and a result. The numbers you need are on your end-of-shift report or in your memory:

More bullets you can adapt, with your own numbers:

• Served private events of 20 to 60 guests in the restaurant's banquet room, with set menus and timed courses.
• Handled split checks, gift cards and comps on Toast with a balanced cash-out every shift.
• Checked IDs for every alcohol order, following the state's rules and house policy.
• Kept a written allergy log for each table and passed it to the kitchen with every ticket.
• Picked up doubles and holiday shifts during the December rush.

The rules depend on where you work. The BLS notes that some states, counties and cities require training on the laws for selling alcohol, usually a few hours long, online or in-house, and that some states require food safety training. Some states also require servers who pour alcohol to be at least 18.

• Read the posting: it often names the card it wants.
• Write the exact name of the certificate, the issuing program and the expiration date.
• Renew an expired card before you apply: an expired date on a server resume reads as a gap.
• If you don't have the card yet, say when you will: “Food handler card: course scheduled for May 2027”.

The BLS lists the qualities that matter in this job: communication, customer service, attention to detail, physical stamina and strength. Prove them in your bullets, and add the hard skills a manager screens for:

• Point of sale: Toast, Aloha, Micros, Square, Clover, TouchBistro. Write the ones you have used.
• Payments: cash handling, split checks, comps and voids, end-of-shift cash-out.
• Menu and beverages: wine, beer and cocktails, coffee drinks, allergens and dietary requests.
• Service styles: high-volume casual, fine dining, banquets and events, bar or counter service.
• Teamwork: working with the kitchen, hosts, bussers and the bar; training new hires.

Choose 6 to 10 skills from the posting. Our guide to skills for a resume shows how to pick them.

Serving is one of the easiest restaurant jobs to start. According to the BLS, waiters and waitresses typically need no formal education, some employers prefer a high school diploma, and training happens on the job, from several days to a few weeks with an experienced server.

• Start closer to the floor: host, busser, food runner or barista jobs lead to a server position, and many restaurants promote from within.
• Use every customer job: cashier, retail, front desk, concession stand, catering help at events.
• Show you are reliable: school attendance, sports practice, volunteer shifts you never missed.
• Give your availability: nights and weekends are what restaurants need most.

Our high school student resume and resume with no work experience show the full page. Leaving the floor for an office or a call center? Our customer service resume shows how to turn your restaurant work into phone and chat support.

• One page, newest job first, with no photo, age or marital status: that is the practice in the United States.
• A simple layout, sent as a PDF, or printed if you drop it off in person before the lunch rush.
• No vague duties: “served customers” without a section, a pace or a number.
• No missing availability: managers schedule first, then read.
• No old jobs that don't help: keep the last 3 to 5 restaurant jobs, or about 10 years.
• No typos on menu words: check the spelling of dishes, wines and the restaurant's name.

Applying online? Check your file with our AI resume checker: a score out of 100, the reason for every lost point, and the words of the posting your server resume is missing. Before the interview or trial shift, prepare your answer to tell me about yourself.