Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers

Facilitate food service. Clean tables; remove dirty dishes; replace soiled table linens; set tables; replenish supply of clean linens, silverware, glassware, and dishes; supply service bar with food; and serve items such as water, condiments, and coffee to patrons.

Also Known As:

Barback Buffet Attendant Bus Boy Bus Person Busser Dining Room Attendant Food Service Aide Food Service Helper Server Assistant Server's Assistant

Wages

Hourly

Annual wages for Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers in United States

Job Outlook Bright

New job opportunities are very likely in the future

United States 2033 Projected Employment

534,700

8% Change From 2023

Explore Fast Food and Counter Workers video

Tasks you might complete in a day.

Scrape and stack dirty dishes and carry dishes and other tableware to kitchens for cleaning.
Carry linens to or from laundry areas.
Perform serving, cleaning, or stocking duties in establishments, such as cafeterias or dining rooms, to facilitate customer service.
Serve food to customers when waiters or waitresses need assistance.
Clean up spilled food or drink or broken dishes and remove empty bottles and trash.
Greet and seat customers.
Perform serving, cleaning, or stocking duties in establishments, such as cafeterias or dining rooms, to facilitate customer service.
Serve ice water, coffee, rolls, or butter to patrons.
Stock cabinets or serving areas with condiments and refill condiment containers.
Locate items requested by customers.
Greet and seat customers.
Stock refrigerating units with wines or bottled beer or replace empty beer kegs.
Clean and polish counters, shelves, walls, furniture, or equipment in food service areas or other areas of restaurants and mop or vacuum floors.
Slice and pit fruit used to garnish drinks.
Garnish foods and position them on tables to make them visible and accessible.
Maintain adequate supplies of items, such as clean linens, silverware, glassware, dishes, or trays.
Fill beverage or ice dispensers.
Carry food, dishes, trays, or silverware from kitchens or supply departments to serving counters.
Carry trays from food counters to tables for cafeteria patrons.
Mix and prepare flavors for mixed drinks.
Perform serving, cleaning, or stocking duties in establishments, such as cafeterias or dining rooms, to facilitate customer service.
Wash glasses or other serving equipment at bars.
Clean and polish counters, shelves, walls, furniture, or equipment in food service areas or other areas of restaurants and mop or vacuum floors.
Garnish foods and position them on tables to make them visible and accessible.
Wipe tables or seats with dampened cloths or replace dirty tablecloths.
Set tables with clean linens, condiments, or other supplies.
Greet and seat customers.
Run cash registers.
Replenish supplies of food or equipment at steam tables or service bars.

Subject areas you may need to master.

Mechanical - Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
History and Archeology - Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
Economics and Accounting - Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
Sales and Marketing - Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
Production and Processing - Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
Law and Government - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
Communications and Media - Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
Medicine and Dentistry - Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
Philosophy and Theology - Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
Public Safety and Security - Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
Food Production - Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
Transportation - Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
Geography - Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
Building and Construction - Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
Sociology and Anthropology - Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
Chemistry - Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
Fine Arts - Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
Telecommunications - Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
Foreign Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
Physics - Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
Therapy and Counseling - Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
Administrative - Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
Personnel and Human Resources - Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
Engineering and Technology - Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
Design - Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.

Strengths you may need in this role.

Operations Analysis - Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
Instructing - Teaching people how to do something.
Monitoring - Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
Speaking - Talking to others.
Technology Design - Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
Equipment Maintenance - Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
Operations Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
Systems Evaluation - Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
Management of Personnel Resources - Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
Operation and Control - Using equipment or systems.
Repairing - Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
Judgment and Decision Making - Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
Management of Financial Resources - Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
Installation - Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
Management of Material Resources - Managing equipment and materials.
Persuasion - Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
Science - Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
Social Perceptiveness - Understanding people's reactions.
Coordination - Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
Service Orientation - Looking for ways to help people.
Active Listening - Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
Complex Problem Solving - Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
Troubleshooting - Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
Quality Control Analysis - Testing how well a product or service works.
Systems Analysis - Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
Time Management - Managing your time and the time of other people.
Writing - Writing things for co-workers or customers.
Mathematics - Using math to solve problems.
Equipment Selection - Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
Reading Comprehension - Reading work-related information.
Critical Thinking - Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
Active Learning - Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
Learning Strategies - Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
Negotiation - Bringing people together to solve differences.
Programming - Writing computer programs.
Stamina - Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
Dynamic Flexibility - Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Peripheral Vision - Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
Speech Clarity - Speaking clearly.
Problem Sensitivity - Noticing when problems happen.
Manual Dexterity - Holding or moving items with your hands.
Arm-Hand Steadiness - Keeping your arm or hand steady.
Auditory Attention - Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
Near Vision - Seeing details up close.
Gross Body Coordination - Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
Glare Sensitivity - Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
Night Vision - Seeing at night or under low light.
Oral Comprehension - Listening and understanding what people say.
Inductive Reasoning - Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
Number Facility - Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
Time Sharing - Doing two or more things at the same time.
Spatial Orientation - Knowing where things are around you.
Multilimb Coordination - Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
Visualization - Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
Response Orientation - Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
Rate Control - Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
Extent Flexibility - Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Far Vision - Seeing details that are far away.
Hearing Sensitivity - Telling the difference between sounds.
Written Expression - Communicating by writing.
Mathematical Reasoning - Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
Deductive Reasoning - Using rules to solve problems.
Flexibility of Closure - Seeing hidden patterns.
Static Strength - Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
Explosive Strength - Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
Visual Color Discrimination - Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
Sound Localization - Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
Speed of Closure - Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
Written Comprehension - Reading and understanding what is written.
Reaction Time - Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
Wrist-Finger Speed - Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
Fluency of Ideas - Coming up with lots of ideas.
Trunk Strength - Using your lower back and stomach.
Finger Dexterity - Putting together small parts with your fingers.
Speed of Limb Movement - Quickly moving your arms and legs.
Depth Perception - Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
Gross Body Equilibrium - Keeping your balance or staying upright.
Speech Recognition - Recognizing spoken words.
Selective Attention - Paying attention to something without being distracted.
Perceptual Speed - Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
Control Precision - Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
Information Ordering - Ordering or arranging things.
Originality - Creating new and original ideas.
Memorization - Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
Oral Expression - Communicating by speaking.
Category Flexibility - Grouping things in different ways.
Dynamic Strength - Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.