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Waitress
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Build my resume It takes a village to raise a child and run a restaurant. Diners, cocktail bars, and five-star restaurants—none could function without a strong service team.
Waitresses and hostesses are the first points of contact for incoming customers, so naturally, waitresses must be punctual, informative, and detail-oriented to excel in their roles. If you feel you have all those characteristics, you may have what it takes to be a fantastic waitress!
You just need to translate those skills and personality traits onto your waitress cover letter and CV. Believe us. We understand—creating a CV from scratch can be daunting, but the following 15 waitress CV samples and CV writing tips can help you get moving down the path towards your dream waitress position in 2025.
Why this CV works
- The bullet points in your work experience section should reflect the content included in the skills section of your resume and vice versa.
- If you mention being “customer-focused,” that skill should be demonstrated in some of your bullet points.
- For example, saying that you “maintained a courteous attitude, ensuring shoppers enjoyed a positive experience” brings to life what you have already listed as a strength.
- Moreover, your waitress CV will stand out if you highlight outcomes and results, with each point showcasing an achievement.
- Hiring managers appreciate seeing the impact you’ve made in previous roles, especially when you use metrics to quantify it in both your CV and when creating a cover letter.
Why this CV works
- Recruiters are keen to assess your value as restaurant staff before making decisions. You don’t want your waiter CV to have a weak introduction in such aspects. That’s why highlighting achievements such as successful upselling and prompt customer service should be prioritised.
- From there, you can showcase your ability to work with others to improve customer satisfaction and overall performance.
See more waiter CVs >
Why this CV works
- A well-written cocktail waitress CV can illustrate the responsibilities you’ve had in previous customer service roles.
- Unfortunately, it’s all too easy to forget to include essential and basic information on your CV, but don’t worry! You can quickly fix your CV.
- If you don’t have much directly related work experience for the position you’re applying for, that’s perfectly fine!
- Even seemingly unrelated jobs you’ve had can be connected to waitress roles.
- For example, at first glance, a receptionist position at a law firm and a cocktail waitress role might seem like very distant cousins at best. However, upon closer inspection, you’ll discover that both require excellent customer service and organisational skills.
See more cocktail waitress CVs >
Why this CV works
- Present the recruiter with a poor CV for a restaurant waitress, and they’ll dismiss you in no time. Our advice? If you have a consistent work history, make it more engaging by taking advantage of the reverse chronological order of your employment record.
- With the reverse chronological order, your last (or current) job should appear at the top of the list, with previous roles following. Does this really make your CV more appealing? Yes—it highlights your most recent achievements first and aligns with the recruiter’s expectations for consistent career progression.
Why this CV works
- Many employers use Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) to screen bartender and waitress applicants. To ensure your bartender waitress resume cuts the ATS mustard, you’ll want to build a resume with your desired role in mind.
- Ensure the title on your CV matches the role for which you’re applying. This helps the reader associate you with the job.
- Consider including a two-to-three-sentence CV summary if you have at least 10 years of industry expertise.
- Tailor your CV by mentioning the target employer by name and providing a concise yet vivid overview of your years in the field and any specialisations you’ve developed.
See more bartender waitress CVs >
Why this CV works
- It’s easy to feel overwhelmed when writing your waitress CV with no experience. More often than not, you can connect seemingly unrelated jobs through soft skills. Any work experience (regardless of industry) demonstrates responsibility and a strong work ethic.
- For example, cashier, sales assistant, and waitress positions are customer-facing and require you to be approachable and empathetic—two valuable soft skills you can apply to any job, not to mention—life!
- Another useful tool—the resume career objective lets you summarize your skills and experience while expressing which kind of waitress role you’re seeking.
- Your objective should summarise your professional background succinctly, giving employers an idea of your skill set.
- Similar to the CV summary, the objective’s value lies in personalisation, so mention the name of the restaurant you’re applying to and why you’d like to join their team.
Why this CV works
- Trust us; the last thing a potential employer wants is someone they have to train from scratch. That’s why we know that highlighting your experience as a Hooters waitress on your CV is the ace you need up your sleeve.
- Ah, so you utilised TouchBistro to manage online orders and increased 5-star reviews by 32% as a waitress at Hooters? That’s an excellent achievement in your CV because it shows you’re good for business.
Why this CV works
- If you want your waitress cashier CV to get you an interview, it must be the most compelling thing you’ve ever written. The little-known trick to acing it is emphasising your greatest accomplishments by bolding or italicising them.
- Even at first glance, phrases like “£2,684 in daily transactions”, “36% increase in non-cash transactions”, and “42 guests per shift” in Elizabeth’s sales pitch grab your attention, don’t they? By allowing recruiters to see your impact in previous roles, they also present you as the perfect candidate.
Why this CV works
- Your head waitress resume should include a resume skills section if you’re going to appease Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) and hiring managers.
- What is ATS? It’s the software employers use to sort candidates based on the number of keywords (skills) they have in common with the desired skills in the job description. By including a relevant skills section, the ATS won’t reject your CV.
- What if you’re relatively new to your field and lack extensive work history? Incorporate highly relevant projects that can serve as experience.
- The key to presenting your work story through projects is to treat them like actual work experience. List your projects in a bullet point format, filled with metrics to demonstrate your impact.
See more head waitress CVs >
Why this CV works
- A waitress trainer CV demonstrating your expertise in maximising the use of your trade tools (i.e., job-relevant technical tools) can greatly impress the hiring manager and make them select you over the other 120+ equally impressive candidates.
- Most applicants will highlight software like Moodle and Toast POS in their skills sections and leave it at that. Break the mould by putting the tools’ application in the spotlight in your work experience section—nothing demonstrates you fit the bill better than that.
Why this CV works
- Just seconds—that’s all it takes for the recruiter to decide whether to bin your high-end waitress CV or give you a call. If you’re aiming for the latter, submit an impressive piece to tip the scales in your favour.
- All set? Make the most of a single-column layout, clear and legible fonts (think Calibri, Arial, Times New Roman, etc.), large, bold headings, and concise bullet points. Plenty of white space is beneficial as well; it creates a professional appearance that is easy on the eye.
Why this CV works
- We understand, you work in the nightlife industry; but that’s not a good enough reason to be unprofessional in your nightclub waitress CV unless you want to annoy the recruiter and ruin your interview chances.
- Images, large blocks of text, grammatical mistakes, and unnecessary personal details are the raw materials of an unprofessional sales pitch, so pull out all the stops to ensure they don’t appear on it.
Why this CV works
- Make a snappy first impression using one of our free resume templates or Google docs templates to display your hard-earned accomplishments.
- Opt for a professional template, but don’t hesitate to add a touch of colour for style and interest. A splash of colour shows the employer that you’re a professional with personality.
- Your CV’s format is another element you can utilise, and we recommend a reverse-chronological order for your hostess waitress CV.
- This structure lists your most recent work history at the top, followed by older experience, and provides the employer with an easy-to-read synopsis of your best first.
See more hostess waitress CVs >
Why this CV works
- Social media is where customers are, and businesses, particularly in the hospitality industry, are seeking ways to tap into that pool to attract new clients. Demonstrating your proficiency in social media outreach and converting traffic into customers is an advantage on your waitress CV.
- The most important thing is to distinguish yourself from others by showcasing tangible achievements along with their measurable impact.
Why this CV works
- Just because you’re limited in work experience doesn’t mean your CV for a bottle service waitress should be left blank.
- Instead, determine whether a hobby or interest might be relevant enough to include.
- Imagine that a hiring manager mentions your hobby during an interview; wow! Game changer? If you listed ice hockey on your CV, be prepared to explain how that interest relates to your career aspirations as a cocktail waitress! Relevance is the key to successfully using hobbies and interests on your CV.
- When using an AI CV builder, incorporate numbers throughout your work experience and projects.
- We recommend including numbers and statistics to encourage employers to read your CV more thoroughly and provide concrete evidence highlighting your successes.
See more bottle service waitress CVs >
Related CV guides
How to Write a Waitress CV
Summary
Showcase your customer service skills, relevant experience, and strengths in the food industry with a compelling, well-structured waitress CV tailored to secure interviews—whether you’re a first-timer or a seasoned professional.
We understand—working in the customer service industry is no laughing matter. Remembering orders, plating up, and still managing to smile through additional shifts can be exhausting.
So, why does writing a waitress CV seem harder than a busy Saturday night service? Whether you’re applying to a fine dining restaurant or a fast food outlet, your CV should demonstrate that you’re quick on your feet, adaptable, and handle pressure without breaking a sweat (or plates).
Now, the good thing about a waitress job is that you don’t always need extensive work experience. But if you have worked in similar roles, there’s no reason to hide it either. Use this guide to learn how you can highlight your serving strengths and become a waitress that no recruiter can refuse.
Make a strong start with accurate contact details
Before employers can see that you can quickly reach customers during peak hours, they need to know how they can contact you. So make sure you include your:
- Name
- Phone number
- Location
- LinkedIn (optional)
Here’s a good example of how you can present this information:
Make an impression if it’s your first time with an objective and projects
For all we know, this could be the very job of your life, and that’s completely fine. Having experience in the field isn’t always a dealbreaker, and often, employers may simply hire you if you’re an extrovert who can get along with customers.
So, if you lack experience, tell employers why you’re applying for this position with a strong career objective. Mention any strengths or skills that make you stand out, as this is the first thing they will read.
Keep your objective within 3–4 lines and start with an action word. Align your objective to resemble the one we’ve listed below to enhance your chances of being hired:
Example
Dedicated and aspiring waitress seeking a fast-paced, lively position with Top Dish restaurant. With project experience volunteering for local communities, ready to apply strong communication skills to serve customers and uphold your establishment’s reputation for high-quality service.
You may not be able to achieve your goal without including projects. As in the example above, if you’ve volunteered or undertaken work experience in a customer or user-focused environment, include it in your projects section.
These can even include:
- Any one-off serving experiences
- Food stalls you’ve assisted with
- University projects where you directly enhance customer experience
Reveal the main course of your CV: work experience
While not always necessary, having work experience will give you a strong advantage over other applicants. Ideally, you want to include your three best positions where you directly make business impacts.
However, remember that your bullet points should accurately reflect your previous roles. No waitress achieves a 78% increase in revenue in her first month, so be realistic.
Examples of bullet points for entry-level positions:
- Worked with 11 other waiting staff to reduce customer wait times by 4 minutes.
- Maintained an extensive knowledge of three menus, from the origin of ingredients through cooking methods to educate customers and offer personalised recommendations.
- Managed an average of 12 tables per shift, ensuring prompt order taking and service.
Examples of bullet points for an experienced waitress:
- Promoted premium dessert options using Oaky, leading to a 19% increase in average bill value across served tables.
- Led fellow waiting staff during peak hours, resulting in a 9-minute reduction in order-to-table delivery time.
- Maintained a positive, customer-focused attitude and exceeded weekly sales targets by 8.1%.
Showcase skills that make you stand out
Being a great waitress isn’t just about carrying a dozen plates in both hands but handling customers gracefully— that takes skill. Even if you lack experience, listing the right soft skills can convince employers to give you a chance.
If possible, include technology skills such as EPOS, Blink, or restaurant software you’re proficient in or know how to use. Let’s break down how to tackle this section.
Key Skills to Include:
- Conflict resolution
- Multitasking
- OpenTable
- Slack
- Restaurant365
- Empathic
- Approachable
- Customer-focused
As a tip, remember to mention any software tools by name in your work experience bullet points. These serve as evidence of you using them to achieve results. Also, if the job description explicitly lists a skill, ensure it appears in your CV.
Add education and qualifications: the icing on the cake that enhances your credibility
Generally, having your secondary school certificate will be sufficient, but if you are pursuing/have a degree, feel free to include it. Make sure to add your school/university’s name and year of graduation.
Have a look at the format below to get a better idea:
Example
Enter your A-levels
Minnesota State Secondary School
2012 – 2016
Brooklyn Centre, MN
With regard to certifications, include anything related to customer service or food safety to give yourself that extra advantage over other candidates. Below, we’ve listed some certificates that you might consider adding to your CV:
- ServSafe Food Handler (ServSafe)
- Waiter Certificate (The Waiter’s Academy)
- Certified Restaurant Server (AHLEI)
Key points
- If you don’t have experience in serving food, use relevant projects and volunteer work to your advantage and accumulate certificates.
- When writing your work experience bullet points, quantify as many impacts as possible while remaining realistic.
- List a mix of software and interpersonal skills to show employers you can assist with both back-of-house and front-of-house operations.
- Proofread your CV and look out for any typos or mistakes in your profile section before sending it to an employer.
Waitress/Waiter CV FAQs
Your job description points on your waitress or waiter resume should focus on aspects that matter most to the establishment you’re applying for. Likely those will be things like customer service, the ability to multi-task (dropping off food and beverages to multiple tables while carrying on conversation with diners), communicating specials, accurately placing orders, etc.
Try to focus primarily on hard skills in your skills list, such as EPOS systems like Toast or Square, cash handling and basic maths, and any other technical skills like stock or table management software. Soft skills should be reflected in the context of your job description bullet points as you describe work where you were communicating, problem-solving, thinking critically, etc.
There are many CV template options for a waitress CV. They all follow a reverse chronological format and leave enough breathing space even after you add all your sections.
Think about your waiter/waitress CV less in terms of duties and more in terms of achievements. Yes, your duties included taking orders and serving food and drinks, but transform your bullet points into accomplishments. Discuss how you upsold more daily specials, handled cash accurately, took on more tables, and so on to go beyond merely listing job duties.
Have a look at the waitress job description for guidance on what job title to use in your CV. Some positions may refer to this role as “Server,” “Cocktail Waitress,” “Beverage Attendant,” or something else. It’s best to refer to the job description rather than try to come up with something creative here.
Waitress CV career objective example: Motivated second-year student with project experience in university-hosted catering events and serving food. Holds a Level 2 Food Safety and Hygiene certificate and eager to join your restaurant to create a memorable dining experience for every guest.
