How to hire a cafe server

How to hire a cafe server, step by step

Here's a step-by-step cafe server hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a cafe server job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new cafe server
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring a cafe server, identify what type of worker you actually need. Certain positions might call for a full-time employee, while others can be done by a part-time worker or contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   A cafe server's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, cafe servers from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   Here's a comparison of cafe server salaries for various roles:

   Type of Cafe Server	Description	Hourly rate
   Cafe Server	Food and beverage serving and related workers perform a variety of customer service, food preparation, and cleaning duties in restaurants, cafeterias, and other eating and drinking establishments.	$9-16
   Concession Worker	A concession worker is responsible for selling foods, beverages, and other concession items in various public events. Concession workers' duties include promoting products to guests, preparing their food orders, operating cash the register and processing payments, and maintaining the sanitary standards on the concession area... Show more	$9-16
   Server/Barista	A server/barista is someone who makes and serves beverages and foods, such as coffee, tea, and sandwiches or baked goods. He/She or she should be able to explain menu items to customers to ensure customer satisfaction... Show more	$11-19

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Cleanliness
   • Support Tasks
   • Customer Satisfaction
   • Wine
   • Health Code
   • Food Service
   • POS
   • Culinary
   • Cash Handling
   • Food Handling
   • Food Preparation
   • Fine Dining
   • Customer Service
   • Food Orders

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Serve food to fitness members, order taking on a POS system.
   • Provide orders, operate POS terminal, and serve food to spa and poolside guests.
   • Submit additional meal requirements, allergies, dietary needs, and special requests to the kitchen.
   • Maintain product presentation standards and cleanliness.
   • Meet company brand expectations of merchandising and cleanliness.
   • Establish a positive relationship with co-workers and managers through a solid work ethic, positive attitude, punctuality and dependability.

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your cafe server job description is one of the best ways to attract top talent. A cafe server can vary based on:

   • Location. For example, cafe servers' average salary in south carolina is 38% less than in massachusetts.
   • Seniority. Entry-level cafe servers 43% less than senior-level cafe servers.
   • Certifications. A cafe server with certifications usually earns a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for an established firm or a new start-up company can make a big difference in a cafe server's salary.

   Average cafe server salary

   $12.96hourly

   $26,967 yearly

   ---

   Entry-level cafe server salary

   $20,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 13, 2025

4. Writing a cafe server job description

   A job description for a cafe server role includes a summary of the job's main responsibilities, required skills, and preferred background experience. Including a salary range can also go a long way in attracting more candidates to apply, and showing the first name of the hiring manager can also make applicants more comfortable. As an example, here's a cafe server job description:

   Cafe server job description example

   **As a Cafe Server, you are responsible for selling by providing exceptional customer service in the Cafe through our cafe service standards\. You make the Cafe experience interactive and engaging by enthusiastically sharing your knowledge about our products and services and meeting the needs of the customer\. You care about and value people and exemplify our core values\.**
   ## **Essential Functions**
   
   **• Deliver exceptional customer service that ensures sales and high levels of customer satisfaction\.**
   
   **• Execute on the cafe service standards: offer a warm welcome, recommend add\-ons, personalize the customer's order, offer membership, and thank the customer\.**
   
   **• Greet and establish rapport with customers, proactively engaging them in conversations about our Café products, services, and promotions to determine their needs and recommend the right products\.**
   
   **• Ensure all customer transactions are processed accurately and in a timely manner\.**
   
   **• Prepare and serve drinks and food in accordance with the Cafe standards and health code\.**
   
   **• Perform all support tasks in the Cafe, including baking, completing prep sheets, cleaning cases and equipment, and restocking displays\.**
   
   **• Use the maintenance checklists throughout the day to maintain Cafe cleanliness\.**
   
   **• Drive sales by engaging all customers in our café and customer sampling of Cafe products\. • Ensure execution and compliance with operational standards for the Cafe\.**
   
   **• Perform all opening and closing tasks\.**
   
   **• Protect Company assets by ensuring the accurate execution of loss prevention procedures, including cashiering and inventory standards, waste logs monitoring, sample recording, coupon redemption and discount and return policies\.**
   
   **• Help orient new café servers, ensuring a smooth acclimation to the store and our bookselling culture\.**
   
   **• Assist in any area of the store as needed\.**
   
   ## **Qualifications**
   
   **• Passion for selling**
   
   **• Strong communication skills**
   
   **• Spend the majority of time on the selling floor, which requires physical activity \(i\.e\., prolonged standing, repetitive bending, lifting, climbing\)**
   
   **• Availability for early mornings, evenings, weekends and holidays to align with store needs**
   
   Barnes & Noble is an equal opportunity and affirmative action employer and is committed to providing employment opportunities to minorities, females, veterans, and disabled individuals, as well as other protected groups\.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find the right cafe server for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important sources of talent for any company is its existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and current employees and ask if they know or have worked with cafe servers they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit cafe servers who meet your education requirements.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter now have more than 3.5 billion users, and you can use social media to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your cafe server job on Zippia to find and recruit cafe server candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   During your first interview to recruit cafe servers, engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. During the following interview, you'll be able to go into more detail about the company, the position, and the responsibilities.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new cafe server

   Once you've decided on a perfect cafe server candidate, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, it should include benefits and perks available to the employee. Qualified candidates may be considered for other positions, so make sure your offer is competitive. Candidates may wish to negotiate. Once you've settled on the details, formalize your agreement with a contract.

   It's also important to follow up with applicants who do not get the job with an email letting them know that the position is filled.

   Once that's done, you can draft an onboarding schedule for the new cafe server. Human Resources should complete Employee Action Forms and ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc. They should also ensure that new employee files are created for internal recordkeeping.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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