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The differences between catering assistants and restaurant servers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a catering assistant has an average salary of $32,101, which is higher than the $24,558 average annual salary of a restaurant server.
The top three skills for a catering assistant include patients, food service and customer service. The most important skills for a restaurant server are wine, exceptional dining, and guest satisfaction.
| Catering Assistant | Restaurant Server | |
| Yearly salary | $32,101 | $24,558 |
| Hourly rate | $15.43 | $11.81 |
| Growth rate | 2% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 10,042 | 141,250 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 45% | Bachelor's Degree, 48% |
| Average age | 37 | 28 |
| Years of experience | - | - |
A catering assistant is responsible for supporting catering operations, especially on outdoor gatherings and social events. Catering assistants prepare the buffet area and ensure the adequacy of foods and beverages, and provide the best customer service for the guests' satisfaction. Catering assistants must have excellent communication skills, responding to the guests' inquiries and concerns about the dish, and resolving immediate complaints. They maintain the cleanliness of the buffet station, strictly adhering to the sanitary standards and hygienic regulations.
Also called food servers, restaurant servers perform food preparation, cleaning duties, and customer service in casual dining eateries and restaurants. The food servers stock supplies, handle credit cards and the cash register, and clean restaurant counters and tables. They provide assistance to restaurant patrons to take orders, deliver food, and answer customer questions. The skills they need include trustworthiness, organization, customer relations, and communication skills.
Catering assistants and restaurant servers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Catering Assistant | Restaurant Server | |
| Average salary | $32,101 | $24,558 |
| Salary range | Between $26,000 And $38,000 | Between $15,000 And $37,000 |
| Highest paying City | Washington, DC | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | Hawaii | California |
| Best paying company | Massachusetts General Hospital | University of California, Berkeley |
| Best paying industry | Manufacturing | Agriculture |
There are a few differences between a catering assistant and a restaurant server in terms of educational background:
| Catering Assistant | Restaurant Server | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 45% | Bachelor's Degree, 48% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between catering assistants' and restaurant servers' demographics:
| Catering Assistant | Restaurant Server | |
| Average age | 37 | 28 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 32.2% Female, 67.8% | Male, 40.8% Female, 59.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 12.3% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 18.0% Asian, 7.2% White, 56.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0% | Black or African American, 10.9% Unknown, 5.7% Hispanic or Latino, 20.9% Asian, 9.4% White, 52.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |