How to hire a catering assistant

How to hire a catering assistant, step by step

Here's a step-by-step catering assistant hiring guide:

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

What does a catering assistant do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring a catering assistant, 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 catering assistant's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, catering assistants 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.

   The following list breaks down different types of catering assistants and their corresponding salaries.

   Type of Catering Assistant	Description	Hourly rate
   Catering Assistant	Food preparation workers perform many routine tasks under the direction of cooks, chefs, or food service managers. Food preparation workers prepare cold foods, slice meat, peel and cut vegetables, brew coffee or tea, and perform many other food service tasks.	$12-18
   Food Runner	Food Runners are responsible for assisting waitstaff on serving customers at a restaurant or similar establishment. Among their duties include maintaining cleanliness in particular areas, setting tables, refilling drinks, assisting customers with everything that they need, and coordinating with the workforce in and out of the kitchen... Show more	$8-16
   Food Server	A Food Server specializes in helping customers attain a pleasant dining experience while ensuring to meet all food handling and health regulation standards. Most of the responsibilities revolve around greeting customers and directing them to comfortable seats, responding to their inquires and taking their orders, and courteously suggesting options... Show more	$8-16

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Patients
   • Food Service
   • Customer Service
   • Food Safety
   • Food Delivery
   • Beverage Service
   • Banquet Event Orders
   • Event Planning
   • POS
   • Food Preparation
   • Customer Orders
   • Quality Service
   • Event Set-Up
   • Bartending

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage and prioritize restaurant reservations.
   • Monitor patients who cannot receive anything by mouth (NPO) or on liquid diets.
   • Assist dieticians with monitoring of patients who are NPO, on liquid diets or need to have intake record.
   • Run POS for student payments, including meal cards and cash.
   • Comply with regulator agency standards, including federal, state and JCAHO.
   • Adhere to HIPAA guidelines while processing menu orders with the patient information.

   More catering assistant duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in the catering assistant job description is a good way to get more applicants. A catering assistant salary can be affected by several factors, such as the location of the job, the level of experience, education, certifications, and the employer's prestige.

   For example, the average salary for a catering assistant in Louisiana may be lower than in Hawaii, and an entry-level engineer typically earns less than a senior-level catering assistant. Additionally, a catering assistant with lots of experience in the field may command a higher salary as a result.

   Average catering assistant salary

   $15.43hourly

   $32,101 yearly

   ---

   Entry-level catering assistant salary

   $26,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 23, 2025

   Average catering assistant salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	District of Columbia	$39,476	$19
   2	Washington	$37,647	$18
   3	New York	$35,974	$17
   4	Oregon	$35,019	$17
   5	Illinois	$34,870	$17
   6	Michigan	$34,181	$16
   7	Massachusetts	$33,996	$16
   8	Rhode Island	$33,425	$16
   9	Connecticut	$33,062	$16
   10	Arizona	$32,329	$16
   11	Pennsylvania	$32,200	$15
   12	Texas	$31,682	$15
   13	Nebraska	$31,608	$15
   14	Iowa	$30,481	$15
   15	Utah	$30,127	$14
   16	Virginia	$29,784	$14
   17	Florida	$29,016	$14
   18	Ohio	$28,662	$14
   19	Indiana	$28,467	$14
   20	Georgia	$28,334	$14

   Average catering assistant salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Massachusetts General Hospital	$35,822	$17.22
   2	PLUM	$34,380	$16.53	2
   3	Eat'n Park	$33,303	$16.01
   4	Sundance Mountain Resort	$33,175	$15.95
   5	Bashas'	$32,919	$15.83
   6	Panera Bread	$32,728	$15.73	23
   7	Live Nation Entertainment	$32,705	$15.72	9
   8	ISS A/S	$32,656	$15.70
   9	Catholic Health Initiatives - Colorado	$32,650	$15.70
   10	Partners Healthcare Solutions Inc	$32,650	$15.70
   11	Blue Crew Holdings LLC	$32,650	$15.70
   12	Simpson Thacher & Bartlett	$32,637	$15.69
   13	Zingerman's	$32,435	$15.59	1
   14	University of Georgia Small Business Development Center	$32,428	$15.59
   15	House of Blues	$32,334	$15.55
   16	Marriott International	$32,248	$15.50	30
   17	Compass Group USA	$32,169	$15.47	234
   18	CHI Mercy Health	$31,973	$15.37
   19	St. Luke's Health System	$31,953	$15.36	3
   20	Augusta Health	$31,921	$15.35

4. Writing a catering assistant job description

   A catering assistant job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. To help get you started, here's an example of a catering assistant job description:

   Catering assistant job description example

   The Los Angeles Athletic Club is seeking a motivated, service-driven Sales Assistant. For more than 140 years, The Los Angeles Athletic Club has remained dedicated to its mission of providing for the body, mind and spirit of its members. Our private club includes state-of-the-art athletic and spa facilities, award-winning restaurants, bars, luxury event spaces, conference, and hotel rooms, and an array of social, business, and athletic events.
   
   The Sales Assistant is responsible for providing administrative duties for both the Director of Events & Director of Hotel Sales. This key role ensures the success of the sales departments, providing office support in the Club and continuing effort to deliver outstanding guest service and financial profitability. Additional responsibilities include: staffing, rentals, prospecting, client management, client retention, event logistics, and planning. The Sales Associate will be first on the phone, speak directly with clients to help customize orders and menus, assist and support Director of Catering and Sales when needed. The environment is focused on organization, growth and is fast-paced.
   Come join our Team!
   
   **Job Overview:**
   
   + Consistently offer professional, friendly and engaging service
   
   + Build and foster relationships with members and clients
   
   + Greet and assist members and clients, respond to requests in a timely, friendly and efficient manner
   
   + Perform word-processing, typing, e-mailing, data-entry, filing, faxing, copying, processing mail and taking notes and/or dictation
   
   + Answer telephones, schedule team members, prepare event contracts, distribute Banquet Event Orders to Food & Beverage Departments
   
   + Coordinate department projects, as needed
   
   + Oversee maintenance of office equipment
   
   + Preparation and processing of transfers, credits and debits, interfacing with accounts receivable, payable, credit manager and clients as needed
   
   + Perform other general office duties and assist with special projects, as needed
   
   + Ensure billing accuracy and conducts bill reviews with the clients prior to processing the final bill
   
   + Assist with the sales process as necessary
   
   + Follow departmental policies and procedures
   
   + Follow all safety policies
   
   + Other duties as assigned
   
   **Must Have:**
   
   + Minimum 1+ years hotel or private club experience in upscale environment
   
   + Previous administrative experience within a similar role required
   
   + Proficient in Microsoft Suite in particular, Excel
   
   + Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal required
   
   + Ability to multitask and work on various accounts at once
   
   + Highly responsible, reliable, and able to focus attention on guest needs, remaining calm and courteous at all times
   
   + Ability to work independently and in a team environment
   
   + Ability to use and learn new software
   
   + Knowledge of standard office practices and procedures
   
   + Knowledge of best practices and principles in hospitality industry
   
   Equal Opportunity Employer/Protected Veterans/Individuals with Disabilities
   
   The contractor will not discharge or in any other manner discriminate against employees or applicants because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another employee or applicant. However, employees who have access to the compensation information of other employees or applicants as a part of their essential job functions cannot disclose the pay of other employees or applicants to individuals who do not otherwise have access to compensation information, unless the disclosure is (a) in response to a formal complaint or charge, (b) in furtherance of an investigation, proceeding, hearing, or action, including an investigation conducted by the employer, or (c) consistent with the contractor's legal duty to furnish information. 41 CFR 60-1.35(c)

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find catering assistants for your business, try out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important talent pools for any company is its current employees.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and your current work to ask if they know any catering assistants they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit entry-level catering assistants with the right educational background.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter have more than 3.5 billion users, and they're a great place for company branding and reaching potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your catering assistant job on Zippia to find and recruit catering assistant 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 catering assistants, 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 to see if they match your ideal candidate profile. If you think a candidate is good enough for the next step, you can move on to the technical interview.

   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 catering assistant

   Once you've selected the best catering assistant candidate for the job, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, this letter should include details about the benefits and perks you offer the candidate. Ensuring that your offer is competitive is essential, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and you should be open to discussion. After you reach an agreement, the final step is formalizing the agreement with a contract.

   It's equally important to follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   Once that's done, you can draft an onboarding schedule for the new catering assistant. 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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