Dining room host vs cafeteria worker

The differences between dining room hosts and cafeteria workers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a dining room host has an average salary of $30,681, which is higher than the $24,465 average annual salary of a cafeteria worker.

The top three skills for a dining room host include reservations, cleanliness and wine. The most important skills for a cafeteria worker are food handling, kitchen equipment, and food preparation.

Dining room host vs cafeteria worker overview

	Dining Room Host	Cafeteria Worker
Yearly salary	$30,681	$24,465
Hourly rate	$14.75	$11.76
Growth rate	9%	9%
Number of jobs	36,107	31,802
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 50%	High School Diploma, 45%
Average age	39	39
Years of experience	-	-

Dining room host vs cafeteria worker salary

Dining room hosts and cafeteria workers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Dining Room Host	Cafeteria Worker
Average salary	$30,681	$24,465
Salary range	Between $23,000 And $39,000	Between $18,000 And $32,000
Highest paying City	-	Yuba City, CA
Highest paying state	-	Washington
Best paying company	-	Jefferson Elementary School District
Best paying industry	-	Hospitality

Differences between dining room host and cafeteria worker education

There are a few differences between a dining room host and a cafeteria worker in terms of educational background:

	Dining Room Host	Cafeteria Worker
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 50%	High School Diploma, 45%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Dining room host vs cafeteria worker demographics

Here are the differences between dining room hosts' and cafeteria workers' demographics:

	Dining Room Host	Cafeteria Worker
Average age	39	39
Gender ratio	Male, 58.9% Female, 41.1%	Male, 20.4% Female, 79.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.9% Unknown, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 14.9% Asian, 7.2% White, 61.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2%	Black or African American, 11.7% Unknown, 5.2% Hispanic or Latino, 13.5% Asian, 7.0% White, 61.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between dining room host and cafeteria worker duties and responsibilities

Dining room host example responsibilities.

Manage customer reservations and table seating arrangements.
Assist guests in booking reservations and manage guest history data using OpenTable reservation system.
Operate POS system to input customer orders and print checks
Work over the phone with guests create dining reservations, party events, and fulfill customer needs.
Inform guests of the owners' history in the wine industry and develop rapport by accurately answering all questions.
Supervise and coordinate activities of dining room personnel to provide fast and courteous service to patrons, and to ensure cleanliness.

Cafeteria worker example responsibilities.

Prepare food, operate dishwasher, manage salad bar, and cash out students, teachers, and faculty.
Clean grills, ovens, and stoves.
Help prepare food, set-up salad bars.
Set up and break down fryers and slicers.
Sanitize and clean equipment according to HACCP standards.
Sell food to student and operating the POS system.

Dining room host vs cafeteria worker skills

Common dining room host skills

Reservations, 30%
Cleanliness, 11%
Wine, 11%
Guest Satisfaction, 7%
Seat Guests, 6%
Fine Dining, 5%

Common cafeteria worker skills

Food Handling, 22%
Kitchen Equipment, 20%
Food Preparation, 16%
Customer Service, 4%
Dishwashers, 4%
Nutritious Meals, 3%

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Food Preparation and Restaurant Industry
Dining Room Host
Dining Room Host vs Cafeteria Worker

Updated January 8, 2025

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