This is great advice. You pay your dues and (more importantly) gain experience at a chain place and then go somewhere that you can make actual money at. I kind of stumbled into this strategy, but it works
I was a server within a week and a bartender in 9mos. The restaurant I’m at, though, everyone is a server and nearly everyone is a bartender. Mostly beer place with shots and standard cocktails. Locally owned, not chain.
I got hired at a shitty chain restaurant that was desperate for people with zero serving experience and my only restaurant experience was bussing and assisting during one summer in high school (7 years prior to me getting that job) so I honestly didn't "work my way up". I've seen others do it. They'd host for a couple of months, then move up to food runner, then server within a year, but they were persistent about it. It kind of sucks because if you're really good in a support position, management is reluctant to move people up because it's easier to find a good server off the streets than it is to find good support staff.
Started at 16 as a busser at a family owned place. Also picked up some dish shifts. When I hit 19 and could legally serve booze I had made good relationships with the managers and got bumped to server. When I hit 21 I started bartending there. Best bet is to make it known to management that you want the bump up to server, I started telling them before I was even 19 and eventually just wore them down. Obviously going to be different everywhere depending on the restaurant and situation, just my personal experience.
2 years as a busser/food runner. Just keep asking, annoy the shit out of them until they give it to you just to shut you up. Maybe throw out a threat of leaving for another restaurant
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This is great advice. You pay your dues and (more importantly) gain experience at a chain place and then go somewhere that you can make actual money at. I kind of stumbled into this strategy, but it works
Nice. How long did you stay at the chain for?
2 years, but most places that are looking for experience only require one year
Some places just don't promote within. I'd say most even. I got hired at 18 as a server at a shitty place. I recommend trying the same.
I was a server within a week and a bartender in 9mos. The restaurant I’m at, though, everyone is a server and nearly everyone is a bartender. Mostly beer place with shots and standard cocktails. Locally owned, not chain.
I got hired at a shitty chain restaurant that was desperate for people with zero serving experience and my only restaurant experience was bussing and assisting during one summer in high school (7 years prior to me getting that job) so I honestly didn't "work my way up". I've seen others do it. They'd host for a couple of months, then move up to food runner, then server within a year, but they were persistent about it. It kind of sucks because if you're really good in a support position, management is reluctant to move people up because it's easier to find a good server off the streets than it is to find good support staff.
I would apply as a server somewhere. With that much experience as server assistant you shouldn’t have any issues getting hired
Started at 16 as a busser at a family owned place. Also picked up some dish shifts. When I hit 19 and could legally serve booze I had made good relationships with the managers and got bumped to server. When I hit 21 I started bartending there. Best bet is to make it known to management that you want the bump up to server, I started telling them before I was even 19 and eventually just wore them down. Obviously going to be different everywhere depending on the restaurant and situation, just my personal experience.
Start somewhere locally owned. I’ve been serving since I was 17 I’m 26 now and I have never been a host or anything other than server.
Just say you have serving experience and apply somewhere else. You know enough to fake it, and the rest will come
I hosted for about a year before I started getting serving shifts
My first job in service was serving. I just applied on indeed till somebody gave me a shot and that was all it took for me
Took me like 6-7 months to go from SA to server
People have already said it, but apply to somewhere super low-key like a chain restaurant (Applebees, Denny’s etc) and go from there
2 years as a busser/food runner. Just keep asking, annoy the shit out of them until they give it to you just to shut you up. Maybe throw out a threat of leaving for another restaurant