Staff, as most caterers and restaurateurs will testify, are both the biggest problem and the biggest asset a business can have. No matter how good your catering business is, it cannot survive without good staff. Your staff will enhance and reflect the qualities your business offers to clients. Nothing will do more damage to your reputation than having unhelpful, slovenly, couldn’t-care-less, rude staff – apart from bad food, that is!

Your clients will expect – rightly – consistent, welcoming, professional, calm, knowledgeable staff at their function. Choose your staff with care. Surly, lazy attitudes rub off on other staff. Intimidating verbal behaviour and especially physical abuse are not to be tolerated. These traits rightly belong to the past. 562,700 jobs were taken by catering staff in 2004, employment in Britain topping 25 million. Nearly 142,000 full-time catering jobs were filled by men, over 93,000 by women. This was reversed by part timers (117,700 by men, 209,800 by women). This chapter deals with:

The Importance Of Service

Service, service, service is of paramount importance to the catering industry. As standards rise in quality produce, so must the service which, of course, covers all kitchen, waiting and cleaning staff and any other employees in a catering business.

We have entered a period of high demand of good staffing due to the booming hospitality industry but this labour supply needs to come from somewhere. Will potential employees be trained sufficiently to offer good service and high standards? This is of concern for all those engaged in the industry.

There is no doubt that the work is demanding and can be seen – still – as a dead end job by some. But, thankfully, others see it as a stimulating and rewarding challenge.

The hospitality industry is sometimes seen as theatre: catering staff forming a bond with customers (cast members), the venue itself the stage and the work as lines to be learnt. Some exponents of this profession love to entertain, but they must always remember their serious professional stance coupled with humour, good judgement and sensitivity.

Staff need direction, motivation and an incentive to carry out their work and to understand the need to be very flexible. This comes from management. All staff need to be accepted by both sexes, have the ability to make customers feel at ease and to be respected by employers.

Waiting And Kitchen Staff

Waiters and waitresses – skilled ones – offer service. They are not servants. They have talked to the caterer about the composition of the food. They are aware when and how to clear a table and when not to. When to pour wine. How to work with the client.

Kitchen staff are creative in different ways. Chefs have the ability to prepare food, timing cooking to a split second with speed and accuracy. They can cook and present all dishes coming out of the kitchen with skill. And they must be able to do it time and time again to the same high standard. Consistency is all.

Finding Staff

Even if you are a one-man band, you will still need to find good waiting staff for your functions. You may have friends and family who wish to earn some pocket money or you may prefer to find professional staff. For a larger catering company, it will be necessary to find kitchen and waiting staff.

Catering Colleges

These are one source of kitchen and waiting staff, but the standard in some is decidedly questionable. The teaching focuses on hotel-like service which is past its sell-by date, according to employers.

Flour-based sauces, soups and stocks made from packets and heavy, stodgy food are out of kilter to today’s food styles. Silver service, although not favoured by restaurants these days, is useful for banqueting and is to the caterer’s advantage. Folding napkins into unnecessary shapes is a waste of their – and your – time in my view. But some clients like it so you may have to find out how to do origami napkin folding if you or your staff don’t possess the skills.

Some colleges have moved on thankfully, and are teaching their students the art of lighter cooking combined with slow food cooking (daubes, terrines, bread-making for example). They are sourcing their materials with care and attention, and teaching students how to run a kitchen, amongst other modern and commercial necessities. These are the chefs and waiting staff that will be able to deliver the consistently high standards that customers expect and good catering companies wish to achieve.