I recently had a summer job hostessing at a chain restaurant, and like most summer jobs, it wasn't fun. Working in the food industry is an eye opener and something that everyone should do at some point in their lives. Whether you were a host, or just another employee in the restaurant, I'm sure you can relate to the following struggles we have to endure on a daily basis.
1. No, you cannot sit there. I have a rotation to follow.
We all have those people that come in and ask for that specific booth, the section you just sat, or even those that sit themselves. Yes, there are people who will simply walk past you and sit themselves wherever they please. I just have one thing to say to those people: Please let me do my job and sit you where rotation says to take you so I don't get yelled at for double seating someone.
2. Managing the whole restaurant.
Servers only have to deal with the designated tables assigned to them while we have to keep an eye on the whole restaurant. We are the busboys, the servers, the managers, and a hostess all in one. We have to run food, take drink orders occasionally, clean off the tables, all while making sure there isn't a line of people waiting to be sat at the door. We're basically the superman of the establishment.
3. Dealing with the angry customers.
The hosts are always targeted for complaints because we are the first person they see when they enter, and the last person they see when they leave. I'm sorry your steak was undercooked, maybe you should tell your server? I have people to tend to, bye.
4. The down time.
We all know this time in the shift. It's almost midnight, immediately after a rush, and there's one guy in the whole restaurant that has been there for an hour and we have nothing to do but sit there and stare at him. Manager can you cut me now please?
5. Tips.
Depending on how your restaurant does it, there may or may not be a tip share between hosts and servers. The restaurant I worked at did a tip share, and nothing made me more angry than when I was clearing a table and there wouldn't be a tip there or there would barely be a tip. Everyone in the restaurant thrives off of tips, not just your server. Tip please because $3.00 an hour is not very much!
Apart from all of these struggles, hostessing is not a terrible job and I recommend it to anyone starting out in the food industry! I met some amazing people working with me and I hope to continue those friendships in the future. But for now, I think I'll stick to being the customer being seated rather than the one behind the stand.
