What Are The Duties Of A Head Waiter?

[Raxter54]

DW and I are not experienced in eating in fancy restaurants. Our idea of fancy dining is a restaurant where you don't order at a counter and carry your food to a table :D So I need some help from anyone who frequents restaurants with wait staff...

 

We took our first ever cruise last February on the Serenade of the Seas. We went to the MDR the first night for dinner. Requested a table for two. Got a table for 2 - about 6 inches away from a table for 6. After being seated and getting a roll, our head waiter came by, introduced himself (can't remember his name), and asked us if we would like something to drink. Since DW and I don't drink alcohol, I requested iced tea for both of us. The head waiter said something to the effect "head waiters don't get iced tea." and left. DW and I just looked at each other, drank our water, and never went back to the MDR.

 

Did I commit some faux pas by asking the head waiter for iced tea? Should I have just waited and asked our assistant waiter for the iced tea? Should I have said something to the Maitre D? I want to make sure I don't offend our head waiter on our upcoming Carnival Dream cruise...

Edited April 19, 2015 by Raxter54

[Nitemare]

He was a jerk if he said that and didn't get someone else to serve it to you. But yes, you should have asked someone else after he outright refused you. And if he used those words with you you should have reported it to customer service until you got satisfaction.

[awestover89]

I made the same mistake on our first cruise, but the waiter told me that she only did alcoholic drinks and then told me which waiter to order regular drinks from.

[Raxter54]

He was a jerk if he said that and didn't get someone else to serve it to you. But yes, you should have asked someone else after he outright refused you. And if he used those words with you you should have reported it to customer service until you got satisfaction.

 

Will probably do that on future cruises. Being newbies, we weren't sure how to handle the situation. With all the dining options on the ship, we just decided to avoid the situation.

 

BTW - the next night (formal night) we went to Giovanni's Tale and had an excellent dining experience - an actual table for two and an excellent waiter...

[Raxter54]

I made the same mistake on our first cruise, but the waiter told me that she only did alcoholic drinks and then told me which waiter to order regular drinks from.

 

If our head waiter had explained that to us, everything would have been fine. Something for me to remember on future cruises...

[LHT28]

If he was the head waiter he was a jerk

If he was the bar waiter he should have said he would tell your regular waiter to come take your order

 

most cruise lines have Bar waiters or Sommeliers that take the wine & spirits orders some will also get sodas

 

The head waiter for your section oversees that each table gets the food order in a timely fashion, some will take the food order then send the other waiters (runners) to place the order & pick up returning the the wait station where they will be distributed from

 

If you have any issues in the future speak to the Maitre'D at the front on your way out

 

Enjoy the cruise

[awestover89]

If he was the head waiter he was a jerk

If he was the bar waiter he should have said he would tell your regular waiter to come take your order

 

most cruise lines have Bar waiters or Sommeliers that take the wine & spirits orders some will also get sodas

 

The head waiter for your section oversees that each table gets the food order in a timely fashion, some will take the food order then send the other waiters (runners) to place the order & pick up returning the the wait station where they will be distributed from

 

If you have any issues in the future speak to the Maitre'D at the front on your way out

 

Enjoy the cruise

I think that was the case with us, too many waiters. This particular waiter only took alcohol orders, then we had the Jamaican waiter who entertained us and did little tricks and told jokes, then the man I think was the head waiter took our food orders.

[SadieN]

Depends on the cruise line.

Carnival Head Waiters lead a team of three to serve a select group of tables.

Princess Head Waiters are similar to a Maitre 'D in a restaurant.

 

I'd ask the Head Waiter in Carnival for Iced Tea and ask the Head Waiter on Princess for a more secluded two-top.

[Grandma Dazzles]

I think that was the case with us, too many waiters. This particular waiter only took alcohol orders, then we had the Jamaican waiter who entertained us and did little tricks and told jokes, then the man I think was the head waiter took our food orders.

 

 

Not sure which cruise line, but on RC the bar waiter takes alcoholic drink orders, sometimes your waiter also will handle. No more sommeliers. The assistant waiter fills water, serves bread, sauces, and generally helps the waiter. The waiter takes your food orders. The head waiter for each section takes care of the general running of the section, supervises the assistant waiter and waiter. He does not take food orders - generally roams around checking that you are happy and have no special requests. The maître de supervises the entire dining room - generally stands by the front door.

 

Hope that helps. Usually have found the staff to be very helpful. To OP, perhaps it was not the correct waiter, but he should have referred the correct person to you and not been impolite.

[Raxter54]

Not sure which cruise line, but on RC the bar waiter takes alcoholic drink orders, sometimes your waiter also will handle. No more sommeliers. The assistant waiter fills water, serves bread, sauces, and generally helps the waiter. The waiter takes your food orders. The head waiter for each section takes care of the general running of the section, supervises the assistant waiter and waiter. He does not take food orders - generally roams around checking that you are happy and have no special requests. The maître de supervises the entire dining room - generally stands by the front door.

 

Hope that helps. Usually have found the staff to be very helpful. To OP, perhaps it was not the correct waiter, but he should have referred the correct person to you and not been impolite.

 

 

You may be correct about my mistaking the type of waiter. Not having an eidetic memory, it may have been a waiter from the bar. I had no idea there were so many types of waiters. Lesson learned for future cruises. Thanks to all for your replies [emoji3]

[LHT28]

I think that was the case with us, too many waiters. This particular waiter only took alcohol orders, then we had the Jamaican waiter who entertained us and did little tricks and told jokes, then the man I think was the head waiter took our food orders.

 

some line the beverage waiter wear a different colour vest than the food waiters

All very confusing :eek:

[cb at sea]

Whoever you requested the iced tea from should have said, "Certainly", and then told the proper person what you needed.

 

The "head" waiter oversees all the the waitstaff in his section....

[DonnaK]

As others have mentioned, it sounds like this was a bar waiter (not the Head Waiter). He acted like a jerk - he should have directed your request to the proper person. In this case, that would be the assistant waiter.

 

A lot of people don't understand the role of the Head Waiter. He is like a assistant maître-d; responsible for overseeing food and beverage service in a certain area of the MDR. Most of his responsibilities are behind the scenes, to insure that service runs smoothly and that everyone is happy. He arranges for special requests. He also will jump in and help out your wait team whenever necessary. It's an underappreciated role.

[TBone2K]

Just FYI, as far as Royal Caribbean goes:

Assistant waiter - gets non-alcoholic drinks, fills water, bring bread, helps serve

Waiter - Takes orders, get orders from the kitchen, handles wine

Bar waiter - other drinks besides wine - usually wears a different vest than waiters, usually the same as other indoor bartenders on the ship (i.e. champagne bar, casino bar)

Head waiter - supervise wait staff in a specific area, looks after any problems the waiter can't fix - wears red jacket

In my experience, anyone higher up than the head waiter wears a regular officer's uniform.

 

In your case, not that it was handled well, but the head waiter would be the person to get the table moved, but it probably would happen after dinner service was done. If he couldn't make it any better he would direct you to the maitre'd at the front to assign you to a new table.

[Raxter54]

In your case, not that it was handled well, but the head waiter would be the person to get the table moved, but it probably would happen after dinner service was done. If he couldn't make it any better he would direct you to the maitre'd at the front to assign you to a new table.

 

Actually, on the way out of the MDR, we saw a two-top that was separated from another table by a pole. We went to the MDR the next day, and talked to the maitre 'd about our problem and see about scheduling that table. She looked on her computer, and said it was already scheduled and not available. She made no attempt to offer us another solution, so we just left and ate in the Windjammer for the rest of the cruise. And we enjoyed it :-)

[AKman2495]

My advise is to change to a better cruise line.

 

The job of the waitstaff-all of the waitstaff is to make your meal time easy and relaxing. If you are uncomfortable about anything during a meal, they have failed.

 

The guy was a jerk period!

Edited April 20, 2015 by AKman2495

[Flatbush Flyer]

Whoever you requested the iced tea from should have said, "Certainly", and then told the proper person what you needed.

 

The "head" waiter oversees all the the waitstaff in his section....

 

 

Amen. The idea is for any and all service personnel to take care of your reasonable needs. Why should you have to repeat yourself to another wait staff person?

[Raxter54]

My advise is to change to a better cruise line.

 

The job of the waitstaff-all of the waitstaff is to make your meal time easy and relaxing. If you are uncomfortable about anything during a meal, they have failed.

 

The guy was a jerk period!

 

We're giving Carnival a try for our next cruise. And our niece and her husband are coming too, so hopefully we can get a 4 top to ourselves :-)

 

And now that I know a little more about how the wait staff is organized and functions, things should go smoother. Thanks everyone for the information.

[bakersdozen12]

Wow, what a jerk. My husband and I also don't drink and would have done the same. Actually, I would have complained to the cruise line's customer service that night. There's no reason why anyone should be treated differently just because they don't drink alcohol.

[GUT2407]

Never has such dreadful service, I have asked the wrong Jose for a drink and invariably he has sent the other Jose to either get me what I ordered to to come and take my order.

 

You might guess I seem to get a lot of Waiters named Jose.

 

In fact last bruise I told my waiter was gong to call him Josb,[hose b] the next night I heard him tellng some PAX that he was Josb, beacsue the shp had to many Jose's on board.

 

But literally on 75% of my cruises one of the staff, waiter, assistant, drinks waiter or steward have been named Jose. Last cruise there were 3 all looking after me.

[GUT2407]

Oh and tables are always close together in the MDR, space is expensive at sea, and they waste as little of it as possible.

[OzKiwiJJ]

Oh and tables are always close together in the MDR, space is expensive at sea, and they waste as little of it as possible.

 

Yes, but some ships have them closer than others. On Sun Princess they were quite reasonably spaced.