ORDER TAKING PROCEDURES IN A RESTAURANT&ROOM SERVICE

ORDER TAKING PROCEDURES IN A RESTAURANT&ROOM SERVICE

1. INTRODUCTION
2. ORDER TAKING PROCEDURE
3. SAMPLE PROCEDURE FOR ORDER TAKING
4. METHODS OF TAKING FOOD AND BEVERAGE ORDER
5. ROOM SERVICE
6. COVER LAYING FOR VARIOUS FOODS

1.INTRODUCTION

Order taking is a skillful art that reflects the efficiency of both the waiter and the establishment. The order taker (waiter) should be skillful to handle array of customers efficiently. He should have a very good memory. He should have good oral communication skills. Knowledge about food and beverage, their garnishes and accompaniments, matching wines and spirits, cooking time and serving time, description of dishes in a lucid manner are other important qualities of order taker. He should also possess a rapid writing skill legible enough so that other subordinates can understand and execute the order.

2.ORDER TAKING PROCEDURE

The order taking procedure in a hotel industry is discussed in detail in the following paragraphs.

• RECEIVING THE GUEST
• The welcoming of the guests represents the most important step to his final satisfaction and reflects the level and quality of the service of an establishment 2. Guests must be welcomed from the entrance of the restaurant; they should not wait by themselves for more than 10 seconds at the entrance.
• The first impression received by the guest is most important. It is not necessary to execute the whole welcoming procedure with each guests (it is not always possible in case of affluence), however, it is indispensable to show him that he has been taken into consideration, if it is only by eye contact.
• If the hostess or the maître d' are occupied, the head waiter or the assistant waiter must show the guests that they have been taken into consideration.
• If there is an overbooking problem (more tables have been reserved than the restaurant can welcome), guests should not be left at the entrance but invited to sit down at the bar and take care of the problem away from their presence.
• The hostess or Maître d' must try to seat the guests if he/she has to modify the planning of reservations at the moment of the guests arrival.
• The hostess or the head waiter will accompany the guests to his table and pull out the chair for him / her to sit.
• The head waiter or the assistant waiter will immediately present himself to the table to show the guests that he has been taken into consideration
• ATTENDING AN ORDER

• The waiter will approach the guest from the left, place the menus, ensuring they are clean, in front of him and enquire:“May I have your order please, sir / madam?”.
• He should wait patiently, facing the guests, until (after any necessary advice has been asked for and given) the order is completed as fast as and including the main course.
• When the menus are long and varied, it is advisable to allow customers a few minutes before asking the order.
• When it is apparent that there is a host, take his instructions first, otherwise receive orders as
• If the waiter is busy and cannot attend to a customer at once,he should inform him that he will attend to him shortly or “in a moment”.
• When two tables are occupied at approximately the same time, the waiter must take the order of the first party first. Customers are apt to note with annoyance any failure to a “first come, first served” sequence.
• Waiter must be aware not only of the specialty of the day but also reasonable dishes to recommend. He should know the following things as far as possible:
• Knowing which dishes are ready for quick service to guests in a hurry.
• Items suitable for children
• Salad, vegetable and potato suggestions for grills,roasts and main courses for a la carte guests.
• RECORDING AN ORDER
• The Head Waiter should write in the corner of the order sheet; the tabe number and the number of persons being served. He also notes the time at which the order has been taken.
• He takes the order for the appetizer; he indicates the number of guests for each appetizer opted.
• He takes the order for the main dish. He writes the special notes at the right (example: choice of spice and hotness). He repeats the same for all the guests.
• He takes the order for all other items.
• He affixes his signature and hands it over to his back waiter.

3.SAMPLE PROCEDURE FOR ORDER TAKING

• The front waiter presents himself to the table. Table No: Covers:
• He indicates on the voucher the table number and the number of persons.Table No: AS Covers: 4
• He writes down the time at which the order has been taken. Table No: AS Covers:4 12h30m
• He takes the order for the first appetizer. He indicates the number of the guest corresponding to that order. Table No: AS Covers:4 12h30m Shrimp Cocktail (1
• If the order of the second appetizer is identical, the head waiter will only indicate the chair number corresponding to the second guest. Table No: AS Covers:4 12h30m Shrimp Cocktail (1,4 6 I f a guest does not take an appetizer, the head waiter will write on the voucher "no appetizer" and the chair number corresponding to the guest, so that there is no confusion in the kitchen.Table No: AS Covers:4 12h30m Shrimp Cocktail (1,4 No (3
• The head waiter takes the order of the last appetizer Table No: AS Covers:4 12h30m Shrimp Cocktail (1,4 No (3 Bisque (2
• When the order of appetizers is finished, the head waiter writes the total number of dishes ordered Table No: AS Covers:4 12h30m 2 Shrimp Cocktail (1,4 1 No (3 2 Bisque (2 9 The head waiter takes the order of the main dish.
• The first guest does not take a main dish, the head waiter writes it down on the voucher Table No: AS
• He takes the order of the second dish. Table No: AS Covers:4 12h30m 2 Shrimp Cocktail (1,4 1 No (3 2 Bisque (2 No(1 Tournedos (3
• He asks the guest how he would like his meat cooked. He indicates this information on the right side of the voucher Table No: AS Covers:4 12h30m 2 Shrimp Cocktail (1,4 1 No (3 2 Bisque (2 No(1 Tournedos(3R 12 He takes the order for the third guest. Table No: AS Covers:4 12h30m 2 Shrimp Cocktail (1,4 1 No (3 2 Bisque (2 No(1 Tournedos(3R 2wd
• He takes the order of the fourth guest Table No: AS Covers:4 12h30m 2 Shrimp Cocktail (1,4 1 No (3 2 Bisque (2 No(1 Tournedos(3R 2wd Homard(4
• He writes down the total number of dishes ordered Table No: AS Covers:4 12h30m 2 Shrimp Cocktail (1,4 1 No (3 2 Bisque (2 1 No(1 2 Tournedos(3R 2wd 1 Homard(4
• He separates the different headings. He writes down the date and appends his initials in the right

inferior part of the voucher. He transfers the voucher to his back waiter. Table No: AS Covers:4 12h30m 4 Cartes 2 Shrimp Cocktail (1,4 1 No (3 2 Bisque (2 1 No(1 2 Tournedos(3R 2wd 1 Homard(4 18/02 sz

4.METHODS OF TAKING FOOD AND BEVERAGE ORDER

Essentially there are four methods of taking food and beverage orders from customers. All order taking methods are based upon these four concepts. Triplicate Method Order is taken, top copy goes to the supply

point, second copy is sent to the cashier for billing; third copy is retained by the server as a means of reference during service. Duplicate Method Order is taken; top copy goes to the supply point, second copy is retained for service and billing purposes.Service with Order Method Order is taken; customer is served and

payment received according to that order,for example, bar service or take-away methods. Pre-Ordered Method · Individually (example room service breakfast)

• Hospital tray system
• Functions

5.ROOM SERVICE

Room Service generally includes the same dishes offered in the restaurant. A three star category hotel should be able to serve at least breakfast in the rooms. Room service is part of the food and beverage department and not of housekeeping. The room service can also be responsible, after the closing of the hotel bar, to serve beverages in the rooms and manage the mini-bar. Waiter will use trays (carried high over the shoulder with the left hand) or rolling tables for the meals. Every element should be covered (film paper, carton, bells) during transportation and uncovered when entered the room.The Room Service is often situated inside the kitchen, and close to the service elevator. In this way hot preparations can be served as fast as possible. Inside this service, the following are found:

• Working station
• Toaster
• Sink
• Coffee / tea machine
• Products shelves (cereals, sugar...)
• Tray shelf
• Refrigerator
• Order taking office / desk
• ROOM SERVICE ORDER TAKING

One can order room service in two ways:

• By “door hanger”
• By “telephone”
• By Door Hanger

It is a document that the guest places on the exterior room door knob. The night audit picks up all the documents during the night. This system allows the room service employees to be ready and serve the guests on time.This document is often made up of two faces written down in two languages and is placed by housekeeping on the head of the bed. The information found in this document are the following:

• The service hour desired by the guest, leaving a margin of a quarter of hour (for example between 8:00 and 8:15 a.m.)
• The name of the guest
• The number of people
• The room number
• The detailed order of breakfast desired (filled in cases)
• A choice of newspaper proposed by the establishment
• By Telephone

The room service order is placed through telephone. In fact, it is very difficult to take an order correctly by telephone. One must be fast, not to forget any important information and try to sell the maximun to the guest. For a maximum efficiency, the Room-service personnel use digital telephones that indicate the name of the person and the room number, and the possibility to display the room number of the previous call in case they forget. The room service order is written down manually or computerized and it should include the following information:

• Room number
• Name of the guest
• Number of persons
• Detailed order
• Hour the order is taken
• Service hour

The service should be fast and discrete. The service procedure is as follows:

• Verify the guest's name on the bill
• Knock on the door
• Announce "room service"
• Remove plastic films from the food
• Wait until the guest invites the waiter to come in
• Express wishes "good morning, good afternoon, good evening, call the guest by his last name (good morning mister X).
• Ask where to place the tray
• List the different food items orders by the guest
• Ask the guest to sign the bill
• Thank the guest and explain the procedure to take away the tray

It is to the room service to clear away the tray when the guests have finished, eithere by asking them to place their tray outside of their room when they have finished, and to clear it 20 minutes after the service or by asking the guest to call them to come clear away the tray, which is more delicate because the waiter must

come in the guest's intimacy the least possible. It is the object of conflict between housekeeping and the room service departments. In fact, there is nothing worst than a floor where there is dirty trays lying on the floor. One should consider that the job of the room service is finished only when all trays have been cleared away. The room service employee must have general knowledge about the hotel premises. The room service employee is often the only one to be in direct contact with the guest during his stay. The guest often asks questions concerning the technical equipment of the rooms, the hotel premises, or any other information, and the waiter must be able to answer to any need.

6.COVER LAYING FOR VARIOUS FOODS

The cover or the standard utensils (knife, fork, dishes etc.) to be provided for various foods is detailed below:

Dish Cover

HORS D’OEUVRE

Grapefruit Cocktail Coupe

Doily on side plate

Grapefruit spoon or teaspoon

Tomato Juice 5oz goblet/ or club shaped glass

Doily on side plate

Teaspoon

Ham Mousse Side knife

Sweet fork

Cold fish plate

Potted shrimps Fish knife and fork

Cold fish plate

Oysters Soup plate or welled silver dish filled with

crushed ice and placed on under plate

Oyster fork

Finger bowl filled with lukewarm water and

slices of lemon

Doily on side plate at the top left hand corner

of the cover

Spare serviette

Snails Snail tongs: left of cover

Snail fork: right of cover

Snail dish: round (holding capacity 6/12)

Doily on side plate

Gulls’ Egg Small knife and fork

Cold fish plate

Finger bowl

Doily on side plate containing luke warm

water and a slice of lemon

Spare side plate for the shell

Spare serviette

Smoked Salmon Fish knife and fork

Cold fish plate

Asparagus Asparagus rack: grid serviette

Asparagus tongs: right of cover

Hot / cold joint plate

Joint fork

Finger bowl as for gulls’ egg

Spare serviette

Globe Artichoke Joint fork on right of cover

Finger bowl

Doily on side plate

Spare napkin

Hot / cold fish plate as appropriate

Corn on the Cob Hot fish plate

Corn on the cob holders

Fresh Prawns Wine goblet on doily on an under plate

Fish and knife fork

Cold fish plate

Finger bowl as for gulls eggs

Spare serviette

Chilled Melon Sweet spoon and fork

Cold fish plate

Teaspoon if charentaise melon is offered

Avacodo Cold fish plate

Teaspoon

Shell Fish Cocktail Doily on side plate

Teaspoon

Oyster fork

Shellfish cocktail holder

SOUPS

Crème de tomate

Onion Soup

Potage Germiny

Soup spoon

Soup plate

Under plate

Consomme Sweet spoon

Consommé cup and saucer

Fish plate

Petit Marmite Special earthenware dish called petit

marmite

Sweet spoon

Doily on under plate

Bouillabaisse Soup plate

Under plate

Fish knife / fork

Sweet spoon

Bortsch Soup plate

Under plate

Sweet spoon

Turtle soup Consommé cup

Consommé saucer

Fish plate

Sweet spoon

FISH DISHES

Fish (fried)

Fish (grilled)

Fish (poached)

Grilled Herring

Poached Salmon

Fish knife and fork

Hot fish plate

Mussels Soup plate

Under plate

Fish knife and fork

Cold fish plate

Crawfish Fish knife and fork

Spare plate for the shell

Finger bowl containing luke warm water and

a slice of lemon

Spare serviette

Cold lobster Fish knife and fork

Lobster pick

Spare plate for the shell

Finger bowl containing luke warm water and

a slice of lemon

Spare serviette

FARINACEOUS

Spaghetti Joint fork

Hot fish plate

MEAT

Curry Joint knife and fork

Sweet spoon

Hot soup plate

Under plate (fish plate ) or joint plate

Roast Beef

Roast Lamb

Roast Mutton

Roast Pork

Boiled Mutton

Salt Beef

Boiled Fresh Beef

Joint knife and fork

Hot joint plate

Mixed grill and

grilled steaks

Steak knife and fork

Hot joint plate

Irish stew Soup plate

Under plate

Joint knife and fork

Sweet spoon

POULTRY

Chicken

Turkey Roti

Goose

Wild Duck

Duck

Joint knife and fork

Hot joint plate

Cheese Side plate

Side knife

Small fork (if necessary)

Dessert (Fruits & Nuts)

Fruit plate

Fruit knife and fork: interlocked on fruit plate Spare serviette

One finger bowl: on doily on side plate containing luke warm water and slice of lemon (for rinsing fingers)

One finger bowl: on doily on side plate containing cold water for rinsing grapes. It will be placed on the top left hand corner of the cover.

Nut crackers and grape scissors: to be placed on the fruit basket Spare side plate for sheels and peel

Savoury Hot fish plate

Side knife

Sweet fork