F&B Team

TRAINING HANDBOOK

1
1
 Table of Contents

Table of Contents

INTRODUCTION 3

YOUR DUTIES 4

Duties and Responsibilities 4

TEAM MEMBER FUNCTIONS AND RESPONSIBILITIES 5

Basic Guidelines and Responsibilities 5

THE GUEST 11

Service……………………………………………………………………………………………..14

ROOM SERVICE………………………………………………………………………………….17

Phone Manner and Handling Room

Service…………………………………………………...17

QUALITY CONTROL……………………………………………………………………………..18

ORDERING PROCEDURE……………………………………………………………………….19

UPSELLING……………………………………………………………………………………….. 20

MICROS SYSTEM AND PAYMENTS……………………………………………………………21

Basic Micros Training……………………………………………………………………………21

Opening Table Procedure…………………………………………………………………………

22

Number Of
Guests……………………………………………………………………………….24

“Name” The Check…………………………………………………………………………………

25

Order………………………………………………………………………………………………26

Payment……………………………………………………………………………………………28

2
Introduction
Congratulations on joining our family here at the Holiday Inn! As F&B Team Member,
you will have a direct impact on each guest experience. You will determine whether
each guests feels welcome, appreciated and well cared for.

We will provide you with the training you need to be successful. Holiday Inn’s high
standards can only be maintained through great people like yourself, who share our
values and desire to do the very best job possible for our guests every day.

As F&B Team Member, it is most important that you maintain an energetic, friendly
and caring attitude at all times. It is your responsibility to make sure that each guest is
made to feel welcomed and enjoys our great food and beverages.

The guidelines listed on the following pages have been established to help you in your
effort to provide these qualities to our guests.

Welcome to the Holiday Inn’s Food and Beverage Team!

3
 Your Duties

The purpose of this position is to interact with guests and ensure they have a
great experience during their visit to our Hotel. Each F&B team member is
responsible for positive interactions while serving guests in a friendly, polite and
professional manner. Every F&B team member is expected to be attentive to
guest’s needs and making them feel welcome, comfortable, and relaxed at all
times.

Duties & Responsibilities:

 Clean/Prepare tables, prepare cutlery, re-fill condiments.
 Knowledge of current menu (you will be trained on this).
 Knowledge of specials, soup/dessert of the day, promotions, etc.

 Maintain proper dining experience, delivering food/drink, fulfilling customer

needs, removing dishes, replenishing utensils, refilling glasses.
 Prepare final bill, present check to guest, accept payments, return change.
 Clean table immediately after guests leave.
 Perform cleaning tasks as needed or directed by Manager.
 Greet ALL guests warmly with an appropriate greeting (e.g. Sir/Madam,
Mister/Mrs/Ms).
 Adhere to grooming and appearance standards consistently.
 Knowledge and application of correct ID procedure for alcohol
consumption/purchase.
 Be ready and willing to assist other team members as needed.

4
Team member Functions & Responsibilities
Successful service results from confidence, which can only be developed through
knowledge and experience. We will provide you with the necessary training and
knowledge, in order to gain confidence in your service techniques, the menu and the
drink list. You, as Food & Beverage Team Member, must learn it.

Basic Guidelines And Responsibilities

 When taking in order, always look the customer directly in the

eyes, and stand erect. Never lean or write on the table. Never
crouch down on your knees.
 Never handle a glass by the rim with your hand over the
drinking surface.
 Never handle cutlery with your hand over the eating
surface.
 When handling plates or food, never let your hand touch the
eating surface or the food.
 Help your guests as much as possible. Go the extra mile to get
answers to any question they may have.
 Make sure to know which wines are sold by the bottle and
which ones are being sold by the glass. Do not open wine that is
meant to be sold by the bottle, even if the guest asks you to.

 Know what are the daily specials as well as what is OOS (out of
stock).
 Avoid any long conversations at any particular table. This will
only distract you from your work or possibly even upset your
other customers.
 Clear your mind of everything except work when you walk in
the door. When you are at the table make sure your mind is at
the table too. Guests can tell when their server is not totally
mentally present with them at the table and it has a negative
impact.
5
 If you get behind, ask for assistance. You will never get in trouble
for asking.
 Keep yourself prepared for the possibility of a rush. We get most
of our complaints during the busy period.
 Do not ever stand around or lean on anything. You can always
be cleaning. Performing all sorts of side work.
 Always be sure that all of your food is secure when you leave
the kitchen. Become comfortable carrying food items. Do not
balance food items, drinks or plates against your body.
 Always be careful entering the cooking area. Never run in the
kitchen. This will prevent serious injuries.
 If an order is delayed in the kitchen, let the customer know.
Never hide from your customers.
 Always try to take out complete orders. If the entire order is
ready except for a side order, take out the what is ready and have
someone follow you in a few seconds with the side order. Don’t
let the rest of the food get cold because of a side order. Everything
goes out hot.

 You would not believe how patient people will be if they just see
you. Do not hide from your customers. They look for that little
extra personal touch which only you as their server can give
them.
 Any time you wait on a customer, put yourself in their place and
ask yourself if you would be happy with the job you did at that
table.
 If one person asks for something at a table, make sure you ask
everyone at the table if they too would like that item. This will
save you a lot of extra trips. If one person requests vinegar, ask
everyone at the table if they need any extra sauces.

6
 Never handle the rim of the glass and always take the glass
off the table if pouring from a bottle. Pour the drinks away
from the table, never over top of the customer.
 Whenever you are reaching across someone or serving in front of
someone, excuse yourself.
 Always keep your fingers and thumbs off the plates you serve.
 NEVER SIT DOWN WITH A CUSTOMER or friend while on duty,
even if they ask you to.
 When serving a party of one, special attention should be paid to
them.
 If a customer offers to buy you a drink, just tell them you will be
happy to accept the offer another time, when you are not on
duty.
 If you are having a problem with another employee, go directly
to the manager. Do not confront the other employee. Problems
shall never be discussed in front of any customers, even regulars
or friends.
 If you must go to the bathroom during the shift, ask someone if
they will please watch the bar/restaurant, while you were gone,
and inform a manager so that they are not looking for you.
 Unauthorised persons are not allowed in the kitchen, behind
counters, or bars. If one appears, politely but firmly escort
them out and get the manager, or whomever it is that they
wanted to speak to.
 Always check your glassware, cutlery or plates for cracks and
dried food before filling or serving them.
 No eating or drinking in the front of the house during
operation hours. No gum chewing or smoking EVER.
 No eating or drinking in the kitchen or in the back of
the bar. You have a canteen for that, during your
break.

8
 Cash count responsibilities are only to be handled by
managers. NO EXCEPTIONS.
 Serve food from customer’s left.
 Serve beverage from customer’s right.
 Clear everything from customer’s right.
 Serve women and children first, then men.
 Whenever you serve a course, ask if there is anything else you
can do for the table.
 Remove dirty dishes and cutlery after each course.
 Offer the entire table additional beverages whenever anyone is
getting low.
 Bring condiments to the table before they are needed.
 Never walk away from a table without acknowledging its
requests.

9
Server Opening Procedures

At the beginning of each shift –

1. Check the service board for your assignments.
2. Check the service board for specials, soup/dessert of the day,
etc…
3. Conduct your section checkpoints:

 Tabletops clean

 Table base clean

 Chairs wiped

 All the proper menus clean and set up on the tables

 Salt and pepper shakers and sauces clean and full

 Floor clean

4. Perform opening side work – (cutting lemons/limes,

polishing/cleaning glasses, preparing cutlery, cleaning coffee
machine if needed, etc.)

Server Closing Procedures

At the end of each shift –

1. When closing, perform the following

 Tabletops clean

 Clean chairs

10
  Clean table bases

 Clean the glass washer and sign the sheet

 Clean coffee machine

 Pick up the rubbish

 Clean floor

1. Complete assigned closing side work duties.

2. Begin check-‐out procedures.

3. Clock out.

11
The Guest

Never underestimate the importance of a guest!!!

 A guest is not dependent upon us – we are dependent upon him

(or her).

 A guest is never an interruption of our work – he is the purpose of

it.

 A guest does us a favor when he comes here – we are not doing

him a favor by serving him.

 A guest is part of our business – not an outsider.

 A guest is not a cold statistic – he is a flesh and blood human

being with feelings and emotions, like our own.

 A guest is a person who brings us his wants – it is our job to fill

those wants.

 A guest is the deserving of the most courteous and attentive

treatment we can give him.

You Must Be Able To Serve Many Different Types Of

Guests

You Must Be Able To Serve Many Different Types Of Guests. For

example

The Calm Guest: Genuine interest and patient

understanding will put this type of
guess at ease. Even a comment on the
weather can make him feel at home.

12
The Aggressive Guest: This type must be handled in a
courteous and businesslike manner.
Kindness and politeness can often
change him into a steady and
appreciative customer.
*Tip: In case you feel that you are
unable to handle the guest in a calm
and professional manner, politely
excuse yourself and say “Excuse me
Sir/Madam, I will get my manager to
assist you further”.
Do not engage into an argument or
discussion.

The Fussy Guest: This is one of the hardest guests to

please. Try to stay one step ahead of
him by learning the things that irritate
him. Be sure to have everything just
right, before serving the fussy guest.

The Over Familiar guest: Be courteous, dignified, and avoid long

conversations. Stay away from the
table, except when actual service is
needed. Never try to talk back or
engage in any argument with the rude
guest.
*Tip: Use the same sentence as when
dealing with an aggressive guest.
Politely excuse yourself and say
“Excuse me Sir/Madam, I will get my
manager to assist you further”.
Do not engage into an argument or
discussion.

13
 The Guest who is Alone: Don't call attention by asking if he/she is
alone. The guest may be lonely and want someone to talk to. Be friendly, but don't neglect
other guests. With nobody to talk to, time seems long, so serve as quickly as possible.

The Noisy Troublemaker: Do not be drawn into arguments.

Speak softly. Do not antagonise.
Refuse to participate in criticism of
management, the establishment, or
other personnel.

*Tip: Use the same sentence as when

dealing with an aggressive guest.
Politely excuse yourself and say
“Excuse me Sir/Madam, I will get my
manager to assist you further”.
Do not engage into an argument or discussion.

Guest with
injuries/disabilities: Be helpful, ask if you may assist
but do not be too eager.
Be considerate; do not call attention
a
by hovering. Always make disabled
guest feel important and
accommodated them.

14
Service

Five basics of service excellence:

1. Look at me.

2. Smile at me.

3. Talk to me.

4. Listen to me.

5. Thank me.

Remember, each day is our new opportunity to get a good feedback

and boost our scores.

When a customer forms an opinion of any food and beverage

establishment, service and food presentation standalone no matter how
beautiful the surroundings or how delicious the food; poor service will
certainly ruin the entire experience.

When developing good service, promote these qualities: promptness,

courtesy, good manners, enthusiasm, and teamwork. In short, project a
professional attitude. Unless you attain this goal, you will not be able to
provide the high quality of service we expect here at Holiday Inn.

Each time you service table; reputation of the entire Hotel rests in your
hands. You have the power to influence the opinion of those people. If
they are happy with you and your service, they will probably return.
They may also make a feedback or leave a good review of our Hotel.
Keep in mind that they will do exact same thing if they are not happy.

15
 You will be trained. The more attentive, enthusiastic, and patient you
are, the sooner you will develop the work habits which make you an
excellent team member, capable of taking great care of our guests.

Always maintain a friendly, but professional attitude. If you need help, ASK
FOR IT. Have enough consideration for your customers, and the house, to get assistance
WHEN NECESSARY. Remember-‐ Teamwork – no business can survive without it.

Arrive on time. For your shift properly dressed, with scrubbed hands
and nails, clean wrinkle free clothes, and clean shoes. If your
appearance is sloppy your performance is sloppy. Your appearance,
dress, posture, and expressions broadcast to everyone how you feel
about yourself.

Introduce yourself. Customers want to know who is serving them. It is

the personal touch they enjoy. Also, if they have enjoyed their visit, they
will give a good feedback about our Hotel and you.

You are there to fulfill their needs. Do not be pushy; but be confident. It
is your job to make guests feel comfortable, so comfortable they want to
come back.

Don’t be afraid of customers. Be relaxed, but alert, and efficient.

Always be in control of the situation. Be strong, yet polite.

Always be yourself. Develop your own tableside manner. Avoid

seeming “fake” Your customers will know you are faking it, and they
will dislike your attitude.

Never talk about guests. Do not gossip, brag, or complain about guests
to other employees, customers, friends, or managers while on duty or
outside of work. This will get back to them and the management team.
Also, other guests hear this type of discussion and become
uncomfortable, thinking that you will also talk about them once they
leave. Do not engage in this behavior even if another employee
approaches you with such words.

16
Customer service don’ts:

 Dirty plates in hand when greeting customers.

 Not knowing what they are drinking, e.g., “I think this is Diet
Coke… right?”

 “Discussion groups” of three or four idle team members. All

discussions should be held in employee areas, not within view or
earshot of customers.

 Not acknowledging waiting guests.

 Answering the phone with, “Hello”, without introducing yourself.

Always introduce yourself and let the guest know who are they
speaking to and to which department. (e.g. Room Service, John
speaking, how may I help you?)

17
 Room Service

Phone manner and handling room service:

 Every team member who has the task of doing the room service,
is obligated to keep the room service phone on them at ALL
times. No exception and no excuses.

 Always introduce yourself and let the guest know who they are
speaking to. (e.g. “Room Service, John speaking, how may I help
you?”)

 Make sure to take last name and the room number from a guest,
before taking their order. DO NOT forget to do this.

 Repeat the order to the guest, to make sure you have everything
properly written down.

 Inform the guest on how long is their food going to take or if

there is any delay. Rough estimate is perfectly fine.

 Make sure to softly knock on the door and let the guest know it is
the room service at their door.

 Ask the guest where they would like the tray to be put down.

 Make sure to politely ask the guest to sign the bill before you
leave and ask them if there is anything else you can get for them.

18
Quality Control

Things to look for before leaving the kitchen:

1. HOT food. Check to see if your food is hot. If it is not a hot, DO NOT
TAKE IT OUT.
2. Clean plates. Always check any plates, cutlery, and napkins before
you present them to the guest.
3. Correct order. Make sure you are taking YOUR order. This can be
very embarrassing at the table. Always ask yourself if you would
eat that item if it were brought to you.

4. When bringing out drinks, be certain the glass is clean, filled to the
proper level, and that the garnish is correct, fresh and attractive.

5. COLD food is as equally important as hot food. Make sure cold

foods are going out cold, not warm or cool, but cold.

6. Bring necessary condiments and cutlery BEFORE the order: e.g.,

ketchup, vinegar, hot sauce, etc.

7. If the customer is not satisfied … or there is obviously something

wrong at the table, e.g., cracked glass, foreign object in food, not
cooked properly, etc., use the following steps:

 Apologize.
 Remove the items immediately.
 Get a manager. Management will take the necessary
steps in making sure that the problem is corrected
and that the customer is 100% satisfied.

19
 8. Know everything on the menu in terms of what is in it or what are
the ingredients. Staying updated on this is very important as new
items may be presented at times. Also, drinks are just as important
as food items and there are very often new items available.

9. Get your guests first drinks to them as SOON as possible. Ideally

within a few minutes from taking the order; no longer.

Learn and use guest’s names when appropriate. Always use “Mr.” or “Mrs/Ms.” unless you
are told or you are absolutely sure it is proper to use a guest’s first name.

Ordering Procedures

When approaching the table, be sure to have your pen and pad ready.
If possible, you should take the order from women and children first,
and then the men. Try to take the orders in the clockwise direction.

Example:
2 3

1 4

You

Again, it is very important that every server records orders in the same
way. If a food runner takes the food to the table for you, then he knows
where each dish belongs.

20
Upselling

Effective suggestive selling is subtle. You are doing the guest a favor,
looking after his best interests by offering your knowledge and expertise
and making honest recommendations.
To upsell effectively, you must sometimes bring a need or desire to try
something to the surface. Make sure you use the right type of language.

Many of our guests are not familiar with our daily specials our
promotions. Above all, be sincere and honest. Always do what you truly
believe it is in the “guest’s” best interest. Recommended items you know
are superior and you are certain they will enjoy.

Always allow the guests to finish ordering

before you start suggesting. Be aware of
what the guest is ordering and make sure
he understands what he is getting.
Always be persuasive and display complete confidence.
Make suggestions positively and not aggressively.

21
 Micros System and Payments
Basic Micros Training:

Each employee at the start of their first day will get employee ID card (micros card):

22
This card you will be using to access the micros system, where you will be taking orders or
processing payments (credit cards, cash or room charges).

*Important! :

 DO NOT lose it.

 DO NOT separate from it.

Opening table procedure:

Bar/Restaurant:
 Use your Micros card to enter the micros system. Swipe on the side of the
monitor.

 Click the “Begin table” button:

 You will see a pop up window that says “Enter table number”
 In this window you will be typing a number of the table that will be
clearly lay out for you next to the till, as a table plan.

23
 Make sure to match the table number you are entering with the one on
the table plan.
 Click “Ok”.
 Another pop up window will show up asking for the number of guests.

24
25
Number of guests:
This will depend on whether a guest will be having food with us or not.
For example: If the guest orders a bag of crisps or any kind of a side dish (onion rings,
chips, etc), as this is not considered food, we will be putting the number of guests as zero
(“0”).
If the guest is ordering only drinks, the guest number will be the same, zero “0”, as drink is
obviously not a food.

However, if the guest orders burger or any starter/dessert, or all 3 courses, a sandwich
even, this is all considered a food, therefore the number of the guests will be marked as
“1”.
What you actually do here is basically, counting the guests who are eating food.
In order to do that, you will have to know which items are considered food and which are
not:

Food: 1. All mains

2. Starters
3. Desserts
4. Sandwiches

Non-food: 1. Crisps
2. Peanuts
3. Side dishes (onion rings, chunky chips, skinny fries, etc.)

For your better understanding, here is an example: If you have 3 guests, of which 2 are
having pizza pepperoni and 1 guest is having only a bowl of chunky chips, you will be
putting as number of guests “2”.
You can always correct the number of guests by going in to “Functions” and selecting
“Change number of guests”:

26
“Name the Check”:
After you successfully opened a table, you have to properly “name” it:

 Name the table by going into “function” and clicking on the “guest
check ID”:

 After clicking on “Guest Check Id”, another pop up window will open
looking like this:

 Here you will be writing the “name” of the check.

 This will contain, name of the venue (bar/restaurant), table number and
27
 the room number if the table is being created for the restaurant.
Order:

 You are now ready to put the order through the system.

 At the bottom left of the menu page, you will see “beverage/food”
button, that will lead you to the drink/food menus:

28
For both food and beverages: On the right hand side and the top bar, you will see
food/drink menu options: sides, mains, etc or spirits, wines, soft drinks, etc…:

29
In case that you need to send a message to the kitchen related to food preparation ( e.g.
guest wants onion rings instead of chunky chips):
 Click the “Food Prep” button.
 Click on the Message button.
 Type in a brief message.

Payment:
30
After you have entered the order, you will now process the bill.

 On the right bottom side, pick an option “Pay”:

 This will take you to the payment options menu:

31
 It is very important to match the credit card (Visa, Master card
or American express) with the credit card option in the micros
system
 Visa with Visa, Master card with Master card, etc…
 Credit card slip, that is printed off the credit card machine will
contain the information whether this is a visa debit card, or
American express.

 DO NOT MIX THESE UP!!!

 If it is a room charge, click on the option, “Room charge”

32
 This will open another pop up window where you will be typing
down the number of the room:

 If it is a cash payment, click on the option, “Cash Amount” or

“Cash Exact”
 If the amount of money that you are receiving from the guest is
exact to the amount that needs to be pay for, click “Cash Exact”
 Otherwise, click on the “Cash Amount”.

33
The till will automatically print out the pay slip.
 You will attach the pay slip to the credit card slip and store it inside
the till

 Customer copy you will hand over to them.

 If it is a room charge, that pay slip needs to be signed by a guest

and stored into the black box with room numbers compartment.

 An unsigned copy is to be given to the customer.

 If it is a cash payment, those slips are to be stored into the

separate box next to the till, until managers decide it is safe to
dispose of it.

34
We have given you the basics, as we view them, and how we would like them
to be conducted.
We want you to use this handbook, along with your common sense.

Good Luck!!!

Written and Edited by Dijana Winman,

Food & Beverage Assistant Manager at Holiday Inn Hotel.

With the great support and inspiration of:

Jacob Winman

Mariusz Lachowski
Food & Beverage Manager

Nadia Fakhredin
General Manager

35
36