The reception team or a manager will greet the guest within 30 seconds, confirm if they have a reservation or are a walk-in. From there, walk them to the allocated table. They will offer them one food / drink menu per person and one wine list per table.

ALL FOH: if the host or manager is absent from the door, please greet guests and inform them someone will be there to help them shortly; ask them politely to wait by the entrance.

ALL TEAM: please welcome and greet guests as they navigate through the restaurant.

The person responsible for seating is encouraged to offer assistance with seating, such as pulling out chairs and using hand gestures. Ladies first, please.

Approach the table within 30 seconds and offer a warm welcome.

If unable to greet within 30 seconds, gesture to a manager for support and / or inform table you will be right with them.

Approach the table with both filtered still and sparkling water. Please advise the table we offer filtered still / sparking [optional to verbalise £1 per bottle] and serve accordingly. If they ask for tap water, get immediately and do not make the table feel uncomfortable. NOTE: tap water needs to be served from a different bottle not to confuse guests.

SILENT COMMUNICATION: poured water indicates that table has been greeted.

Offer to explain the menu and concept if they are unfamiliar with the restaurant. Remind those guests who have previously dined with us about the key points of service [small plates, sharing concept, flow of dishes].

Verbalise specials, any 86’s and ask about allergies or any dietary requirements.

Highlight on POS any allergies before sending any orders, for every dish that the person with an allergy is having, add the allergen button and inform the manager on duty.

Before leaving the table [and before they have digested the menu properly] please offer:

aperitivo [signature cocktail]
snacks [salumi / focaccia]

Please note that drinks should be served within five minutes and ideally before any food is served. Only pick up drinks when the order is completely prepared by the bartender.

SILENT COMMUNICATION: ticket on tray / cross on KDS.

Confirm with the guests if they have any questions on menu / are ready to order.

Take the food order, ladies first where possible. it is mandatory to take orders with an order pad / pen. this ensures you take note but also instills the table with confidence you have the order noted.

Always repeat the order back to the table, enter it on lightspeed in the format below and write the order on your pad so you can cross off each dish as they get served.

first course: starters
second course: pastas
third course: grill / sides

If a table is not sharing, it is vital they are informed that dishes will arrive at different times re-explaining it is a sharing concept, albeit we will do our best to serve individually.

Please enter on POS / inform kitchen if table is not sharing.

SILENT COMMUNICATION: remove food menu to indicate food order has been taken. If guests ask to keep it the menu, that’s fine, we can leave one menu for the table.

The sommelier is to approach the table, introduce themself, and guide the guests through the wine list. Offer to make some recommendations / an order or allow them some time to review.

Once a wine selection has been made:

present the bottle highlighting name / producer, vintage and region, when applicable.
open the bottle in the wine station and ensure quality.
offer the host to taste.
pour the wine to all guests, starting from the ladies, and finishing with the host, even when this is a lady.

All premium bottles have been flagged as such on lightspeed and require decanting and fine wine glasses.

SILENT COMMUNICATION: remove wine list to indicate wine order has been taken.

Where possible, the wine team / knowledgeable managers are to take all orders for bottles of wine. Wine by the glass, the entire team can take.

Make eye contact with at least one guest when serving the table. Serve ladies first.

Always name what you are delivering to the table. When bringing food, make sure you mention three keywords to describe the dish. Before taking the food from the pass, repeat back the table number to the chef to avoid mistakes.

Offer condiments to go with specific dishes if needed [not something we do often]

Before calling away your second course, make sure all the dishes from the first course have been received. Once they are almost finished, fire the second course. Same applies for calling away the third course.

Always observe the pace the guests are eating to consider firing the next course.

Please ensure constant table maintenance and that wine glasses are topped up. We should have the minimum number of plates and glassware on the table. Remove all empty glasses / plates [except sharing plates and water glasses].

SILENT COMMUNICATION: Do not leave empty glasses / plates to avoid others offering the same thing.

Check backs may be done visually [sometimes eye-contact can be enough] and verbally.

You do not need to approach the table for every dish but keep visual checks on the table and always ask by mentioning a particular dish if you are worried that the guests might not like it.

If you have just done a visual check back, make sure you ascertain / gesture to how they enjoyed their food / wine / experience when clearing; remember to use open questions. Avoid ‘how was everything?’, more personality and specific ‘that’s a new dish, what did you think?’

Offer to change plates for main courses or if the sharing plates are soiled.

Crumb / wipe tables between courses.

When a guest leaves the table, please make sure you fold their napkin in a triangular shape and place next to the plate.

WINE: top up wine [either to 75-100ml or if not much left, balance the remainder across all guests, finishing with the host]. When finishing a bottle, always offer another one or to look at the wine list again, depending on context.

DRINKS: if a glass is less than ¼ full, offer another drink. Clear any empty glasses.

Top-up water only when at table [avoid excessive trips to the table], offer another bottle if necessary.

SILENT COMMUNICATION: if a glass is empty, remove immediately so another FOH does not offer the same thing.

NOTE: Be attentive / ensure tables want for nothing but be careful not to be excessive / intrusive. It makes sense to combine trips to the table I.e. when clearing food, top-up wine / water at the same time, thus minimising trips and intrusiveness.

If you take an order from a section that is not yours inform the person on that section.

Please make sure the waiter station is always stocked up / MEP on point.

Before offering the dessert menu, make sure the table has been crumbed / wiped down with a black cloth and all cutlery removed.

Highlight what we offer on the dessert menu, make recommendations e.g. coffee, sweet wine, digestive.

Remove wine / drink glasses [leave water glasses] if no longer needed.

Check the bill is correct – all items on it and eventual comps applied.

Offer to take payment within 60 seconds of presenting the bill - read the customer.

Do not take cards away from the table, always bring the machine over. Be ready to split the bill by the number of guests in case and thank each of them when taking each payment.

This is your last chance to ask for a feedback or make a lasting impression.

ALL TEAM: bid all guests farewell again – genuine and warm as we welcomed them in the beginning.

Reset your table for the next turn.