Restaurant Captain Job Description Template

Please note: this job description is also suitable for the Senior Waiter and Senior Waitress position. The scope, responsibilities, and performance indicators described here apply equally to both titles, since the Captain and the Senior Waiter perform the same section leadership role under different naming conventions. Properties that use the title Senior Waiter or Senior Waitress can adopt this document simply by changing the job title field and adjusting the job code accordingly.

Short description

A ready to brand job description for the Restaurant Captain, also applicable to the Senior Waiter and Senior Waitress position, covering 28 specific responsibilities across nine areas of accountability, together with qualifications, measurable performance indicators, and a three party signature block. Written at section level, describing what actually happens between the guest, the service team, and the kitchen during a single shift.

Purpose

The Captain is the first level of leadership in a restaurant, and the only one close enough to the table to influence the guest experience directly, one section at a time. It is also the role most frequently filled by promotion from the service team without any written change to what is expected. This template gives the position definition:

1. For promotion decisions, it states what changes when a waiter becomes a Captain, namely section responsibility, team allocation, billing accountability, and training duties.
2. For onboarding, it gives the newly appointed Captain a clear written scope on their first shift in the role, rather than leaving them to infer it.
3. For performance management, it carries indicators measured at section level, which is the only level a Captain genuinely controls.
4. For governance, it carries a job code, revision number, update date, and three signatures, making it a controlled HR document fit for audit.

It suits hotels, resorts, and restaurant groups formalising their service team structure, HR departments completing a job description library across all levels, and operations where the Captain or Senior Waiter position has never been defined in writing.

What is inside the document

A clean portrait layout in five parts.

1. Branded header

A two panel header pairing a marked logo placeholder on the left with a dark title block on the right carrying the document type, the job title, the job code, and the job level, which is identified here as Team Leader.

2. Position identification table

Eight fields in a two column grid covering job title, job code, department, job level, company, reporting line to the F&B Supervisor, location, and the positions supervised, which are waiters, waitresses, busboys, and hostess. The location is specified as the restaurant rather than all outlets, which correctly scopes this role beneath the Supervisor.

3. Job overview

A single paragraph in second person, placing the Captain in charge of one restaurant section per shift and describing the position as the link between guests, the service team, and the kitchen, which is the clearest possible statement of what this role exists to do. It closes on the three qualities the job depends on, namely product knowledge, timing, and personality.

4. Key responsibilities

Twenty eight responsibilities organised into nine titled groups:

• Section Operations and Service Standards, four points covering running the assigned section from opening setup to closing, enforcing service sequence and table etiquette, checking mise en place, table setup, side stations, and cleanliness before service, and taking orders accurately with follow up on food timing and table pickup.
• Guest Experience, three points covering welcoming and seating guests with menu presentation and recommendations, checking satisfaction during the meal and resolving minor complaints on the spot, and escalating serious complaints while recording guest preferences, allergies, and special occasions.
• Team Leadership and Training, four points covering table and side duty allocation, participation in the pre shift briefing with information passed to the section team, on the job coaching of new staff on service steps, menu, and POS, and grooming, uniform, and behaviour standards.
• Billing and Equipment Care, four points covering verification of orders and bills in the POS before presentation with correct payment handling, careful handling of china, glassware, silverware, and linen to reduce breakage, section supply requisitions through the Supervisor, and assistance with monthly inventory.
• Menu and Product Knowledge, three points covering full knowledge of menu, ingredients, cooking methods, and allergens with clear explanation to guests, beverage, wine, and dessert pairing recommendations, and feeding guest comments back to the Supervisor and kitchen.
• Hygiene, Food Safety and Compliance, three points covering HACCP and sanitation standards within the section, responsible alcohol service, and immediate reporting of damaged furniture, equipment, or safety hazards.
• Upselling and Events, three points covering promotion of restaurant offers and seasonal menus, banquet and event service according to the BEO when assigned, and driving suggestive selling to raise average check.
• Reporting and Handover, three points covering the restaurant logbook, handover of open orders, pending issues, and VIP notes to the next shift Captain, and participation in team meetings.
• Other Duties, a single properly worded catch all point.

The pitch of these responsibilities sits exactly where it should. Where the Supervisor runs the outlet, the Captain runs a section. Where the Supervisor prepares rosters, the Captain allocates tables and side duties within a shift. Where the Supervisor checks bills, voids, and discounts across the outlet, the Captain checks the bills in their own section before presenting them. The three documents now form a clean hierarchy from manager to supervisor to captain, with no overlap and no gap between them.

5. Qualifications, performance indicators, and approval

• Qualifications and requirements, seven points covering education, a minimum of one year as Senior Waiter or Captain, knowledge of table service, menu, beverage, wine, and hygiene, the confidence to lead a small team during busy service, POS and billing familiarity, English language ability, and shift availability including weekends and public holidays.
• Key performance indicators, five measurable standards covering section sales and average check against target, guest satisfaction and positive guest comments, service sequence and SOP compliance during outlet checks, order and billing accuracy with minimal voids and errors, and section breakage levels alongside team grooming standard. Every one of these is observable within a single section during a single shift, which is what makes them fair.
• A scope limitation note, properly worded.
• A three column approval block with name and date fields for the Corporate General Manager, the Human Resource Manager, and the Restaurant Captain as acknowledging assignee, followed by a footer carrying the update date, revision number, and job code.

What you gain

• A clear written definition of the first leadership step in your service team, which is where most properties have nothing at all.
• Better promotions, because candidates and managers both see what the step up requires before it happens.
• Accurate billing and lower breakage, since both are written into the role as accountabilities rather than assumed.
• Fair appraisals, through indicators measured at section level.
• One document covering two common titles, namely Captain and Senior Waiter or Waitress.
• A complete F&B hierarchy when paired with the Manager and Supervisor templates.

Download Link:
Restaurant Captain Job Description Template