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Fast Food and Counter Workers
Perform duties such as taking orders and serving food and beverages. Serve customers at counter or from a steam table. May take payment. May prepare food and beverages.
Also Known As:
Cafe Server
Cafeteria Server
Concession Cashier
Deli Worker (Delicatessen Worker)
Food Server
Food Service Aide
Food Service Assistant
Food Service Worker
School Cafeteria Cook
Snack Bar Attendant
Wages
Annual wages for Fast Food and Counter Workers in United States
Job Outlook
Bright
New job opportunities are very likely in the future
United States
2033 Projected Employment
3,946,500
6% Change From 2023
Explore Fast Food and Counter Workers video
Tasks you might complete in a day.
- Distribute food to servers.
- Prepare and serve cold drinks, frozen milk drinks, or desserts, using drink-dispensing, milkshake, or frozen-custard machines.
- Request and record customer orders, and compute bills, using cash registers, multi-counting machines, or pencil and paper.
- Request and record customer orders, and compute bills, using cash registers, multi-counting machines, or pencil and paper.
- Monitor and order supplies or food items, and restock as necessary to maintain inventory.
- Deliver orders to kitchens, and pick up and serve food when it is ready.
- Wash dishes, glassware, and silverware after meals.
- Replenish foods at serving stations.
- Add relishes and garnishes to food orders, according to instructions.
- Accept payment from customers, and make change as necessary.
- Collect and return dirty dishes to the kitchen for washing.
- Perform personnel activities, such as supervising and training employees.
- Deliver orders to kitchens, and pick up and serve food when it is ready.
- Brew coffee and tea, and fill containers with requested beverages.
- Notify kitchen personnel of shortages or special orders.
- Set up dining areas for meals, and clear them following meals.
- Clean and organize eating, service, and kitchen areas.
- Communicate with customers regarding orders, comments, and complaints.
- Perform cleaning duties, such as sweeping, mopping, and washing dishes, to keep equipment and facilities sanitary.
- Clean and organize eating, service, and kitchen areas.
- Prepare and serve cold drinks, frozen milk drinks, or desserts, using drink-dispensing, milkshake, or frozen-custard machines.
- Plan, prepare, and deliver meals to individuals with special dietary needs.
- Select food items from serving or storage areas and place them in dishes, on serving trays, or in take-out bags.
- Prepare daily food items, and cook simple foods and beverages, such as sandwiches, salads, soups, pizza, or coffee, using proper safety precautions and sanitary measures.
- Wrap menu items such as sandwiches, hot entrees, and desserts for serving or for takeout.
- Arrange tables and decorations according to instructions.
- Set up dining areas for meals, and clear them following meals.
- Plan, prepare, and deliver meals to individuals with special dietary needs.
- Take customers' orders and write ordered items on tickets, giving ticket stubs to customers when needed to identify filled orders.
- Plan, prepare, and deliver meals to individuals with special dietary needs.
- Balance receipts and payments in cash registers.
- Scrub and polish counters, steam tables, and other equipment, and clean glasses, dishes, and fountain equipment.
- Scrub and polish counters, steam tables, and other equipment, and clean glasses, dishes, and fountain equipment.
- Request and record customer orders, and compute bills, using cash registers, multi-counting machines, or pencil and paper.
- Serve customers in eating places that specialize in fast service and inexpensive carry-out food.
- Serve food, beverages, or desserts to customers in such settings as take-out counters of restaurants or lunchrooms, business or industrial establishments, hotel rooms, and cars.
Subject areas you may need to master.
- Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
- Telecommunications - Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
- Communications and Media - Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
- Sales and Marketing - Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
- Engineering and Technology - Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
- Production and Processing - Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
- Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
- Geography - Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
- Design - Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
- Building and Construction - Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
- Philosophy and Theology - Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
- History and Archeology - Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
- Mechanical - Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
- Foreign Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
- Therapy and Counseling - Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
- Sociology and Anthropology - Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
- Chemistry - Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
- Administrative - Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
- Law and Government - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
- Transportation - Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
- Public Safety and Security - Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
- Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
- Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
- English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
- Fine Arts - Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
- Food Production - Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
- Economics and Accounting - Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
- Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
- Physics - Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
- Personnel and Human Resources - Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
- Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
- Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
- Medicine and Dentistry - Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
Strengths you may need in this role.
- Mathematics - Using math to solve problems.
- Instructing - Teaching people how to do something.
- Equipment Selection - Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
- Repairing - Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
- Programming - Writing computer programs.
- Monitoring - Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
- Management of Personnel Resources - Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
- Operations Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
- Science - Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
- Operations Analysis - Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
- Writing - Writing things for co-workers or customers.
- Time Management - Managing your time and the time of other people.
- Operation and Control - Using equipment or systems.
- Management of Financial Resources - Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
- Equipment Maintenance - Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
- Reading Comprehension - Reading work-related information.
- Persuasion - Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
- Critical Thinking - Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
- Technology Design - Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
- Active Learning - Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
- Service Orientation - Looking for ways to help people.
- Installation - Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
- Learning Strategies - Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
- Complex Problem Solving - Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
- Speaking - Talking to others.
- Coordination - Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
- Management of Material Resources - Managing equipment and materials.
- Judgment and Decision Making - Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
- Systems Evaluation - Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
- Troubleshooting - Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
- Active Listening - Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
- Quality Control Analysis - Testing how well a product or service works.
- Systems Analysis - Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
- Negotiation - Bringing people together to solve differences.
- Social Perceptiveness - Understanding people's reactions.
- Trunk Strength - Using your lower back and stomach.
- Deductive Reasoning - Using rules to solve problems.
- Time Sharing - Doing two or more things at the same time.
- Dynamic Strength - Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
- Static Strength - Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
- Number Facility - Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
- Speed of Closure - Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
- Flexibility of Closure - Seeing hidden patterns.
- Perceptual Speed - Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
- Information Ordering - Ordering or arranging things.
- Control Precision - Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
- Response Orientation - Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
- Wrist-Finger Speed - Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
- Originality - Creating new and original ideas.
- Problem Sensitivity - Noticing when problems happen.
- Visual Color Discrimination - Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
- Peripheral Vision - Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
- Gross Body Coordination - Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
- Selective Attention - Paying attention to something without being distracted.
- Rate Control - Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
- Reaction Time - Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
- Far Vision - Seeing details that are far away.
- Night Vision - Seeing at night or under low light.
- Depth Perception - Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
- Hearing Sensitivity - Telling the difference between sounds.
- Oral Comprehension - Listening and understanding what people say.
- Written Comprehension - Reading and understanding what is written.
- Oral Expression - Communicating by speaking.
- Dynamic Flexibility - Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Gross Body Equilibrium - Keeping your balance or staying upright.
- Inductive Reasoning - Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
- Finger Dexterity - Putting together small parts with your fingers.
- Mathematical Reasoning - Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
- Memorization - Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
- Spatial Orientation - Knowing where things are around you.
- Visualization - Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
- Explosive Strength - Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
- Stamina - Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
- Manual Dexterity - Holding or moving items with your hands.
- Multilimb Coordination - Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
- Arm-Hand Steadiness - Keeping your arm or hand steady.
- Speed of Limb Movement - Quickly moving your arms and legs.
- Extent Flexibility - Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Category Flexibility - Grouping things in different ways.
- Near Vision - Seeing details up close.
- Glare Sensitivity - Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
- Auditory Attention - Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
- Sound Localization - Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
- Speech Recognition - Recognizing spoken words.
- Written Expression - Communicating by writing.
- Fluency of Ideas - Coming up with lots of ideas.
- Speech Clarity - Speaking clearly.
Average Education Attained
Highest level of education earned by people in this career.
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Content sourced from United States Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration ("DOLETA") and the Minnesota Department of Employment & Economic Development ("DEED")