What does a Bus Boy do?
The job of busboys is to assist other staff members at a restaurant by doing varied tasks. These include greeting customers, cleaning and resetting tables, and removing dishes after customers leave. Other tasks include cleaning furniture, fixtures, and kitchen equipment, and tidying up any spills and mopping the floors. Busboys are also responsible for ensuring the availability of clean dining materials such as flatware and glasses. The requirements needed for this role may include a high school diploma, previous work experience, and excellent communication and customer service skills.
Bus boy responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real bus boy resumes:
- Record amount and types of special food items serve to patients.
- Prepare and serve meals on a daily basis, noting any allergies or other dietary issues.
- Work in a fast pace demanding environment providing assistance in the hospital cafeteria with food preparation for patients and visitors.
- Be instrumental in a positive workplace environment with professional appearance and cleanliness, punctuality, and uplifting attitude towards personnel and staff
- General dishwasher duties, some basic prep work, and help with the general nightly closing duties throughout the kitchen.
- Take all dirty plates and utensils to the dishwasher, and bring out clean ones to the front of the lobby.
- Assist in serving students by following USDA guidelines and ensuring that their needs are recognize and acknowledge.
Bus boy skills and personality traits
We calculated that 34% of Bus Boys are proficient in Customer Service, Clean Tables, and Dishwashers. They’re also known for soft skills such as Communication skills, Customer-service skills, and Physical strength.
We break down the percentage of Bus Boys that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Customer Service, 34%
Provided optimum customer service including assessing customer needs, meeting quality standards for service and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
- Clean Tables, 17%
Used to set and clean tables, make bread, take out garbage, refill soda and ice machines.
- Dishwashers, 13%
Assist Chef in preparation of foods, dishwasher and clean up tables as well as maintaining cleanliness of entire restaurant.
- Bus Tables, 10%
Bus tables, wash tables, wash dishes, set up tables for parties, and maintain overall cleanliness of restaurant
- Clean Linen, 4%
Assisted with setting tables with clean linens and condiments, as well as carried dirty dishes to kitchen.
- Ice Water, 3%
Remained aware of customers' needs and provided guests with clean silverware, ice water, condiments and special requests
Common skills that a bus boy uses to do their job include "customer service," "clean tables," and "dishwashers." You can find details on the most important bus boy responsibilities below.
Communication skills. The most essential soft skill for a bus boy to carry out their responsibilities is communication skills. This skill is important for the role because "food and beverage serving and related workers must listen to customers’ orders and relay them correctly to the kitchen staff so that the orders are prepared as requested." Additionally, a bus boy resume shows how their duties depend on communication skills: "developed customer service and communication skills along with the ability to work under pressure in a high paced environment"
Customer-service skills. Many bus boy duties rely on customer-service skills. "food service establishments rely on good food and customer service to keep customers and succeed in a competitive industry," so a bus boy will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways bus boy responsibilities rely on customer-service skills: "welcomed customers, sat them at their table, took drink orders, and cleaned restaurant. "
Physical strength. bus boys are also known for physical strength, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to bus boy responsibilities, because "food and beverage serving and related workers need to be able to lift and carry stock and equipment that can weigh up to 50 pounds." A bus boy resume example shows how physical strength is used in the workplace: "worked in a high pace environment with multiple coworkers, engaging in a professional manner - strengthened customer service skills"
The three companies that hire the most bus boys are:
- CARE59 bus boys jobs
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Compare different bus boys
Bus boy vs. Room service server
A room service server is an employee employed in a hotel or lodging to provide various services to the room occupants in the hotel. They often deliver ordered food, drinks, or movies to the occupants' rooms. Their duties and responsibilities include delivery of ordered foods or drinks, taking orders, collecting dirty dishes from rooms, and maintaining supplies and orders.
While similarities exist, there are also some differences between bus boys and room service server. For instance, bus boy responsibilities require skills such as "clean tables," "dishwashers," "bus tables," and "clean linen." Whereas a room service server is skilled in "guest rooms," "beverage orders," "in-room," and "cash handling." This is part of what separates the two careers.
Room service servers tend to make the most money working in the hospitality industry, where they earn an average salary of $26,687. In contrast, bus boys make the biggest average salary, $26,928, in the manufacturing industry.On average, room service servers reach similar levels of education than bus boys. Room service servers are 0.4% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.1% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Bus boy vs. Cafeteria assistant
In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, bus boy responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "customer service," "bus tables," "clean linen," and "ice water." Meanwhile, a cafeteria assistant has duties that require skills in areas such as "kitchen equipment," "cleanliness," "food handling," and "cash handling." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.
On average, cafeteria assistants earn a higher salary than bus boys. Some industries support higher salaries in each profession. Interestingly enough, cafeteria assistants earn the most pay in the health care industry with an average salary of $29,999. Whereas bus boys have higher pay in the manufacturing industry, with an average salary of $26,928.In general, cafeteria assistants achieve similar levels of education than bus boys. They're 0.2% more likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 0.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Bus boy vs. Cafeteria attendant
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, bus boys are more likely to have skills like "customer service," "clean tables," "bus tables," and "ice water." But a cafeteria attendant is more likely to have skills like "cleanliness," "kitchen equipment," "culinary," and "food handling."
Cafeteria attendants earn the highest salary when working in the hospitality industry, where they receive an average salary of $30,366. Comparatively, bus boys have the highest earning potential in the manufacturing industry, with an average salary of $26,928.cafeteria attendants typically earn similar educational levels compared to bus boys. Specifically, they're 0.5% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.3% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Bus boy vs. Dining room hostess
Types of bus boy
Updated January 8, 2025
