EdApp by SafetyCulture

10 Restaurant Hostess Training Courses

We’ve put together a list of restaurant hostess training courses covering lessons to improve the knowledge and techniques of your employees so they can provide the best experience for your customers. Some courses are also designed to prepare hosts and hostesses for challenges that they’ll face while working in the food and beverage industry.

Restaurant Hostess Training Courses
Last published: 22nd August 2023
EdApp Restaurant Hostess Training -  Serving Food

1. Serving Food

Serving Food is a great restaurant training course by EdApp intended to guide restaurant hostesses through providing an excellent dining experience for customers. It begins with a lesson on the key areas of a restaurant, as well as the proper procedures for serving and interacting with customers. Then, it outlines how to take orders properly and more efficiently. The course also includes how to maintain a section of tables, carry plates, and communicate with your team of wait staff. Lastly, it covers upselling and suggestive selling techniques for your staff, which will help your staff be effective in suggesting additional meals or better deals for customers. Through this course, your staff will learn the answers to the questions, what is a host at a restaurant or what does a restaurant host do? You can also help your waiting staff improve their hosting skills and create a pleasing experience for your customers. This way, you can get more positive customer feedback.

This course is available for free in EdApp’s editable course library, making it readily available for your staff at the press of a button. Its mobile learning approach makes this course easily accessible on any mobile device, anytime and anywhere.

Length: 5-10 minutes per lesson

Certification: Available

Cost: Free

Created by EdApp

Explore the course
EdApp Restaurant Hostess Training - Serving Alcohol Safely

2. Serving Alcohol Safely

Help your restaurant hostesses learn more about the liquor laws and regulations in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia with EdApp’s informative course, Serving Alcohol Safely. It outlines the most responsible ways to serve liquors and proper cleaning and sanitation practices, ensuring safe alcohol consumption. Furthermore, this restaurant hostess training contains a helpful guide on dealing with intoxicated patrons and other demanding customers while staying professional and respectful. It also discusses the legal drinking age in these countries. because this is something that a hostess for a restaurant must know. 

The course comes in the form of microlearning so that the lessons are quick and easy to complete, perfect for the busy schedules of most restaurant hostesses. This microlearning platform has incorporated games and quizzes to make learning more fun and engaging. You can even deploy prizes like coffee coupons or free dinner vouchers for your top performers.

Length: 5-10 minutes per lesson

Certification: Available

Cost: Free

Created by EdApp

Explore the course
EdApp Restaurant Hostess Training - Food Runners Guide

3. Food Runners Guide

Hostesses are responsible for delivering a satisfying experience to your customers - they seat the customers, communicate their orders to chefs, and double-check orders. Playing an essential role in the success of your restaurant, it is important that you understand their core responsibilities, and provide them with the necessary training needed to maximize their potential. While EdApp initially designed the Food Runners Guide for restaurant owners, managers, and first-time food runners, this course covers topics that your restaurant hostesses will also find valuable as they are more knowledgeable about restaurant operations. It outlines all the responsibilities of food runners, the importance of looking presentable, and some must-follow etiquettes to be observed in front of customers. This free and editable course for restaurant hosts also tackles the right way of taking orders and the safe way of carrying and serving food and removing plates and utensils without offending the customers. 

Length: 5-10 minutes per lesson

Certification: Available

Cost: Free

Created by EdApp

Explore the course
Alison Restaurant Hostess Training - Food and Beverage Services

4. Food and Beverage Services

The Food and Beverage course by Alison sheds light on the basics and importance of food beverage operations within a hotel, and how they connect with other hotel departments. This restaurant hostess course goes into detail about the key restaurant positions and their duties, and some of the best practices and procedures to successfully handle your restaurant staff. As your trainees go through this course, they will learn more about the characteristics of different menu types and a variety of approaches to menu pricing. They will also know some of the considerations involved when designing and planning a restaurant layout. This training is free, but you will have to pay should you wish to avail a certificate of completion.

Length: 1.5-3 Hours

Certification: Available

Cost: Free

Created by Alison

Explore the course
EdApp Restaurant Hostess Training - The Art of Bussing

5. The Art of Bussing

The Art of Bussing restaurant hostess course increases the professional skills of the restaurant staff, including their interpersonal relations with guests. The nature of the job mainly involves cleaning, clearing, and resetting tables, in coordination with the servers – to provide a seamless restaurant operation. However, it’s crucial to remember that customer interaction also plays a pivotal role when it comes to bussing. Aside from discussing the technical aspects of the job like proper table setting and clearing, it’s best if the host at a restaurant learns how to read customers to tailor their approach so as to provide the best service suited to their customer’s needs and preferences. This restaurant hostess training course has 4 lessons and a quiz. Some lessons include a busser’s function and responsibilities, guest interaction, table clearance, and dishwasher responsibilities.

Length: 5-10 minutes per lesson

Certification: Available

Cost: Free

Created by EdApp

Explore the course

Explore our library including restaurant hostess training courses.

Universal Class Restaurant Hostess Training - Waiter and Waitress Training 101

6. Waiter and Waitress Training 101

Universal Class developed this Waiter and Waitress Training 101 course for aspiring individuals who are looking to work as wait staff or as a hostess at a restaurant. This restaurant hostess training course equips learners with the essential knowledge and skills, such as learning the scope of their job, preparing for it, and checking if they have the basic characteristics to get the job done. Here, learners will be able to learn the ropes of working in different types of restaurants, such as family-style, fine dining, and fast food. Other important topics include waiting tables, serving alcohol, and proper safety and sanitation.

Length: 7 hours

Certification: Available

Cost: $50 USD (no certificate), $75 USD (with certificate)

Created by Universal Class

Explore the course
EdApp Restaurant Hostess Training - Opening and Closing Our Restaurant

7. Opening and Closing Our Restaurant

While often overlooked, setting clear guidelines is very much important when it comes to opening and closing your restaurant. It keeps your crews on top of all the vital tasks that must be done at the start and end of their shifts, streamlining your restaurant's operations throughout the day. EdApp’s Opening and Closing Our Restaurant course presents essential steps and procedures that your restaurant hostesses must follow to ensure that the establishment remains neat and orderly throughout the day, from the moment the door opens until the last customer leaves. This restaurant hostess training course details the proper procedure for arranging chairs and tables, setting up the lighting and music, and getting ready for service. It also talks about a whole slew of tasks to work on when it’s about time to close the restaurant.

Length: 5-10 minutes per lesson

Certification: Available

Cost: Free

Created by EdApp

Explore the course
EdApp Restaurant Hostess Training - Guest Experience

8. Guest Experience

EdApp’s course on Guest Experience is a restaurant hostess training course that’s focused on ways to provide guests with the best experience possible. As the learners move through the lessons, they’ll gain insight into topics like breaking the ice, creating a welcoming atmosphere, personalizing guest experiences, delivering consistent service, and managing issues and complaints. By reinforcing these essential basic skills to your staff when interacting with your guests, you’re able to create a more accommodating culture in your hotel.

Length: 5-10 minutes per lesson

Certification: Available

Cost: Free

Created by EdApp

Explore the course
EdApp Restaurant Hostess Training - Dealing with Difficult Customers

9. Dealing with Difficult Customers

Part of business success is ensuring that your customers leave their table with smiles on their faces. But what happens if you’ve come across naturally impatient, indecisive, and raving customers? Another useful restaurant hostess training course prepared by EdApp, Dealing with Difficult Customers guides your crews to the best practices and strategies on how they can successfully handle difficult guests and resolve complaints. It also contains a quick overview of the most common types of customers, some unfavorable scenarios that they are likely to face, and how they can turn a bad situation into an opportunity to improve business. To drive better learning results, the course lessons are divided into bite-sized chunks that anyone can take in just a few minutes. Short gamified quizzes are also provided in between courses to make this training course more fun and engaging.

Length: 5-10 minutes per lesson

Certification: Available

Cost: Free

Created by EdApp

Explore the course
EdApp Restaurant Hostess Training - Cleaning and Sanitizing in Hospitality

10. Cleaning and Sanitizing in Hospitality

Part of a hospitality hostess’ responsibilities include providing customers with a clean and organized environment. And with the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, cleanliness, and sanitation in hospitality is doubly important. Whether your employee is part of a kitchen staff or a restaurant reception team, EdApp’s Cleaning and Sanitizing in Hospitality course can help restaurant employees learn how to perform proper disinfection and how to complete routine maintenance for the guest spaces. This free and editable course also outlines the best practices for cleaning and servicing public areas, dining areas, and restrooms. And because EdApp is an interactive training software that encourages anyone to engage with lessons and have fun, learners can also enjoy the gamification elements incorporated throughout the course. 

Length: 5-10 minutes per lesson

Certification: Available

Cost: Free

Created by EdApp

Explore the course

Provide the best dining experience with restaurant hostess training courses

A great restaurant experience starts from the moment your customers set foot at your restaurant and are greeted by your restaurant's hostess and ends when they walk out the door. This responsibility is their main role and sets a precedent for good service. This is why it's crucial that you provide your employees with quality restaurant hostess training courses to equip them with the skills and knowledge they need to properly welcome guests, manage seating, take reservations, communicate well, and more. By gaining these skills, you're guaranteed to have happy returning customers who'll spread the good word about your restaurant, which in turn, will grow your business and increase revenue.

EdApp is easy to use and free for you and your team. No credit card required.

or book a demo with us today