Restaurant Job Interview Guide & Question Kit

What a good one includes

• A set of role-specific questions tailored to test the candidate's technical skills, such as wine pairing knowledge for servers or station prep efficiency for line cooks.
• Real-world hospitality scenarios that evaluate how the candidate handles high-stress situations, like an angry customer or a sudden kitchen rush.
• Behavioral questions designed to assess teamwork, reliability, and how they handle conflict with colleagues in a fast-paced environment.
• A clear checklist of role-specific red flags and warning signs to watch out for in candidate responses during the conversation.
• A simple, consistent scoring rubric to help you objectively compare candidates immediately after the interview ends.
• Welcoming icebreaker questions that put the candidate at ease while subtly assessing their natural hospitality mindset and warmth.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Asking generic, non-industry questions instead of testing actual kitchen or dining room competence.
• Failing to note behavioral red flags, such as blaming former employers for past conflicts, because of a desperate need to fill a shift.
• Winging the interview without a structured scoring guide, which leads to biased hiring decisions based purely on gut feelings.
• Focusing entirely on technical skills while overlooking whether the candidate's attitude aligns with your restaurant's team culture.

Frequently asked questions