HORECA Knowledge Base — Staff Training

A handbook for food service employees. Service standards, working with digital tools, food safety, and skills development.

📌 Contents

1. Introduction to HORECA
2. Guest Service Standards
3. Working with the Meni Digital Menu
4. Staff Roles and Responsibilities
5. Food Safety and Hygiene
6. Allergens — What Every Employee Must Know
7. Handling Complaints and Conflicts
8. Upselling — Techniques to Increase Average Check
9. Working with International Guests
10. KDS and Kitchen: Working with Orders
11. Delivery and Pickup
12. Staff Checklists
13. Onboarding a New Employee

1. Introduction to HORECA

HORECA (Hotel, Restaurant, Catering) is the hospitality industry. It includes restaurants, cafés, bars, hotels, catering, and any venue where guests are served.

Key principles

• The guest comes first — every guest should feel welcome
• Speed — fast service without sacrificing quality
• Attention to detail — small things create the impression
• Teamwork — front of house and kitchen work as one system
• Continuous improvement — learn from every service

What guests value most

1. Speed — quick greeting, quick serving
2. Friendliness — smile, eye contact, genuine interest
3. Competence — menu knowledge, ability to recommend
4. Cleanliness — table, dishes, dining area, restroom
5. Food quality — taste, presentation, temperature, portion

2. Guest Service Standards

Service stages

Communication rules

• Smile — sincerely, not formally
• Use the guest's name — if they introduced themselves
• Don't interrupt — let them finish the order
• Repeat the order — to avoid mistakes
• Don't argue — even if the guest is wrong
• Be proactive — offer, don't wait

What you must not do

• ❌ Ignore the guest (even if you're busy)
• ❌ Discuss guests among yourselves
• ❌ Use your phone in front of guests
• ❌ Eat/drink in front of guests
• ❌ Argue with a guest
• ❌ Say "That's not my area / not my shift"

3. Working with the Meni Digital Menu

How to explain the QR menu to a guest

Waiter script:

"Welcome! Our menu is available via the QR code on the table—just point your phone camera at it. The menu is in your language with photos of all dishes. If anything is unclear, I'm always nearby!"

Frequently asked guest questions

Helping a guest with the QR menu

1. Show where the QR code is located on the table
2. Show how to switch the language (🌐 button at the top)
3. Explain the structure: categories → dishes → photos → price
4. Show where allergens are (icons next to the dish)
5. If the guest orders via phone, confirm the order on the tablet

When the QR menu doesn't work

In exceptional cases (guest without a phone, elderly guest, children):

• Offer the venue's tablet with the menu open
• Keep a few paper copies as a backup
• Personally describe dishes and take the order verbally

4. Staff Roles and Responsibilities

Host/Hostess

• Greets guests at the entrance
• Escorts to a table, considering dining room load
• Manages reservations and the queue
• Creates the first impression of the venue

Waiter/Server

• Serves guests from seating to farewell
• Knows the menu, ingredients, allergens
• Takes orders (verbally or confirms digital ones)
• Serves food and drinks
• Processes payment

Bartender

• Prepares drinks (alcoholic and non-alcoholic)
• Serves guests at the bar counter
• Knows the wine list, cocktails, craft beer

Chef/Cook

• Prepares dishes according to recipe cards
• Controls quality and plating
• Follows sanitary standards
• Tracks product expiration dates

Floor Manager

• Coordinates staff work
• Resolves conflict situations
• Controls service standards
• Analyzes reports and KPIs

5. Food Safety and Hygiene

Golden rules

1. Wash your hands — before work, after the restroom, after contact with raw products
2. Separate — raw and ready-to-eat, meat and vegetables (different boards, knives)
3. Store correctly — fridge ≤4°C, freezer ≤-18°C
4. Cook thoroughly — minimum internal cooking temperatures
5. Follow FIFO — First In, First Out

Temperature control

Personal hygiene

• Clean uniform every shift
• Hair tied back (or under a cap in the kitchen)
• No jewelry on hands (kitchen)
• Nails trimmed short
• Cover wounds with a bandage + gloves
• If sick (fever, vomiting, diarrhea) — do not come to work

HACCP — basics

HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points) is a food safety management system:

• Identify hazards (biological, chemical, physical)
• Identify critical control points
• Set limits
• Monitor
• Document

6. Allergens

14 main allergens (EU)

Every employee MUST know the 14 allergens:

1. 🌾 Gluten (wheat, rye, barley)
2. 🦐 Crustaceans
3. 🥚 Eggs
4. 🐟 Fish
5. 🥜 Peanuts
6. 🫘 Soybeans
7. 🥛 Milk (lactose)
8. 🌰 Nuts (almonds, hazelnuts, cashews, walnuts)
9. 🥬 Celery
10. 🟡 Mustard
11. ⚪ Sesame
12. 🧪 Sulphites (sulfur dioxide)
13. 🌿 Lupin
14. 🦪 Molluscs

What to do when asked about allergens

1. Don't guess — if you're not sure, ask the chef
2. Check in the system — allergens are listed for each dish in Meni
3. Warn the kitchen — mark the order as "allergy"
4. Prevent cross-contamination — separate dishes, tools

Anaphylactic shock — emergency actions

1. Call an ambulance (112 / local number)
2. Help the guest take a comfortable position (sitting if breathing is difficult)
3. If there is an EpiPen (epinephrine) — help them use it
4. Do not give food or water
5. Stay with the guest until the ambulance arrives

7. Handling Complaints and Conflicts

The LAST method

Typical situations

Rules

• Never argue with a guest
• Resolve immediately — don't postpone
• Inform the manager — for serious complaints
• Record it — in the system (for analytics and improvement)

8. Upselling

What upselling is

Upselling is offering the guest additional items or more expensive options. It is NOT pushy selling — it's care and expertise.

Techniques

Upselling rules

• ✅ Recommend what you personally like / know well
• ✅ Maximum 1–2 suggestions per visit
• ✅ Consider the context (budget, mood, group)
• ❌ Don't push
• ❌ Don't recommend the most expensive item "just because"

Impact on average check

Proper upselling increases the average check by 15–25% without leaving a negative impression.

9. Working with International Guests

Language barrier

• Meni QR menu solves 90% of issues — the menu automatically appears in the guest's language
• Learn basic phrases in the main tourist languages
• Use gestures and a smile
• As a last resort — Google Translate on your phone

Basic phrases

Cultural specifics

• 🇸🇦🇦🇪 Arab guests — halal menu, separate family area
• 🇮🇱 Jewish guests — kosher menu, Shabbat
• 🇮🇳 Indian guests — vegetarian options, no beef
• 🇯🇵 Japanese guests — value quiet and attention to detail
• 🇺🇸 American guests — expect fast service, large portions

10. KDS and Kitchen

Kitchen Display System (KDS) in Meni

KDS is a kitchen screen that replaces paper tickets:

1. The order comes from the QR menu / from the waiter → appears on the screen
2. The chef sees: dish, quantity, comments, table number
3. The chef taps "In progress" → the status updates
4. Dish is ready → "Ready" → the waiter receives a notification

Priorities

• 🔴 Red — the order has been waiting more than 15 minutes (critical)
• 🟡 Yellow — the order has been waiting more than 10 minutes
• 🟢 Green — the order is within the normal range

Front-of-house / kitchen coordination

• The waiter confirms the order → the kitchen starts work
• The kitchen is ready → the waiter picks up and serves
• If delayed → the kitchen informs the floor → the waiter warns the guest

11. Delivery and Pickup

Packaging

• Use thermal packaging for hot dishes
• Separate sauces and salads (so they don't get soggy)
• Check order completeness before sending
• Add napkins, cutlery, a business card with a QR code

Courier workflow

1. Check the order against the checklist
2. Pack into a thermal bag
3. Deliver at the specified time
4. Hand over to the customer, take payment (if cash)
5. Mark "Delivered" in the system

Pickup

1. Customer orders via Meni → selects a time
2. Kitchen prepares by the specified time
3. Customer arrives → states the order number
4. Hand over the packed order

12. Checklists

Opening shift (front of house)

• Check cleanliness of tables, chairs, floor
• Check QR codes on tables (in place, not damaged)
• Turn on the tablet / KDS
• Check availability of napkins, cutlery, spices
• Check the restroom (cleanliness, soap, paper)
• Check the temperature in the dining area
• Check music / lighting
• Review the stop list (what's unavailable today)
• Review promotions / daily specials

Closing shift (front of house)

• All tables are clean
• All orders are closed
• Cash register is reconciled
• Equipment is turned off
• Dining area is cleaned

Opening shift (kitchen)

• Check refrigerator temperatures
• Check product expiration dates
• Prepare prep items
• Check the stop list → pass it to the floor
• Turn on KDS
• Check cleanliness of work surfaces

13. Onboarding a New Employee

First week

What an employee should know after 1 week

• All categories and key menu items
• Ingredients of the TOP 10 dishes
• 14 allergens and how to check them in the system
• How the QR menu works (explain it to a guest)
• How to take / confirm an order
• Service standards (stages, timing)
• Where everything is (kitchen, bar, storage, restroom)

What an employee should know after 1 month

• Full menu assortment and dish ingredients
• Pairing recommendations (wine + dish)
• Upselling techniques
• Handling complaints (LAST)
• Basic phrases in the main tourist languages
• All Meni system features
• Food safety standards

Assessment

After 1 month — oral assessment:

1. Name the 14 allergens
2. Describe the ingredients of 5 random dishes
3. How do you explain the QR menu to a guest?
4. What do you do if a guest complains about a cold dish?
5. Recommend a wine for fish / meat / pasta

Useful resources

• 📖 Meni Quick Start — how to start using the platform
• 📖 QR Menu — Complete Guide — menu creation and setup
• 📖 Allergens and Nutrients — EU regulation
• 📖 Orders — order setup
• 📖 Product Knowledge Base — reference for all Meni features