Guest service in a hotel refers to the range of interactions, services, and experiences provided to guests from the moment they make a booking to the time they check out. It encompasses everything from front desk interactions and room service to how staff respond to requests and resolve issues.
Exceptional guest service is the foundation of a successful hospitality service operation—it creates memorable experiences, fosters loyalty, and drives positive word-of-mouth.
In today’s competitive hospitality industry, delivering outstanding hotel customer experience is no longer optional—it’s essential. Guests expect not only comfort and cleanliness but also friendly, attentive, and personalized service.
Whether it’s a luxury resort or a budget-friendly inn, the quality of guest service can significantly influence customer satisfaction, online reviews, and return visits.
1) Introduction
Guest services include the consistent delivery of products and services which not only meets the expectations but also exceeds the expectations of guests. It focuses on providing delightful hotel experiences that may last a lifetime.
Legendary Hotelier Cesar Ritz’s view on Guest Service was: No detail is too small and no request is too big if it is meant to satisfying a customer. His philosophy on guest service formed the foundation for service in hotel industry. (National Council for Hotel Management and Catering Technology)
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2) Food and Beverage (F&B) Services
Food and beverage department deals with providing quality food and beverages to the guests. It may be part of a full-fledged hotel or running independently.
The team of food and beverage staff has to look at the receiving and seating of the guest, taking of orders, serving the order, clearance of the dishes and plates, settling of the bill and asking for guest feedback during the service or at the end.
Food and beverage department works in close coordination with the food production department. A bar is an area where the drinks are prepared as in the view of the guest area inside the restaurant mostly.
Other than hotels, food and beverage services are available on airlines, trains, cruise liners, organisation, schools, colleges, hospitals, etc.
Most of the star-ranked hotels offer multiple F&B services in their hotels, such as:
- Restaurant
- Lounge
- Coffee Shop
- Room Service
- Poolside Barbecue or Grill Service
- Banquet Service
- Bar
- Outside Catering Service
i) Food and Beverage Restaurant
These are the places in a hotel where food and drinks are served. There are different types of restaurants:
All Day Dining Restaurants
They are usually called Coffee Shop or Cafe in Hotels. They are usually big in size with many covers (seats), compared to other restaurants in the same hotel.
The main reason why they are called All Day Dining Restaurants is because of their hours of operation, as they are open from 7 am to 11pm, whereas in 5-star hotels, they are operational for 24 hours a day.
The services provided by these vary from breakfast in the morning to lunch in the afternoon and dinner in the evening.
Fine Dining Restaurants
These restaurants are characterised by their elaborate and exclusive menu with special emphasis on the high quality of food that they serve.
The emphasis being on fresh ingredients and natural flavours or on the type of cuisine served, or both. Usually the operation of this restaurant revolves around the Head Chef or Chef De Cuisine of this outlet.
Speciality Restaurants
These restaurants usually have a type of National or Regional Character or Cuisine attached to them, for example, Italian Speciality Restaurant, Chinese Speciality Restaurant, etc.
In some hotels, sometimes they also have Multi Cuisine Speciality Restaurants, which literally means that the restaurant serves cuisines from more than one country or the dishes on its menu has food specialties from many different countries.
ii) Lounge
Lounges can be found in different hotels. Their main purpose is to offer food and drinks in a comfortable and cozy seating in relaxed surroundings.
There are many kinds of lounges ranging from a lounge in a lobby, Cocktail Lounge and Cigar Lounge to Executive and Club Lounge on special floors.
iii) Coffee Shop
It is a part of the hotel, mostly run 24 hours. It offers some snacks along with coffee.
iv) Room Service
It is a part of the Food and Beverage Department in hotels. A menu is placed in the guestroom, as per the convenience, the guest places the order and the food is delivered to the guestroom.
Room service is operational 24 hours and the variety of dishes in the menu differs from hotel to hotel.
v) Bar
Bar is a place where alcoholic as well as non-alcoholic drinks are served. There is usually a small snacks menu too. The service is fast and quick.
There are various kinds of bars ranging from Formal Bars to Club Bars, Pubs, Pool, Bars, Wine Bars, Cocktail Bars, Beach Bar to Juice Bars and many more.
vi) Discotheque or Nightclub
They are outlets where music and entertainment takes priority with the food and drinks. The operation is very fast and the guest numbers are large.
Security is an important aspect in these operations. Music and entertainment can range from DJ to live bands playing.
vii) Meeting and Conference Rooms
These are rooms with limited seating and have audio visual setup required for conducting meetings. They are let out to guests for conducting their meetings.
The guest is charged for an entire day or on hourly basis. These are smaller than banquet halls. Food and beverage requirements maybe charged extra depending on the guest’s requirement.
viii) Banquet Halls
These are large Function Rooms which are primarily used for functions and weddings. The staffing ratio of full time staff in this section is very less as the function and wedding business can sometimes be seasonal and extra staff is usually filled in by employing part time staff.
This section is the most dynamic section in Food and Beverage with the conference section, which is more physically demanding and creatively oriented.
ix) Delicatessen
This is also called a Deli in short. It is a place where guests can buy fresh produce ranging from freshly baked bread, cold meat, fresh salads, cakes, homemade ice creams, light and healthy drinks, etc.
x) Others
There are many other Food and Beverage outlets ranging from Fast Food Outlets to Food Courts to Snack Bars which are usually standalone or in a shopping centre.
3) Functions of Food and Beverage Servers
The main functions of F&B services in a hotel are to:
- prepare tables or counters for meals
- stock the service area with supplies (for example, coffee, glassware, etc.)
- greet customers, present menus and help the customers in selecting menu items
- inform customers about daily specials
- record orders and place them with the kitchen and bar
- pick up and serve orders
- check that the customers are enjoying their meals and correct any problems
- suggest and serve desserts and beverages
- clean and reset tables
- tabulate and present bills for payment
4) Food Service Menus
A menu is a detailed list of food and beverage items that are served in a restaurant along with the prices. A carefully planned and designed menu can help in increasing the sales of the dishes.
A menu is a presentation of detailed list of food items that are served in restaurant. In any food service organisation, it is a control tool to run a food service operation.
If a menu is developed with careful planning following the food trends and featuring menu, it can contribute in all sectors of the hotel. A well planned menu can also ensure optimal utilisation of hotel resources.
Types of Menu
Even though menu could be offered in different ways in different food service organisations, traditionally there are two types of food menus that are offered— À la carte and Table D’ Hote. Other menus are usually adaptations of these of two types.
Table d’Hote Menu (Table of the host)
A table d’hote menu may only offer one food item from each category of the menu format and therefore offers little choice. Or it can be a menu at a set price, offering two or three courses with no choice.
For example, soup, main course and dessert. The word has originated from the inns of France where the guests ate at a common table called the host’s table in the sixteenth century.
Table d’hote menus are a good example of a non selective menu. The menu is at a fixed price with set items. It can also be a cyclical menu, e.g. changing every day and rotating through the month. The guest is seated and served at a table by the waiting staff.
The various kinds of table d’ hote menus are:
- Banquet Menu
- Buffet Menu
- Coffee Houses Menu
- Cyclical Menu
À La Carte Menu (According to card)
According to the Oxford Dictionary, early in the 19th century, it translates into ‘according to the card (menu)’. A good example of a selective menu would be À la carte menu.
This is a menu with all the dishes individually priced. Items on the menu are prepared and cooked to order. All items on the menu are listed at a different price and the guest is served at a table.
The various kinds of table À la carte menus are:
- Breakfast Menu
- Luncheon Menu
- Dinner Menu
- Room Service Menu
- Lounge Menu
5) Table Layouts for Dining
Once the type of menu is decided in the restaurant, the cutlery, crockery and glassware are set on the table. There are basically three types of table setting for dining in the restaurant of a hotel.
i) Setting Table for Formal Dining
This type of table setup is required for formal events like corporate lunch or dinner, or a wedding party. The formal dining contains multiple courses and second helpings are not offered. The table setup looks as follows (Figure below).
ii) Setting Table for Casual Dining
This table setup is required for informal events like holiday parties and family gatherings. Casual dining can contain multiple courses and service staff offers or serves second rounds of helping when a guest requests for it. This table setup appears as shown in Figure below.
iii) Setting a Buffet Table
This set up is required for catering to large groups of people. Buffet table setting can be done in numerous ways depending upon the size and shape of the place, the menu, and the number of guests (Figure below.)
- The food items are placed in a sequence from lightest to heaviest, starters to desserts, or coolest to warmest.
- Cutlery is placed on the guest tables.
- Glasses, cups, and saucers are placed on a separate table to avoid congestion.
- Table decoration pieces are placed such that they do not interfere with the food items.
- Plates are stacked not more than 15 plates per stack.
- Paper napkins are placed between the plates.
6) Types of Meal Plans and Tariffs
The term ‘Meal Plan’ refers to the meal types that will be included in the guest’s room rate and services. This plan includes the number and size of portions that will be served per person.
The various kinds of meal plans used in the hotel and hospitality industry are:
- European Plan (EP)— Room Tariff + Morning Tea (No meal included)
- Continental Plan (CP)— Room Tariff + Continental Breakfast
- Modified American Plan (MAP)— Room Tariff + Breakfast + Lunch or dinner (options available)
- American Plan (AP)— Room Tariff + Breakfast + Lunch + Dinner
- Modified American Plan (MAP)— Room Tariff + Breakfast + Lunch/Dinner
- Bermuda Plan (BP)— Room Tariff +Breakfast only
Apart from the above meal plans, some other terms are also used in hotel industry, i.e. FAP— Full American Plan which means breakfast, lunch and dinner, CPAI—Continental Plan All Inclusive (breakfast) and APAI— American Plan All Inclusive (Breakfast, dinner and lunch).