Welcome to the definitive guide to restaurant terminology, a comprehensive glossary designed to empower you with vocabulary from the world of hospitality and dining.

Whether you are a seasoned professional, a budding restaurateur, a new team member, or simply curious about the inner workings of your favorite dining spots, this resource is tailored for you.

Although many of the following terms overlap with the hospitality industry, we will be focusing on terms for restaurants, bars, and other types of dining concepts.

Explore common and uncommon restaurant terms, operational jargon, and crucial restaurant business metrics.

Why Is Restaurant Lingo Important?

Understanding relevant restaurant terminology is key to effective communication, efficient operations, and ultimately, success in the dynamic F&B industry.

Must-know Restaurant Terms

  • Back-of-House (BOH): Refers to all areas of the restaurant not accessible to guests, typically including the kitchen, dishwashing area, storage, and staff-only facilities.
  • Front-of-House (FOH): Refers to all areas of the restaurant where guests are present, including the dining room, bar, host stand, and restrooms.
  • Guest: The preferred term for diners or visitors in hospitality.
  • Host/Hostess: Staff responsible for greeting guests, managing reservations and waitlists, and seating guests.
  • No-show: Guest who made a reservation but did not arrive.
  • Point of Sale (POS): A system for processing orders and payments.
  • Reservation: An advance booking for a table or event.
  • Runner: Staff member delivering food from the kitchen to tables.
  • Server/Waiter/Waitress: Staff responsible for taking orders, serving food and drinks, and attending to guests.
  • Soft Opening: Limited opening for staff training and operational testing before the official launch.

F&B Terminology: Types of Restaurants

  • Casual Dining: A restaurant concept that offers a relaxed atmosphere, moderate prices, and typically family-friendly options.
  • Fast Casual: Restaurants that offer higher quality food than QSRs but with counter service.
  • Fine Dining: A restaurant concept characterized by high-quality ingredients, elegant ambiance, and impeccable service.
  • Pop-up Restaurant: A temporary restaurant concept.
  • QSR (Quick Service Restaurant): Another term for fast-food establishments.

FOH, BOH, and Kitchen Terms & Glossary

  • 86 (Eighty-Six): Slang used to indicate that a menu item has run out.
  • Barista: A person who prepares and serves coffee.
  • Busser: Staff responsible for clearing and resetting tables.
  • Chef de Cuisine/Head Chef: The chef in charge of all kitchen operations.
  • Dupe: A duplicate order ticket sent to the kitchen.
  • Expediter (Expo): The person who organizes and dispatches food to the servers.
  • Fire: A command used in the kitchen to indicate that preparation should begin on a specific dish.
  • Line Cook: A chef responsible for a specific station on the kitchen line.
  • Mise en Place: A French culinary term meaning “everything in its place.”
  • Pivot Point: System for tracking guest orders by seat position.
  • Pre-bussing: Clearing plates and utensils while guests are still present.
  • Prix Fixe: A fixed-price menu, often multi-course.
  • Sous Chef: The second-in-command in the kitchen.
  • Walk-in: A guest who arrives without a reservation.

Restaurant Management Terms

  • A la Carte: A menu where each item is priced individually.
  • Cover: One paying guest (e.g., “20 covers” means 20 guests).
  • Cover Fee: Charge per guest, sometimes for special events or premium reservations.
  • Customer Relationship Management (CRM): A system for managing guest data, preferences, communication, and marketing.
  • Guest Profile: A profile for each guest, showing their preferences, visit history, allergies, birthdays, special requests, and other notes.
  • Integration: Systems you can connect to, like POS, PMS, and marketing tools.
  • Inventory: The process of counting all ingredients and supplies.
  • Marketing Automation: Automated emails, SMS, or WhatsApp messages to guests.
  • PAX: Shorthand for “persons” or “guests,” indicating party size.
  • Par Level: The minimum quantity of an item that must be on hand at all times.
  • Reservation management system: Software that helps restaurants manage online and offline reservations.
  • Table management system: Another term for a reservation management system or seating management software.
  • Top: Number of guests in a party (e.g., “four-top” means a table for four).
  • Turn and Burn: Slang for quickly turning over tables to seat more guests.
  • Upselling: Encouraging guests to purchase higher-priced items or add-ons.
  • Waitlist: List of guests waiting for a table when the restaurant is at capacity.

Restaurant & Business Metrics

  • Break-Even Point: The point at which total costs and total revenues are equal.
  • Costs of Goods Sold (COGS): The direct costs attributable to the production of the goods sold.
  • Dynamic Pricing: Adjusting menu or reservation prices in real time based on demand.
  • Food Cost Percentage: The ratio of the cost of food sold to food sales revenue.
  • Labor Cost Percentage: The ratio of labor costs to total sales revenue.
  • Prime Cost: The combined cost of labor and COGS.
  • Revpash (Revenue Per Available Seat Hour): Revenue generated per seat per hour.
  • ROI (Return on Investment): A measure of the profitability of an investment.
  • Table Turn / Table Turnover Rate: Number of times a table is seated and reset in a service period.