Your first 2 weeks behind the bar or on the floor

Your first fortnight sets the tone. Get the basics down early. You'll look competent sooner, feel less lost and stop relying on the same three people to bail you out. This is the practical stuff that gets you there.

Learn the menu properly

Don't try to memorise every dish on day one. Pick three starters, three mains, three sides and three drinks you can recommend honestly. For each one, know what it is, what it tastes like and what it goes with. Taste when you're offered it. Ask the kitchen or bar lead about anything you're unsure of.

Learn table numbers and sections the same way. Walk the floor before service with a printed plan if you can. Know which tables are in your section, which ones are shared and where the awkward corners are. Guests notice when you hesitate at a table number; shift leaders notice faster.

Allergens: never guess

UK food law names 14 allergens that businesses must tell customers about when they're used as ingredients. On the floor you'll handle both kinds of food:

• Made to order (a meal cooked after it's ordered, a coffee made at the counter): you must give accurate allergen information. The legal minimum allows this verbally, as long as there's a clear sign telling customers to ask. Food Standards Agency best practice goes further: have the information easily available in writing (menu, matrix or booklet) and back it up with a conversation.
• Prepacked for direct sale (PPDS) — food packed before it's ordered, such as a grab-and-go sandwich: since 1 October 2021 across the UK, Natasha's Law means it needs a full label with the name, ingredients list and the 14 allergens emphasised.

When a guest mentions an allergy, stop selling and follow your venue's process. Show them the written allergen information. Never guess. If you're not sure, ask the kitchen. For the full picture, read Compliance basics: allergens, Natasha's Law, licensing and the rest. Allergen lines in this article are meant to match that piece and the UK rules crib.

Ask for a buddy shift

A buddy shift is one or two services with an experienced person on your shoulder. You're not expected to know everything. You're expected to ask. Say it plainly:

"Could I buddy with someone for my first Friday night? I want to get confident with table numbers and the allergen matrix."

Good venues already plan this. If nobody offers, ask your shift leader on day one. Shadow how they take an allergy order, how they greet a table and how they call things away at the pass.

What crew actually hand over

You're not writing the full close note yet — that's a shift-leader job, covered in Your first shifts in charge under "Close properly and hand over". As crew, pass on three or four things before you leave:

• Anything 86'd, broken or running low on your section
• Open allergy notes or special requests still on the floor
• A table that's waiting on something (bill, dessert, complaint)
• Who needs a follow-up next shift (delivery due, maintenance, a guest coming back)

Keep it short, in the same place every time (diary, team chat, whiteboard). The next person should be able to walk in and pick up where you left off without hunting for you.

Questions worth asking your shift leader

Don't wait until you're stuck mid-service. In your first week, ask:

1. Where does the allergen information live, and who takes allergy orders?
2. What's the fire procedure — exits, assembly point and alarm?
3. How do we swap shifts, and who has to approve it?
4. What does a good section look like at the end of the night?
5. Who do I call if something breaks or a guest is unhappy?

Write the answers down. You'll use them more than once.

If you're under 18 behind the bar

Rules differ by nation, so check with your manager for your site. In England and Wales, every alcohol sale by someone under 18 must be approved by a responsible person (with a limited exception around table meals). You also get a 30-minute rest break if you work more than 4.5 hours. Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own licensing rules, so check yours. Ask before your first bar shift, not after a mystery-shop failure.