Industries · Hospitality
Hiring for hotels, restaurants and cafés
Last updated 7 October 2026 · By the Rezumz team
The short answer
To screen hospitality applicants, check availability for unsocial hours first, then relevant experience in the same kind of venue and pace, then any required food-safety or alcohol-service certificates. A short trial shift or working interview often tells you more than the CV, and it should be run in a fair, consistent way and paid where the law requires.
Hospitality runs on shift patterns, seasons and speed. The CV is a weak guide: a great chef or server may have a one-page CV or none. What matters is availability, reliability, the right certificates and how the person works under pressure. A process built for this keeps the early steps light and the human steps real.
Try it free →What to look for on a CV
Unsocial-hours availability
Evenings, weekends and holidays decide who can work. Ask for exact availability up front.
Same kind of venue and pace
A fine-dining kitchen, a busy café and a hotel front desk are different jobs. Match the volume, the style and the team size.
Food safety and alcohol certificates
Food hygiene and alcohol-service certificates are required in many places, and the rules differ by country and region. Note what the candidate holds and check it with the issuer.
Progression and tenure
Moving from commis to chef de partie, or from server to supervisor, shows growth. Many short seasonal roles are normal, not a red flag.
Languages and guest-facing skills
For hotels and tourism, spoken languages and guest-facing experience can matter. List them as required only if they are.
Mistakes that cost you good candidates
- Judging a kitchen or floor candidate on how polished the CV is.
- Running trial shifts differently for each candidate, or without a clear rule on pay.
- Asking about age, family or health when you mean to ask about availability.
- Holding good people while you wait for a perfect candidate in a market where they accept the first offer.
How Rezumz fits
01Apply page with practical questions
Ask about availability, right to work and certificates on the apply page. A required answer of no flags the person for you to look at.
02A form for references and certificates
Send candidates a short form to give referee details or certificate information, and keep the answers on their record.
03Structured trial and interview notes
Use a short scorecard for the trial shift or interview, such as speed, accuracy, teamwork and guest manner, so each candidate is judged on the same things.
04Decisions on record
Record who decided what and why, which helps if a hire or a rejection is questioned later.
What it doesn't do
- Rezumz does not verify licences, registrations or certificates, and it does not run background, criminal-record or right-to-work checks. You do those through the official register or an approved provider.
- It does not post jobs to job boards or schedule shifts. Candidates arrive through your own apply link, your CV inbox, uploads or a CSV import.
- Rezumz does not schedule shifts or run payroll, and it does not run trial shifts for you.
- It is built for small and mid-sized venues and groups, not for very large chains with high-volume applicant flows.
Checks and rules differ by country and change over time. Treat this page as a guide, not legal advice, and see the Trust Centre for how we handle data and what we do not have yet.
Questions
What should I check when hiring a chef?
Check the type of kitchen and volume they worked in, their food-safety certificates, and their references. Then run a fair, consistent trial where you can see them cook.
Are trial shifts allowed?
Rules on unpaid trials differ by country and region, and in many places work must be paid. Check local rules before you plan a trial.
How do I fill seasonal hospitality roles quickly?
Open applications with a short set of questions, flag who meets your must-haves, send quick replies and close out the rest once filled.
Try it on one real role
Add a job and a few CVs and see the evidence behind each score.