How much do waiters/waitresses at WDW make?

[SunnyP4Disney]

I have a co-worker who waited tables at Disney years ago. He said that from what he was told, the best money was made at the "signature" restaurants and top-level character dining experiences (CRT), where a good server working full-time could make $80,000 a year.
At that time, he was told there was a 5 year waiting list to get one of those positions.

Regarding tips, as a pp mentioned, people are all over the map. Some overtipped, some didn't tip at all.

Yes, there is a long waiting list and it goes by seniority. Our server at Boma was happy where she was, she made decent money, but she was waiting to get on with Chef Mickeys where it would be an increase in tips and pay. She had been with Disney for 16 years and was still waiting for her dream position. She also said she had customers want to tell her manager how good of a job she was doing than give a monetary tip. That's great that they want to commend her performance but it doesn't pay the rent.

 

[DisneyScraps]

I don't know how much they make but I always thought it was a lot. I waitressed at a fine dining restaurant and I was shocked at how much I made. The Disney prices are comparable or even more than that. I also noticed that all the servers are older, most restaurants have staff that is college aged but at Disney the servers seem to be a lot older.

I thin it's hysterical that someone needs a tip amount at the bottom of the check because they can't figure out what the tip should be. It's basic math people.

Lisa

 

[Planogirl]

I don't know how much they make but I always thought it was a lot. I waitressed at a fine dining restaurant and I was shocked at how much I made. The Disney prices are comparable or even more than that. I also noticed that all the servers are older, most restaurants have staff that is college aged but at Disney the servers seem to be a lot older.

I thin it's hysterical that someone needs a tip amount at the bottom of the check because they can't figure out what the tip should be. It's basic math people.

Lisa

18% can be a pain if you want to tip that though. Personally I go for 15% if the service is bleh and 20%+ if it's good. Those are easy to figure out.

 

[Gigi22]

A waiter and waitress from a local restaurant recently went down to work at a signature restaurant at WDW. The people doing recruiting for the restaurant told them they would be pulling in about $100K a year.

 

[MiaSRN62]

A waiter and waitress from a local restaurant recently went down to work at a signature restaurant at WDW. The people doing recruiting for the restaurant told them they would be pulling in about $100K a year.

I'm in the wrong profession

 

[DisneyRunner2009]

During college I was a waitress. It is my opinion, that the signature dining experiences probably demand perfect timing and some patrons could be difficult. Some days as a server you just get swamped. Once I forgot to bring a customer a salad. All of this is reflected in your tips.

 

[WheelCEO]

I have a family member that works at a signature restaurant and clears well into the 6 figure range.

 

[WheelCEO]

Not true. I made 2.13 an hour as a server in Jacksonville, FL.

At one of my family owned restaurants we pay the servers $2.50/hr. However, if at the end of the pay period their claimed tips do not equal out to atleast minimum wage, we are repsonsible for putting in the difference.

 

[Trinity524]

That must be a family owned thing, wish would have worked for you. All my prework was at 2.13 an hour and 7% of Sales at a high dollar restaurant can equal the difference quickly. If we were dead, they never looked per hour to see what we made to make it equal the minimum wage.

 

[SandrA9810]

We had truly wonderful older woman as our server at the character breakfast at the beach club a few years ago. She not only did a great job as a server but she was as much a part of the show in our little area of tables as Chip, Dale and Goofy. They tied coffee cups to her apron strings, and she called them "the boys." Breakfast was ending by the time we left, and I had a nice conversation with her. She said she was a widow with young children when she started working at WDW and that it had been a wonderful career that enabled her to raise her children and send them all to college. She definitely implied she was very happy with her pay. I think we left about 25% trip, too.

I think buffets could be dicey b/c some people think tip is included. My mother worked at a famous country style place for a few years, and her tips were all over the board. They sometimes had groups that left absolutely nothing, and I felt that they thought it was included in their all-you-can price. They did not add tip on no matter how big the group, and they had many bus tours.

Years and years ago, if you talk to people who have been with the company for more than 20-25 years, will tell you that you could make a career and decent living off a Disney paycheck. But since that percentage is so small, there's very few people who do earn a good salary. Probably more than half the CM's you run into have less than 5 years or are on a CP program, and they surely don't make a living working at Disney. This is also what keeps the turn over rate so high for newer employees and they don't create that Disney Career that people did so long ago. From frontline CM to Leads to Guest Service Managers... moving across and up the board of roles.

And even if a signature restaurant like California Grill haven't been around for very long, it very well could be filled with CM that have worked for the company for 20 years. From your first day, starts your seniority date, and a lot of things are based off that date. Even during transfers to a new role, seniority plays a part in it. So when a new thing opens up, higher your seniority, higher your chance of getting into it.

 

[MiaSRN62]

During college I was a waitress. It is my opinion, that the signature dining experiences probably demand perfect timing and some patrons could be difficult. Some days as a server you just get swamped. Once I forgot to bring a customer a salad. All of this is reflected in your tips.

I agree....I have the utmost respect for restaurant servers. I waitressed for 3 years in college and it is a tough job and so true about dealing with difficult customers. I was penalized via a non-tip one time because of a mess-up by the cook. He was late in making my table's dish and they took it out on me even though I had nothing to do with it. I gave excellent service except for the one dish being late. They left me a quarter tip. Really insulting.
I never made even close to what they're pulling in WDW though !

 

[maggiew]

I have a co-worker who waited tables at Disney years ago. He said that from what he was told, the best money was made at the "signature" restaurants and top-level character dining experiences (CRT), where a good server working full-time could make $80,000 a year.
At that time, he was told there was a 5 year waiting list to get one of those positions.

Regarding tips, as a pp mentioned, people are all over the map. Some overtipped, some didn't tip at all.

We had a really great server at Cal Grill, so I am sure he makes good money! But I have NEVER had a decent server at CRT!! All of the ones I have had act like they are mad you showed up to eat in their restaurant!

Maggie

 

[maggiew]

18% can be a pain if you want to tip that though. Personally I go for 15% if the service is bleh and 20%+ if it's good. Those are easy to figure out.

If you want to get close to 18%, just figure out 15% and then 20% and tip somewhere in the middle.

Maggie

 

[TandLMommy28]

Not being argumentative, but I think how much ANY person whose income does not directly affect my living expenses is not my business.

If anyone thinks Disney (or any) server earns too much money, feel free not to tip.

I'm pretty sure the OP wasn't trying to find out how much ONE particular server earns. Knowing how much a general job field earns on average is NOT the same as asking ONE person "So how much do you make?" And knowing how much different fields earn is generally considered public knowledge. When we were at Disney, my mom said the same thing. We were on DDP with 6 people so we automatically had to tip. At the buffets, all the waiters did was bring us drinks once and refills once and they were getting $20-$30 from us. She is nearing retirement and thought "I should come down here and work!"

As for the second comment, I don't that the OP was saying they make too much. It sounded more like "Maybe I should consider getting a job doing this."

 

[TandLMommy28]

That came out wrong. I didn't mean "had to tip". I am all in favor of tipping. I just meant our tip was automatically included on our bill at a set amount.

 

[NotUrsula]

Hi there all. I have been in the "business" ALL my life. It can be a very lucrative job through tips if you are in the right house....but....Many people don't realize the taxes of serving/bartending. All charge tips are taxed (as they should be), and all sales are taxed. Meaning that 8% of the total sale of your check is added in to your server and they pay taxes on that. If you have a table that "stiffs" you, it is actually costing you money to serve them. Also, there has been a conflict on bottles of wine, I know many people feel they don't need to tip on a bottle of wine, if you don't, your server is then paying taxes on it to serve it to you. So I always say if you don't wish to tip on an expensive bottle, always tip 8% of the cost, so you cover that tax. I love this field, and I love serving a good product, and fine wine, I am not complaing, hoping just to add some explanation. Have great Disney Days

Just a small quibble. In the case of buffets that don't serve alcohol other than house wines, and banquet work, most restaurants/hotels do not tax the server on sales, as the server technically doesn't have any. Folks pay the same rate for their food no matter what you do because it is pre-paid table d'hote; you are not selling them anything.

I worked a second job as a banquet/buffet server for years until I had kids, and I was never once taxed on sales. (And I worked for several major hotel chains, including Holiday Inn, Hilton and Hyatt.) IME, the typical tip for decent buffet service is 10%, because you are not serving food, only serving beverages and clearing the tables between courses. For the same reason, most banquet/buffet servers are not required to tip out unless there is a full-service bar available; because these servers almost always bus & turn their own tables and run their own food. (The exception might be places that require you to tip out the dishwashers. IME, hotel kitchens pay them straight minimum wage, so they don't usually get tipped.)

FWIW, IME, high-end banquet work is the best niche in the field if you don't mind the hours. (They usually include all major holidays and all of every weekend.) The menu is pre-set and the bill is pre-paid, and the gratuity is paid by the host. When I worked banquets, the house took 30% of the gratuity for overhead, 20% went to the prep staff, and the waiters got the rest of it. On a $30,000 banquet with 10 servers working and a gratuity of 18%, that meant an add'l $270 for me on 5 hours work.

 

[bom_noite]

OP - FWIW, the College Program internship positions are all (currently) the UNTIPPED ones. Counter service food service, hospitality, merchandising, character/attendant, etc. Even the open spots for the Bibbity Bobbity Boutique make it clear that they are the hostess ones (or assistant stylist), and specify "untipped" here.

Good for your DD for thinking ahead! My DD just had her interview yesterday for next fall's CP - and has every finger and toe crossed that she gets in! Most of the available positions within the CP do seem to pay minimum wage (barely!) - and then you do have to pay Disney rent for your dorm/apt room. In short, no one is going to get rich (or even ahead!) doing this program, but it does seem like lots of fun for college kids in one of the happiest places on earth.

If you (or she!) want more info - check out the College Board section of the DIS. Since it is interview time, the threads are buzzing with info right now about the program specifics.

My DD is currently a CP at a QS in Epcot. But, has picked up shifts as a hostess at a few Resort Restaurants. Her hope is to switch to Permanent - and - has impressed a few managers who said they would hire her if the opportunity arose. And, she tells me that the managers have broad discretion and pull.

DD has spoken to other hostess's, waiters, waitresses etc and reports: becoming a waitress is a bit more difficult with wait times up to 2 years, and, you usually start out with breakfast or lunch shifts. She tells me that depending upon the restaurant they can $15 to $20 per hour for Breakfast Lunch shifts and up to $30 for Dinner shifts.

 

[Luvchefmic]

My DD is currently a CP at a QS in Epcot. But, has picked up shifts as a hostess at a few Resort Restaurants. Her hope is to switch to Permanent - and - has impressed a few managers who said they would hire her if the opportunity arose. And, she tells me that the managers have broad discretion and pull.

DD has spoken to other hostess's, waiters, waitresses etc and reports: becoming a waitress is a bit more difficult with wait times up to 2 years, and, you usually start out with breakfast or lunch shifts. She tells me that depending upon the restaurant they can $15 to $20 per hour for Breakfast Lunch shifts and up to $30 for Dinner shifts.

I know this thread is over 2 yrs old BUT dear MOM please tell your DD that is NOT the case I know many CMs and many wait staff that is not a salary anyone is getting Most have second jobs to keep the roof over their head and food on their own family tables

 

[SandrA9810]

I know this thread is over 2 yrs old BUT dear MOM please tell your DD that is NOT the case I know many CMs and many wait staff that is not a salary anyone is getting Most have second jobs to keep the roof over their head and food on their own family tables

Two years? Try FOUR years. It's from 2009 and bumped in 2011, and now bumped again.

 

[Luvchefmic]

Two years? Try FOUR years. It's from 2009 and bumped in 2011, and now bumped again.

I had only had one cup pf coffee when I posted Sandra ...still lousy pay then same now