Eduqas Level 1/2 Hospitality and Catering (5409) · Spec 1.1.1
Service styles and ratings
Read the notes, then try the questions. Each one is marked the moment you press Check, and shows the right answer and why.
Key ideas
- There are three families of food service. Table service has staff serving at the table: plate, family-style, silver, gueridon and banquet. Counter service: cafeteria, buffet and fast food. Personal service: tray or trolley, vending, home delivery and takeaway.
- In silver service a waiter serves food from a platter onto each guest's plate at the table. In family-style service, dishes are brought to the table to be shared. A banquet feeds a large group at the same time.
- Residential providers offer rooms (single, double, twin, family, suite), en-suite or shared bathrooms, meals, 24-hour room service and sometimes leisure facilities such as a spa, gym or pool.
- Ratings tell customers what standard to expect. They help a business attract customers and charge more, and it has to keep to the standard to keep the rating. Star ratings are for accommodation. AA Rosettes and Michelin stars are for the food. The food hygiene rating (0 to 5) is for hygiene only.
Key terms
- Cafeteria
- Counter service where customers choose from dishes laid out along a counter.
- Silver service
- A waiter serves food from a platter onto each guest's plate at the table.
- Banquet
- A set meal served to a large group of guests at the same time.
- Room service
- Food and drink brought to the guest's bedroom.
- Rosette
- An AA award for the standard of the food and cooking.
- Vending
- Machines that sell food and drink with no staff, so they can run 24 hours a day.
Common mistakes
- Thinking a counter means takeaway. Cafeteria food is chosen at a counter but can be eaten in. Takeaway is eaten off the premises.
- Mixing up what each rating judges. Hotel stars judge the rooms and facilities. Rosettes and Michelin stars judge the food. The hygiene rating judges hygiene, not taste.
- Thinking a five on the food hygiene rating means the food tastes best. It only shows hygiene standards are very good.
Exam tip
Match the service style or rating to the setting in the question, and give a reason: for example, silver service suits a formal banquet because the waiter serves each guest at the table. A name alone gets one mark. A reason gets the rest.
Free practice questions
7 questions, 12 marks. Answer, then press Check. The marking guide explains how the marks are worked out. Nothing is saved.
- Question 1 · Multiple choice[1 mark]
Which food service style shows all the dishes along a long counter for customers to choose from?
- Question 2 · Multiple choice[1 mark]
What is the highest number on the food hygiene rating scale used in England, Wales and Northern Ireland?
- Question 3 · True or false[1 mark]
True or false: a banquet is a meal served to a large group of guests at the same time.
- Question 4 · Fill the gaps[1 mark]
In ___ service, a waiter serves food from a platter onto each guest's plate at the table.
Word bank: silver · vending · cafeteria · buffet
- Question 5 · Matching[4 marks]
Match each service style to its description.
- Question 6 · Multiple choice[1 mark]
A hotel owner wants customers to know how good the bedrooms are. Which rating should the owner display?
- Question 7 · Put in order[3 marks]
Put these Michelin awards in order from the lowest to the highest.
Use the arrows to put these in the right order, first at the top.
- 1Two stars: excellent cooking, worth a detour
- 2One star: high quality cooking, worth a stop
- 3Three stars: exceptional cooking, worth a special journey