A waiter is a person whose job is to serve food and drinks to customers in a restaurant or café. When you sit down at a table, the waiter takes your order, brings your meal from the kitchen, refills your water glass, and answers questions about the menu. A female server is traditionally called a waitress, though many restaurants now use server for everyone.

Being a good waiter requires skills like remembering multiple orders without mixing them up, balancing several plates at once, staying friendly even when busy or tired, and solving problems quickly when something goes wrong with an order. Waiters need to notice when a table needs something without hovering or interrupting conversations.

The word can also mean someone who waits for something, though this usage is less common.

In most restaurants, waiters earn much of their income from tips: extra money customers leave to thank them for good service, usually 15 to 20% of the bill.