Develop and maintain food and
beverage product knowledge
D1.HBS.CL5.02
Trainee Manual
Develop and maintain
food and beverage
product knowledge
D1.HBS.CL5.02
Trainee Manual
Project Base
William Angliss Institute of TAFE
555 La Trobe Street
Melbourne 3000 Victoria
Telephone:
(03) 9606 2111
Facsimile:
(03) 9670 1330
Acknowledgements
Project Director:
Chief Writer:
Subject Writer:
Project Manager:
Editor:
DTP/Production:
Wayne Crosbie
Alan Hickman
Alan Hickman
Alan Maguire
Jim Irwin
Daniel Chee, Mai Vu
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) was established on 8 August 1967. The Member
States of the Association are Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia,
Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Viet Nam.
The ASEAN Secretariat is based in Jakarta, Indonesia.
General Information on ASEAN appears online at the ASEAN Website: www.asean.org.
All text is produced by William Angliss Institute of TAFE for the ASEAN Project on “Toolbox
Development for Front Office, Food and Beverage Services and Food Production Divisions”.
This publication is supported by Australian Aid through the ASEAN-Australia Development
Cooperation Program Phase II (AADCP II)
Copyright: Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) 2013
All rights reserved.
Disclaimer
Every effort has been made to ensure that this publication is free from errors or omissions. However,
you should conduct your own enquiries and seek professional advice before relying on any fact,
statement or matter contained in this book. ASEAN Secretariat and William Angliss Institute of TAFE
are not responsible for any injury, loss or damage as a result of material included or omitted from this
course. Information in this module is current at the time of publication. Time of publication is indicated
in the date stamp at the bottom of each page.
Some images appearing in this resource have been purchased from various stock photography
suppliers and other third party copyright owners and as such are non-transferable and non-exclusive.
Additional images have been sourced from Flickr and are used under:
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en
http://www.sxc.hu/
File name: TM_Develop_&_maintain_F&B_product_knowledge_Final
Acknowledgement
Parts of this manual relating to the description of liquors were produced with the co-operation and
assistance of the Liquor Stores Association of Victoria and the use of their material and their
contribution to this work, and vocational training are hereby acknowledged.
Table of Contents
Introduction to trainee manual........................................................................................... 1
Unit descriptor................................................................................................................... 3
Assessment matrix ........................................................................................................... 5
Glossary ........................................................................................................................... 7
Element 1: Obtain product information on food and beverages ....................................... 11
Element 2: Provide customers with relevant food and beverage product knowledge....... 65
Presentation of written work ............................................................................................ 83
Recommended reading................................................................................................... 85
Trainee evaluation sheet ................................................................................................. 87
© ASEAN 2013
Trainee Manual
Develop and maintain food and beverage product knowledge
© ASEAN 2013
Trainee Manual
Develop and maintain food and beverage product knowledge
Introduction to trainee manual
Introduction to trainee manual
To the Trainee
Congratulations on joining this course. This Trainee Manual is one part of a ‘toolbox’
which is a resource provided to trainees, trainers and assessors to help you become
competent in various areas of your work.
The ‘toolbox’ consists of three elements:

A Trainee Manual for you to read and study at home or in class

A Trainer Guide with Power Point slides to help your Trainer explain the content of
the training material and provide class activities to help with practice

An Assessment Manual which provides your Assessor with oral and written
questions and other assessment tasks to establish whether or not you have
achieved competency.
The first thing you may notice is that this training program and the information you find in
the Trainee Manual seems different to the textbooks you have used previously. This is
because the method of instruction and examination is different. The method used is called
Competency based training (CBT) and Competency based assessment (CBA). CBT and
CBA is the training and assessment system chosen by ASEAN (Association of SouthEast Asian Nations) to train people to work in the tourism and hospitality industry
throughout all the ASEAN member states.
What is the CBT and CBA system and why has it been adopted by ASEAN?
CBT is a way of training that concentrates on what a worker can do or is required to do at
work. The aim is of the training is to enable trainees to perform tasks and duties at a
standard expected by employers. CBT seeks to develop the skills, knowledge and
attitudes (or recognise the ones the trainee already possesses) to achieve the required
competency standard. ASEAN has adopted the CBT/CBA training system as it is able to
produce the type of worker that industry is looking for and this therefore increases
trainees’ chances of obtaining employment.
CBA involves collecting evidence and making a judgement of the extent to which a worker
can perform his/her duties at the required competency standard. Where a trainee can
already demonstrate a degree of competency, either due to prior training or work
experience, a process of ‘Recognition of Prior Learning’ (RPL) is available to trainees to
recognise this. Please speak to your trainer about RPL if you think this applies to you.
What is a competency standard?
Competency standards are descriptions of the skills and knowledge required to perform a
task or activity at the level of a required standard.
242 competency standards for the tourism and hospitality industries throughout the
ASEAN region have been developed to cover all the knowledge, skills and attitudes
required to work in the following occupational areas:

Housekeeping

Food Production

Food and Beverage Service
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Introduction to trainee manual

Front Office

Travel Agencies

Tour Operations.
All of these competency standards are available for you to look at. In fact you will find a
summary of each one at the beginning of each Trainee Manual under the heading ‘Unit
Descriptor’. The unit descriptor describes the content of the unit you will be studying in the
Trainee Manual and provides a table of contents which are divided up into ‘Elements’ and
‘Performance Criteria”. An element is a description of one aspect of what has to be
achieved in the workplace. The ‘Performance Criteria’ below each element details the
level of performance that needs to be demonstrated to be declared competent.
There are other components of the competency standard:

Unit Title: statement about what is to be done in the workplace

Unit Number: unique number identifying the particular competency

Nominal hours: number of classroom or practical hours usually needed to
complete the competency. We call them ‘nominal’ hours because they can vary
e.g. sometimes it will take an individual less time to complete a unit of competency
because he/she has prior knowledge or work experience in that area.
The final heading you will see before you start reading the Trainee Manual is the
‘Assessment Matrix’. Competency based assessment requires trainees to be assessed in
at least 2 – 3 different ways, one of which must be practical. This section outlines three
ways assessment can be carried out and includes work projects, written questions and
oral questions. The matrix is designed to show you which performance criteria will be
assessed and how they will be assessed. Your trainer and/or assessor may also use
other assessment methods including ‘Observation Checklist’ and ‘Third Party Statement’.
An observation checklist is a way of recording how you perform at work and a third party
statement is a statement by a supervisor or employer about the degree of competence
they believe you have achieved. This can be based on observing your workplace
performance, inspecting your work or gaining feedback from fellow workers.
Your trainer and/or assessor may use other methods to assess you such as:

Journals

Oral presentations

Role plays

Log books

Group projects

Practical demonstrations.
Remember your trainer is there to help you succeed and become competent. Please feel
free to ask him or her for more explanation of what you have just read and of what is
expected from you and best wishes for your future studies and future career in tourism
and hospitality.
2
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Introduction to trainee manual
Unit descriptor
Develop and maintain food and beverage product knowledge
This unit deals with the skills and knowledge required to Develop and maintain food and
beverage product knowledge in a range of settings within the hotel and travel industries
workplace context.
Unit Code:
D1.HBS.CL5.02
Nominal Hours:
55
Element 1: Obtain product information on food and beverages
Performance Criteria
1.1 Research general information on food and beverage products
1.2 Identify information required to fulfil responsibilities of job role
1.3 Develop and maintain product knowledge in line with job role and responsibilities
1.4 Identify features of specific food and beverages which have potential customer
appeal
Element 2: Provide customers with relevant food and beverage
product knowledge
Performance Criteria
2.1 Offer advice on suitable combinations of foods and food and beverages where
appropriate
2.2 Provide assistance to customers on selection of food and beverage items
2.3 Respond courteously and authoritatively to customer questions in relation to menus
and drink lists
2.4 Provide advice on menu items that reflect the special dietary or cultural requirements
of customers
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Introduction to trainee manual
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Assessment matrix
Assessment matrix
Showing mapping of Performance Criteria against Work Projects, Written
Questions and Oral Questions
Work
Projects
Written
Questions
Oral
Questions
Element 1: Obtain product information on food and beverages
1.1
Research general information on food and
beverage products
1.1
1 – 23
1
1.2
Identify information required to fulfil
responsibilities of job role
1.1
24, 25, 26
2
1.3
Develop and maintain product knowledge in line
with job role and responsibilities
1.2
27, 28, 29
3
1.4
Identify features of specific food and beverages
which have potential customer appeal
1.3
30, 31
4
Element 2: Provide customers with relevant food and beverage product knowledge
2.1
Offer advice on suitable combinations of foods
and food and beverages where appropriate
2.1
32, 33, 34
5
2.2
Respond courteously and authoritatively to
customer questions in relation to menus and
drink lists
2.2
35
6
2.3
Respond courteously and authoritatively to
customer questions in relation to menus and
drink lists
2.3
36, 37
7
2.4
Respond courteously and authoritatively to
customer questions in relation to menus and
drink lists
2.2
38 – 41
8
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Assessment matrix
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Glossary
Glossary
Term
Explanation
À la carte menu
Guest selects and pays for what they want: different to set/table
d’hôte menu). French for ‘from the card’
Alc/vol
Alcohol by volume
Antipasto
Platter of various foods served before main course
Aperitifs
Pre-dinner drinks
Appetisers
Food eaten before the main course
Bain Marie
Food display/presentation equipment used for keeping hot food hot
and cold food cold when ready for service
Bavarois
Flavoured dessert made with whipped cream and gelatine
Bisque
A shellfish soup with its flavour derived mainly from the shells
Bombe
Layered ice-cream dessert
Broth
Thin, clear soup
Canapés
A sub-set of hors d’oeuvres usually finely decorated
Charlotte
Moulded sponge with fruit, custard or other filling
Crustaceans
Shellfish
Dessert
Course after main course
Draught beer
Bulk beer drawn from barrels/kegs
Entrées
Course served before main course
F&B
Food and beverage
Fritter
Battered and deep-fried food item
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Glossary
Term
Explanation
Gomme syrup
Sugar syrup used in (some) cocktails
Green salad
Salad made from green leaves of various salad vegetables
Gueridon
A table or trolley used for cooking alongside the guest’s table
Hors d’oeuvres
A variety of small food items intended for service prior to the main
course
MSG
Monosodium Glutamate
Mocktails
Non-alcoholic cocktails
Molluscs
Invertebrate (no vertebrae) seafood
Mousse
Light and fluffy dessert similar to bavarois but without gelatine
Parfait
Dessert of ice cream, cream, fruit and other ingredients served in a
parfait glass
Ploughman’s lunch
Snack featuring cheese, pickled onions and crusty bread
Product knowledge
Knowledge about the products (and services) your workplace has
available for customers
Purées
Thick soups
RSA
Responsible Service of Alcohol
Sabayon
Light egg-based dessert
Sales rep
Abbreviation of ‘sales representative’: these are the people who call
on venues to sell products
Seasoning
Salt and pepper
Silver service
Use of spoon and fork to serve food at table
Soufflé
Light and fluffy egg-based dessert
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Glossary
Term
Explanation
Sour mix
Pre-prepared mix of lemon juice and sugar syrup (Gomme) used in
the preparation of (some) cocktails
Shellfish
Seafood from aquatic animals with a shell
Table d’hôte menu
Set menu where (for example) customer has a choice from three
different menu items for each course: price is constant regardless
of what guest selects. French for ‘table of the host’
Tapas
Appetizers/snacks with Spanish influence
Vintage
The year a wine was made; also the time of year at which wine
grapes are picked to make wine
Wet dishes
Generic term for dishes which are ‘wet’ in nature such as stews
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Glossary
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Develop and maintain food and beverage product knowledge
Element 1: Obtain product information on food and beverages
Element 1:
Obtain product information on food
and beverages
1.1 Research general information on food and
beverage products
Introduction
In order to obtain product information on food and beverage
products it is essential to be proactive.
You must make an effort and take action to find things out.
This section describes sources of this information and
identifies the aspects of food and beverage products about
which you should obtain information.
Need for product knowledge
It is vital for every hospitality employee to have an excellent
knowledge of the products and services offered by their
workplace.
In particular, you need this knowledge so you can take every
opportunity to demonstrate professionalism, promote dishes, recommend beverages and
generally assist customers.
Opportunities to promote products frequently arise during service sessions, and
elsewhere in the general hospitality environment.
These opportunities mainly occur when taking orders, and present an excellent
opportunity to show-off your skills, as well as to inform the customer of the various
products or services offered by your place of work.
‘Product knowledge’ is at the heart of providing information on food and beverages.
What is product knowledge?
Knowledge about food, beverages, the services you offer and the facilities available is
called 'product knowledge', and you can never have too much of it.
Product knowledge involves almost anything relating to the area and venue where you
work.
Food waiters are expected to have detailed food knowledge, a good knowledge about the
venue generally but less knowledge about beverages.
Beverage waiters are expected to have detailed knowledge about drinks, a good
knowledge about the venue generally but less knowledge about food.
Those who are as both food and beverage waiters are expected to have a good
knowledge about both.
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Element 1: Obtain product information on food and beverages
Product knowledge is different to skills/competencies: for example, a food waiter may
have knowledge about gueridon cookery but not have the skills to provide gueridon
service.
Food staff
For food staff product knowledge should include information about:

Menu items (dishes offered on the menu - you should know what is available and
what is not

Serve, or portion sizes

Prices

Cooking styles

Cooking times

Ingredients

What is fresh and what is bought in, frozen, and or pre-prepared

Suitability for those with certain dietary or cultural requirements

Cutlery and crockery required for service of individual menu items.
Beverage staff – drink waiters and bar attendants
For beverage service staff product knowledge should include information about:

The drinks/mixed drinks available from the bar – including cocktails where
applicable

The brand names and types of spirits, liqueurs and fortified wines available

The table and sparkling wines available – bottled and
‘bulk’ (‘house wine’)

The soft drinks available – including juices, aerated
waters and mocktails

The beers available – draught and packaged

The pre-mixed/ready-to-drink beverages available

Prices

Knowledge about individual beverages – such as
wine knowledge, how various liqueurs may be
served, the alcoholic strength of different liquors,
whether products are domestic or imported

Knowledge about matching menu items to menu
items

Glassware for the service of all drinks.
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Element 1: Obtain product information on food and beverages
Venue knowledge
All staff should have general information about the venue itself, such as:

Opening hours

Methods of payment accepted

Booking policies and procedures – including need for
deposits and requirements in relation to booking
confirmations

Complaint handling procedures

Facilities and services available elsewhere in the venue

Names of managers/owners

Legal issues – as they apply to issues such as the service
of liquor and safe food handling.
What information sources are there?
Internal sources
Within the property you can obtain product knowledge information from:

Menus, drink lists, wine lists and cocktail lists – many of these contain descriptions
about beverages and dishes

Taste the products – subject to whatever workplace restrictions apply, one of the
best ways to really learn about food and beverages is to ‘experience’ them – smell
them, feel them, taste them!

Recipes – for information on individual dishes such as
ingredients and cooking styles

Experienced staff – such as chefs, cooks, cellar staff,
senior F&B service staff, purchasing officers, bottle shop
sales assistants, managers and owners

Operational manuals – for details relating to the way
things should be done in the room/property

Policies and procedures manuals – for background
information about the venue

Wrapping and packaging material – many items are
delivered in packaging that contains information about the product

Doing a tour of the premises – to meet staff, find the locations of departments and
facilities, and to generally learn about the property

Talking to customers – to benefit from their experience/s, what they have learned
and their preferences.
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Element 1: Obtain product information on food and beverages
External sources
Outside the venue you can obtain product knowledge information from:

Product suppliers – by asking direct questions to the sales office or sales
representatives, or by asking them to send you product information sheets

The media – it must become standard practice for you to read, watch or listen to
anything that relates to food and beverages: this should include reading, watching
and listening to the general media as well as obtaining and reading trade
magazines and journals

Books – see what your local library has, check
out the newsagents, visit the local library

Internet – loads of information is available
through targeted searches: see below for some
examples

Trade shows, exhibitions and F&B festivals –
keep an eye on the media and invitations sent
to your employer. Make the time to go – many shows/exhibitions are free to
industry personnel and they are a great way to establish industry networks and
keep abreast of what is happening in the industry

Food and cooking demonstrations – you can always learn something from these
events even where they are conducted by a company with a vested interested in
promoting their range of products

Promotional activities – many suppliers run promotional events to advertise their
products and you should attend these whenever possible. Trade magazines, local
media and invitations sent direct to your workplace are the best sources of when
and where these are conducted.
Internet sites
Check out the following sites (and relevant links) as a basic introduction to the products
available, support organisations/suppliers and industry contacts:

http://www.foodbeverageasia.com/

http://www.interbevgroup.com/group-asean.php

http://asiasociety.org/lifestyle/food-recipes

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asian_cuisine

http://www.deliciousasianfood.com/

http://www.asianfoodgrocer.com/category/asian-beverages

http://www.responsibleresearch.com/Beverages_in_Asia.pdf

http://www.drinksmixer.com/cat/1/7/

http://www.spicecuisine.com/glossary.php.
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Element 1: Obtain product information on food and beverages
Food knowledge required
General background
Your product knowledge needs to reflect the needs of the place where you work.
This means the waiter in a fine dining restaurant will have knowledge about different
things to a person serving food from a Bain Marie in a fast food outlet.
While it is good to develop a broad and detailed level of product knowledge, it is essential
to first gain the product knowledge necessary for your nominated job.
With this in mind, food knowledge may relate to:
Appetisers
Appetisers are menu items offered for guests to eat prior to their main course.
They may include:

Hors d’oeuvres

Canapés

Antipasto

Tapas

Finger foods

Sandwiches.
You need to know what ingredients are used, what things taste and look like, what they
cost, how long they will take to prepare and cooking styles.
Soups
A traditional course on many menus, soups provide low food cost items for many
premises.
Soups may be classic or contemporary, may be served hot or cold and can reflect ethnic
flavours from many countries.
Options include:

Clear soups

Broths

Purées

Cream soups

Bisques
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Element 1: Obtain product information on food and beverages
Meat, poultry, fish and seafood – entrées and main courses
Meat, poultry, fish and seafood are common raw materials for all courses (except
desserts) including entrées and main courses.
As staple ingredients meat, poultry, fish and seafood can be the stand-alone ingredient for
a dish (such as steak, fillets of fish, or lobster) or they can be ingredients in other menu
items such as sauces and wet dishes.
Meat includes:

Beef

Lamb

Veal

Goat

Pork.
Cuts and options vary between the meat items but can include:

Steaks

Chops and/or cutlets

Mince

Joints for roasting.
You need to know the cuts being used, whether things are fresh or frozen, the type of
product being used as well as what things taste and look like, what they cost, how long
they will take to prepare and cooking styles.
You also need to know the answer to the question “Is it tender?”
Poultry includes whole birds or cuts and includes:

Chicken

Turkey

Squab

Pheasant

Duck

Goose.
You need to know the cuts being used, whether things are fresh or frozen, the type of
product being used as well as what things taste and look like, what they cost, how long
they will take to prepare and cooking styles.
Options include whole birds, legs, wings and breast.
Fish may be fresh, frozen or preserved and can be obtained from the sea of from
freshwater.
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Fish can include:

Flat fish and round fish

Whole fish and fillets

Whitefish

Oily fish.
Seafood includes:

Shellfish (also known as ‘crustaceans’) – generic term for seafood from a fish with
a shell (such as crayfish, crabs, lobster, prawn, shrimp)

Molluscs – octopus, cuttlefish, squid, clams, whelks, winkles, mussels, scallops,
cockles, oysters.
You need to know the type of fish or seafood being used, whether things are fresh or
frozen (a very common question in relation to fish and seafood) as well as what things
taste and look like, what they cost, how long they will take to prepare and cooking styles.
Desserts
Desserts are served after the main course and also known as ‘sweets’.
In some properties a separate menu is used for desserts.
They can be either hot or cold – many are served with sauces - and include:

Puddings

Pies, tarts and flans

Fritters – Banana fritters, or pineapple fritters

Custards and creams

Prepared fruit – fruit which has been peeled and cut ready for eating

Charlottes – such as Apple Charlotte

Bavarois and mousse

Soufflé

Sabayon

Meringues

Crepes and omelettes

Sorbets

Ice cream

Bombes

Parfaits.
Snacks
Snacks are light meals, commonly provided for people who are in a hurry or who are not
especially hungry.
One characteristic of a ‘snack’ is that it can often be easily taken away by the purchaser.
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Element 1: Obtain product information on food and beverages
Snacks can include:

Hot chips and potato wedges

Biscuits, crisps and crackers

Hot dogs

Pies, pasties and sausage rolls

Croissants

Sandwiches and rolls

Baguettes

Hamburgers

Ploughman’s lunch – cheese, greens and pickled onion.
Some snacks can also be meals – for example, a slice of pizza is a snack, but a whole
pizza is a meal.
Cheese
Cheese can be made from cow, sheep or goat’s milk.
Basic cheese options include:

Soft cheeses – Brie, Camembert and cottage

Semi-soft cheeses – Edam and Gouda

Hard cheeses – cheddar and Parmesan

Blue vein cheese (such as Gorgonzola, Stilton and
Roquefort) – coloured by an edible penicillin mould.
Cheese can be used in sauces or served on its own on a cheese platter.
Pasta
Pasta can be bought-in as ‘dried’ pasta and re-constituted on-site, or it may be made
fresh on-the-premises.
Pasta comes in a wide variety of types (flat, tubular and shaped) and sizes and may be
filled or plain.
Pasta is traditionally served with a variety of sauces but can also be used in soups and as
a substitute for potato.
Examples of pasta include:

Gnocchi

Spaghetti

Fettuccini

Lasagne

Tagliatelli.
See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_pasta for more detail and examples of what
different pastas look like.
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Element 1: Obtain product information on food and beverages
Noodles
Noodles are made from flour (wheat) and water, and/or eggs.
In many ways they are similar to pasta.
See examples at http://www.fotosearch.com/photos-images/noodles.html.
Vegetables
Vegetables are traditionally used as an accompaniment to a main dish.
Some vegetables can also be used in salads.
‘Root vegetables’ grow underground.
Examples of vegetables include:

Potatoes – root vegetable

Onions – root vegetable

Carrot s– root vegetable

Broccoli – green vegetable

Sprouts – green vegetable

Celery – green vegetable

Peas – green vegetable

Beans – green vegetable

Spinach – green vegetable

Cabbage – green vegetable

Tomatoes – technically a ‘fruit’ but commonly referred to as a vegetable.
Fruit
A growing focus on healthy eating has seen increased up-take of fruit in premises.
Fruit is almost mandatory with breakfasts, and supplied free-of-charge by some properties
to house (in-room) guests and/or at reception.
Fruit options include:

Pieces and platters of fresh fruit – pineapple,
watermelon, apples, bananas, rambutan,
jackfruit, star fruit, mango

Fresh fruit salad – available with or without
cream, yoghurt or ice cream

Tinned fruit – such as pears, peaches and
apricots

Dried fruit – such as dried apricots, figs, sultanas,
raisins and currants.
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Salads
Healthy eating has also seen the rise in the popularity of salads.
Salads may exist as a stand-alone menu item (such as a ‘Warm Chicken Salad’) or as an
accompaniment to a main course dish – such as green salad or a mixed salad.
Salads may be classical or contemporary, varying in ethnic and cultural origins, served
either cold, warm or hot, and may contain a variety of cooked and uncooked ingredients.
Dressings are applied to some salads.
Salad vegetables include:

Lettuce – various types

Tomato – including cherry tomatoes

Radishes

Celery

Onions and spring onions

Shredded cabbage – in coleslaw (salad made with shredded/grated cabbage,
onions, carrots, seasoning and mayonnaise)

Mushrooms

Carrots

Beetroot

Peppers – red, green and yellow.
Many ‘vegetables’ can be used as ‘salad vegetables’ and many ‘salad vegetables’ can
also be used as ‘vegetables’.
Pre-packaged food items
Pre-packaged food items include:

Food items are items bought in from suppliers and sold behind the bar or in other
retail areas – they include items such as chips and nuts

Portion control items – these are the single/individual serve units such as pats of
butter and margarine, sachets of sugar and sugar substitute, foils of jams and
sauces

Any food item bought-in and served (or sold) ‘as is’ – such as cakes and
cheesecakes.
Some pre-packaged foods may:

Require some basic preparation – such as boiling or heating

Be further prepared prior to service by the addition of extra ingredients and/or
sauces to enhance presentation and taste.
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Specialist cuisine food items
Specialist cuisine food items commonly relate to cuisines of various cultures but can also
include specific cuts of meats, poultry and game as well as specific types of fish and
seafood.
In some cases, an item which is ‘standard’ in one establishment may be regarded as
‘specialist’ in another. For example ‘pork ribs’ might be on the menu all the time in one
venue but be regarded as a specialist dish in another.
For example, eye fillet could be regarded as a specialist cuisine item if it is not normally
used but required only for a certain dish. A steak which is cut in a butterfly cut may be
‘specialised’. The use of a chicken leg and thigh connected to each other may be
‘specialised’.
The way the item is ‘grown’ may also classify an item as ‘specialist – for example organic
vegetables or grain-fed beef.
National dishes
It is vital you understand the traditional national dishes of the country in which you work.
Many tourists visit your country and your workplace to experience the local cuisine and
you must know:

The names of these dishes

The ingredients in them

Any relevant history – (as applicable) how and when they were invented; who they
were named after

The cooking processes used to produce them

Their flavours and appearance

Serve size and how they are served

Cost.
Signature dishes
Venues may – or may not – have one or more ‘Signature
dishes’. These are dishes the venue (or the chef) is famous
for.
Many visitors will come to the venue just for this possibly
world-renowned dish.
Signature dishes may be a local/regional dish or from another culinary area.
Venues will strive to always have the Signature dishes available, all the time the venue is
open.
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Element 1: Obtain product information on food and beverages
Other specialist foods
Other specialist foods may be ‘special’ in one venue but common in another.
It is there lack of common usage in this case which make them special.
This means other food items that could be seen as ‘specialist’ in some properties could
include:

Offal

Aromatics, flavourings, spices, spice mixes and herbs

Garnishes

Seeds and nuts

Grains, rice and pulses

Fungi

Preserves, condiments and accompaniments

Fruits, vegetables, flowers and salad items – not commonly used/available

Aquatic plants such as seaweeds

Specialist cheeses and dairy products

Sweeteners such as palm sugar, honey and glucose

Fats and oils

Local food items/ingredients.
Beverage knowledge required
General background
Your product knowledge needs to reflect the needs of the place where you work.
It is important that you learn what drinks are available, and develop an
understanding of similar or like products so that when a customer
orders something you do not have, you can suggest a suitable
alternative.
For example, if a customer orders a “Tanqueray and tonic water” you
need to know Tanqueray is an imported gin and if you do not stock it
you could recommend another imported gin you do stock (such as, for
example, Gordon’s or Beefeater)
The type of general information about alcoholic beverages you may
need to pass on to customers includes:

Which ones are suitable drinks for aperitifs

Which ones are suitable for drinking during and after a meal

Suggested basic wine and food combinations

What they taste like, look like, smell like and where they come from

What their alcoholic strength is

Whether they are domestic or imported beverages
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
Information specific to wines – details relating to wine makers, wine styles, wine
growing areas, grape varieties, wine characteristics and information relating to
wine shows and the wine industry

Size of serves, bottles, cans and glasses

The variety of ways in which different liquors can be served.
Wine
Wine is defined as the naturally produced beverage made from the fermented juice of
grapes.
The making of white wine
White wine can be made from red or white grapes because grape juice is clear: wine
picks up its colour from contact with the skins, so a white wine made from red grapes
would spend virtually no time in contact with the red skins.
The process for making of both white and red table wine is very
similar.
White table wine production
The basic procedure for producing white table wine is:

Grapes are harvested

Grapes are crushed at the winery - to release free-run
juice

Pressing occurs – to remove all available juice

Sulphur dioxide is added – to prevent yeasts that are naturally occurring on the
grapes from starting an unwanted and unpredictable natural fermentation process

The juice (called ‘must’ at this stage) is chilled – and allowed to settle

Must is filtered – through a centrifuge to remove large
particles/matter not wanted in the final product

A commercially prepared yeast is added to the must –
to start a fermentation process that is predictable and
stable

Fermentation occurs under refrigeration – to control the
heat generated during the fermentation process

Fermentation is stopped when the wine has reached
the required level of dryness or sweetness – or as the
wine maker’s scientific and taste-testing observations indicate

Yeast protein, skins and other residue are allowed to settle out – and the wine is
pumped out to undergo a 'fining' (filtering) process to remove the unwanted matter
generated during the fermentation process

The wine is aged (sometimes in wood but often in large stainless steel tanks (the
‘tank farm’ at the wineries) – it is then bottled, may be bottle aged, and is then
sold.
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Making red wine
Red wine can only be made from red wine grapes.
The main difference between the production of red and white table wines
is that in red wine production, the grape juice is allowed to spend time in
contact with the grape skins to pick up colour (and tannins which play
critical roles in the ageing of the wine).
The basics are:

Grapes are harvested

Grapes are crushed - and juice stays in contact with skins

Winemaker determines how long juice stays on the skins

Grapes pressed to extract all the juice and other juice may be
added – many red table wines are ‘blends’ of different grape
varieties

Fermentation occurs

Wine is fined, filtered and stored in wood

Wine is bottled, aged further in the bottle, and then is ready for sale.
Wine categories
In addition to ‘red’ or white’ table wine, wine can be further categorised as follows:

Varietal or generic

Sparkling

Fortified.
Varietal wines
‘Varietal’ wines are wines made from one (or more) nominated grape varieties: the name
of this or these grape varieties appears on the label of the bottle.
Where a wine claims to be made from a certain grape variety, the wine must be made
from a minimum percentage of that stated variety.
Where a wine claims to be made from grapes of a certain year, then a minimum
percentage of the wine must be from that specified year.
Where a wine claims it comes from a nominated area, then a minimum percentage of the
wine must come from the stated area.
Varietal white wines
White grape varieties include:

Chardonnay – a full-flavoured dry white wine

Chenin Blanc – a pleasant fruity 'drink now' wine with a refreshing acid
finish

Riesling – a delicate wine with fruit character and a trace of sugar that
varies hugely depending on the region in which it is grown

Sauvignon Blanc – a dry white wine with distinct varietal flavour
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(melon, pineapple, tropical fruit)

Semillon – a dry, crisp white wine

Traminer – a fresh and fruity wine with a spicy smell and taste.
Common bottle size is 750 mls.
Varietal red wines
Red grape varieties include:

Cabernet Sauvignon – an aromatic red which may have berry,
mint, capsicum or blackcurrant highlights

Malbec – a fruity, soft wine

Merlot – another fruity and aromatic red reminiscent of plums,
pumpkins and fruitcake

Pinot Noir – a lighter style red, thin in taste and colour

Shiraz – this grape produces fine full-flavoured reds that vary greatly from region
to region; often blended.
Common bottle sizes are 200 mls, 750 mls and 1 litre.
Generic wines
‘Generic’ is the term used to describe wines are made to a style, usually naming a
European location as its origin, such as Hock, Moselle, Claret and Burgundy. There is no
indication of grape variety/varieties used.
Generic white wines include:

Chablis - a very dry, flinty wine

Hock - a very dry white wine

Moselle - a popular and pleasantly semi-sweet wine, less sweet than Sauternes

Rhine Riesling - drier than Moselle: often described as fruity and has its fruitiness
confused with sweetness

Sauternes - produced from fully ripe grapes; a very sweet wine

White Burgundy - a fairly dry white with full flavour.
Generic red wines include:

Burgundy - a soft and fruity red wine

Claret - a dry red with more astringency than burgundy.
Blended wines
Blended wines, as the name suggests are made from two or more grape varieties.
This may be done by a wine maker to create a unique taste, to mask a deficiency in one
grape (such as lack of colour, lack of flavour) or because of economic necessity (some
grape varieties are cheaper than others).
A blended wine is not to be seen as inferior to a straight varietal wine – it is just different.
See more information at:

http://www.vinodiversity.com/blended-wines.html
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Element 1: Obtain product information on food and beverages

26
http://www.chiff.com/a/wine-blended-varietal.htm.
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Premium wine by the glass
Some properties feature a system allowing bottles of premium quality wines to be sold by
the glass.
These systems use nitrogen to dispense the wine thereby avoiding the oxidising problems
involved when wine bottles are opened.
Where these systems are in use, any bottled wine can be hooked up to the system.
Sparkling wines
The word ‘Champagne’ is now legally reserved for
sparkling wine produced from the Champagne region in
France.
All other similar wines are called by the generic term
‘sparkling wine’.
Sparkling wines may be made using one of four options, each producing vastly different
quality products:
Naturally carbonated wine
The traditional way of producing sparkling wine is using the French method known as
‘méthode champenoise’, whereby bubbles naturally occur in the bottle as a result the
fermentation process.
Many sparkling wines are made using this process and highly regarded around the world
as outstanding of the champagne style even thought they are not by strict definition
‘champagne’.
This method is also called ‘méthode traditionelle’, or ‘méthode classique’.
Carbonated or Injection method
This is the cheapest and quickest method and the one producing the lowest quality
sparkling wine.
The base wine is placed in a closed tank and chilled. Carbon dioxide is pumped in under
pressure and absorbed into wine: cola and lemonade are made in the same way.
This method produces wine with comparatively large bubbles which disappear quickly in
the glass. The wine may be called 'Carbonated wine'.
Cuvee close, Charmat, Bulk or Tank method
The base wine is pumped into stainless steel tanks, where yeast and sugar is added to
start a second fermentation (the first fermentation has happened to get the initial base
wine).
It is this second fermentation which puts the bubbles in the.
The wine is allowed to settle, filtered and transferred to another tank – still under pressure
– where it receives a dose of sweetener/liqueur for the desired level of sweetness.
Transfer method
This represents a compromise between the Charmat method and the best, most
expensive and most time-consuming method – méthode champenoise.
The secondary fermentation takes place in the bottle in the méthode champenoise way,
and wines are also aged for a short while in the bottle.
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Element 1: Obtain product information on food and beverages
The wine is transferred under pressure from bottles (after the secondary fermentation) to
tanks where it is allowed to settle and is filtered: a sweetener is added while the wine is
still under pressure and then it is bottled for sale.
The label will state 'fermented in the bottle'.
Styles of Champagne
Non-vintage (N.V.)
This is the most common style and is made from base of two to three wines every year to
enable consistency of product.
The end product cannot be legally identified as coming from a
specified year, hence the term N.V.
Vintage
This is a rarer and more expensive wine made solely from wine of
the one nominated year.
It is usually a better quality champagne.
Vintage champagne not made every year – it depends on grape
quality and the season.
Rosé
This style may be made from leaving the grape juice in contact with the red or black
grapes for a period so the wine can pick up some colour from the skins (or some red wine
may be added) to the white base wine prior to the second fermentation.
Crémant
'Crémant' means 'creaming'.
The wine is a gently sparkling wine, giving the impression of
creaminess, preferred by many especially with desserts.
Blanc de blancs
This wine is made exclusively from white grapes.
Blanc de Noirs
This wine is made only from red grapes.
Degrees of sweetness or dryness
Sugar levels vary between brands so a brut in one brand may well not be as dry as a brut
in another.
The following is a general guide to sweetness/dryness:
Driest
Extra brut
Brut
Extra dry
Sec
Demi-sec
Sweetest
28
Doux
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Champagne will improve in bottle over a certain time, but if kept for too long there is an
increased risk of the wine going “flat” as the carbon dioxide which gives the wine its
sparkle eventually seeps out.
It should be chilled before serving, and served at 7.5°C using champagne flutes.
Champagne bottle sizes
Champagne comes in half bottles (375ml) and full bottles (750ml) – some are also
available in 200 ml bottles - as well as a range of larger bottles each with their own name:

Magnum – equivalent to 2 bottles: common for parties.
Other sizes are usually only sold for ‘special occasions’:

Jeroboam – equivalent to 4 bottles

Rehoboam – equivalent to 6 bottles

Methuselah – equivalent to 8 bottles

Salmanazar – equivalent to 12 bottles

Balthazar – equivalent to 16 bottles

Nebuchadnezzar – equivalent to 20 bottles.
Famous brand names
Well-known brands of Champagne include:

Moet & Chandon

Veuve Cliquot

Mumm

Piper-Heidsieck

Tattinger

Pommery

Yellowglen

Dom Perignon

Krug

Bollinger.
Fortified wines
Fortified wines are base wines which are strengthened or 'fortified' by the addition of
grape spirit or brandy.
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The addition of the grape spirit stops fermentation, increases alcoholic strength, adds
sweetness, imparts keeping qualities, and in the case of port provides the brandy
character.
Fortifieds range between 17 – 22% alc/vol.
The standard industry size serve for a fortified wine is 60 mls.
Fortified wines include:
Sherries
Served as an aperitif, sherries are available in:

Dry – which is often kept under refrigeration and served chilled

Medium

Sweet

Cream.
You can tell the difference between a dry sherry and a sweet sherry that are on a drinks
tray because the sweet sherry is usually darker in colour.
Vermouths
Vermouth is a white wine that has been infused with various herbs, spices, flowers, fruits
(depending on the manufacturer).
It is available in red (rosso) which is sweet and often referred to as Italian, or white
(bianco) which dry and is also referred to as French. It is used (or mixed) as a pre-dinner
drink.
Ports
White port is produced in the same way as other port, with the same difference in
production as the difference in production of red and white table wines – the time on skins
is either far less, or non-existent.
The final product in white port is usually much sweeter than the red
port, even where the labels read 'dry' or even 'extra dry'.
Ruby port is amongst the simplest and most inexpensive due to the
fact that it is aged in bulk vats - not smaller barrels – and bottled
young (after 2 - 3 years) after blending. It retains a deep ruby colour
and a 'fiery' taste.
Mulberry flavours are often traditionally associated with ruby wine.
Tawny port gets its name from the tawny colour that port gets from
its wood ageing and or the use in tawny of a lighter base wine, or the blending of a red
port with a white one.
Vintage port is a port that is simple to make being made blended wines
from the one vintage, yet is the most expensive in part due to the fact
that only the very best grapes are used.
Not every year will be a year when a 'vintage' can be declared.
Despite being a fortified wine, vintage port has a limited shelf life: after
opening it should be consumed within 2 – 3 days.
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Liqueur port is produced when after some time tawny ports become so concentrated (or
liqueured) through evaporation through casks that their very nature has changed.
The evaporation reduces the liquid volume but concentrates the sugar, colour and flavour
present and results in a port of liqueur-like character.
Alternatively, and more cheaply, a sweet white wine can be added to the tawny before
bottling producing a vanilla or nutty flavour.
Muscats
The name can refer to either grapes, or to the wine they make.
Muscat is a red dessert wine with a rich raisin taste and smoky characteristic.
The Liqueur Muscat is made in the same way as the natural liqueur port.
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World wine countries
Many countries have established a reputation for wine.
More than the following countries produce their own wine but the following may be
regarded as notable wine-producing countries.
Famous wines and/or wiberies for each country are also listed.

Australia – Penfolds Grange Hermitage, Wolf Blass, Hardy’s, Rosemount,
Seppelt’s, Lindeman’s, Jacob’s Creek, Yellowglen, De Bortoli, Yalumba, Tyrrell’s,
Margaret River, .

France – Château Neuf de Pape, Ch. dYquem, Bourgogne Chardonnay, Château
Mont-Redon, Côtes-du-Rhône Rouge, Laurent Perrier, Domaine, Ch. Latour, Ch.
Lafite Rothschild,

Italy – Cà del Bosco Franciacorta Annamaria Clementi, Villa Raiano Fiano di
Avellino, Venica Ronco delle Cime, Pieropan Soave Classico La Rocca, Giacomo
Conterno Barolo Monfortino, Gaja Barbaresco, Zenato Amarone della Valpolicella,
Banfi Brunello di Montalcino Poggio all’Oro, Donnafugata Passito di Pantelleria
Ben Ryè, Incisa della Rocchetta Sassicaia (Source:
http://www.menshealth.com/jimmy-bartender/best-italian-wines-11)

Germany – Liebfraumilch, Moselblumchen, Zeller Schwarze, Eiswein, and sweet
styles including Spatlese, Auslese, Beerenauslese and Trockenbeerenauslese.

New Zealand – Giesen, Cloudy Bay, Jackson Estate, Wairau River, Seresin
Estate, Esk Valley

Chile – Almaviva, Antiyal and Kuyen, Casa Lapostolle Clos Apalt, Concha y Toro
Don Melchor Cabernet Sauvignon, Concha y Toro Terrunyo Cabernet Sauvignon,
Concha y Toro Carmín de Peumo Carmenere, Errazuriz Don Maximiano 2006,
Montes 2005 Purple Angel, Montes Alpha M 2010, ina San Pedro 1865 Limited
Edition 2007 Syrah (Source: http://www.chilean-wine.com/best-chilean-wines)

South Africa – Vergelegen, Meerlust, Rust en Vrede, Kanonkop, Klein Constantia,
Hamilton Russell Vineyards, Thelema Mountain Vineyards, Simonsig, Rustenberg,
Cederberg. (Source:
http://goafrica.about.com/od/capetownatravelguide/tp/topcapewineries.htm)

Spain – Palacio del Conde Gran Reserva, Los Hermanos Manzanos Reserva
Rioja, La Cantera Reserva Carinena, Conde Galiana Gran Reserva de la Familia,
Altos de la Guardia Rioja Blanco, Ermita de San Lorenzo Gran Reserva (Source:
http://www.winepeople.com.au)

USA – 2005 Pine & Post Washington Chardonnay, 2006 Meridian Vineyards
Santa Barbara County Chardonnay, 2006 The Brander Vineyard Santa Ynez
Valley Sauvignon Blanc, 2006 Chateau Ste. Michelle Dry Riesling, 2005 SKN
Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, 2005 Michael Pozzan Sonoma County
Cabernet Sauvignon, 2005 Blackstone California Zinfandel (Source:
http://www.foodandwine.com/articles/sixty-seven-best-american-wines)

Portugal – Casal Garcia ‘Vinho Verde’, Moscatels, rosés, Dours wine, ports.
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See:

http://www.mapsofworld.com/world-top-ten/world-top-ten-wine-producercountries.html

http://wineinsights.com/wine-growing-regions/world-wine-growing-regions.
Spirits
The type of base ingredient used varies with the spirit produced – grape wine for brandy;
sugar for rum; grain crops for whisky, gin and vodka.
There are six popular spirit types in most bars:

Whisky

Rum

Gin

Vodka

Brandy

Tequila
Whisky
Whisky is distilled from grain (barley, rye, maize, cereal) made in either a Continuous or
Pot still.
Whisky is produced in many styles with the four most popular being Scotch, Irish,
Bourbon and Rye.
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Scotch Whisky
There are two distinct types – malt and grain.
Blended together they make a third Blended
version – the common whiskies such as Haig,
Johnnie Walker and J & B are blends.
The standard blend is 60% grain to 40% malt.
Blending can involve up to thirty whiskies of
different ages and from various distilleries making a standard blend.
Traditionally only the malt whisky from the Highlands was true whisky: malts are well liked
by whisky connoisseurs who have personal preferences – a malt whisky is lighter in
colour and smoother than other whisky.
Grain Whisky
Scotland's grain whisky is made from maize with malted and sometimes un-malted barley.
The product is light with no peat flavour.
There is little demand for it to drink straight and it is primarily used for blending.
De Luxe Scotch Whisky
Is older and mellower with a blend age of seven to twelve years.
Malt Whisky
Is made from malted barley.
Malting consists of spreading wetted barley on a warm floor, so the seeds begin to
germinate – this converts starch into sugar (maltose).
To halt the process it is next dried at a hotter temperature using peat.
The peat fumes give the unique flavour.
Common brands
Popular brands of scotch include:

Johnnie Walker – red label, blue label, black label, green label and gold label

Ballantines

The Famous Grouse

Teacher’s

Grants

Dewar’s

Black and White

Vat 69

Chivas Regal

Haig’s Dimple

Glenfiddich Single Malt 12 years old.
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Irish Whiskey
Always spelt with an 'e' and is made basically the same as whisky with some variations.
The base cereals may not be wholly barley, drying is by coal fire not peat, and stills differ
in design.
Examples of Irish Whiskey include:

Jameson

Paddy’s

Tullamore Dew.
Bourbon and Rye Whiskies
Bourbon is made in the state of Kentucky in the USA. The neighbouring state of
Tennessee produces a well known whiskey, Jack Daniels, which is therefore not Bourbon.
Rye is made in USA and Canada.
Both are produced from grain (mainly maize) distilled in a Continuous still, and aged in
charred oak barrels.
Bourbon is aged in cold warehouses, Rye in heated rooms: both are lighter than scotch.
Popular brands include:

Wild Turkey Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey

Jack Daniels Tennessee Whiskey

Jim Beam Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey

Cougar Bourbon.
Canadian Club is a rye whisky bourbon.
Rum
Rum is distilled from molasses which is a by-product of cane sugar.
Rum is distilled by Pot or Continuous still and often blended.
It is aged in oak and caramel can be added for colour.
Jamaican rum
Known for highly-flavoured rums, but today light rums are distilled too with a trend for
these.
Barbados and Trinidad rum
Both specialise in lighter, as well as colourless rums.
Popular brands
Popular brands of rum include:

Captain Morgan – spiced gold, dark, deluxe, white and
gold

Bacardi – white, black and gold.
Check out http://www.bacardi.com/#.
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Proof
‘Proof’ is another way of indicating the alcoholic strength of drinks. ‘Alcohol by volume’ as
a percentage is the more common way.
‘Proof’ is double the alcohol by volume figure.
For example, a product that is ’80 proof’ is 40% alc/vol
Rum labelled “overproof” is more than 50% alc/vol
Gin
Gin is produced by rectifying a pure spirit with berries and botanical herbs – juniper
berries and coriander seeds are the main flavouring agents, along with calamus root,
cardamom seeds, angelica, orange and lemon peels, almond and orris root.
London Dry Gin
May be clear (like Gilbey's
London Dry and Gordon's),
or straw coloured (like
Booth's).
This is most commonly
asked for type.
Sloe gin
With an emphasis on the sloe berries used in its production.
Vodka
Is distilled from a base of grain or molasses and is highly rectified meaning impurities
have been removed.
No flavourings are added, indeed charcoal is used to filter it and produce a clean and
smooth spirit.
Flavoured vodkas
Polish vodka is also excellent, some varieties being flavoured with fruit or herbs.
Growing in popularity, flavoured vodkas can feature cherries, rowan berries, pears,
cranberries, green apple, strawberries, raspberries, vanilla, oranges or lemons.
Popular brands include:

Stolichnaya

Karloff

Finlandia

Wyborowa

Smirnoff

Skyy

Absolut
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Brandy
Is distilled from grapes and is produced in nearly every wine growing region: it may be
consumed neat but is popular with a mixer, or in cocktails.
Popular brands include:

St Remy

Hennessy

Remy Martin

Chatelle Napoleon
Cognac
The most famous brandy is Cognac made in the Cognac region
of France.
When drinking cognac, a nip is poured into a balloon glass of moderate size: the hand is
cupped around the balloon and the cognac gently swirled, warming it and releasing its
bouquet.
Popular brands are Courvoisier, Remy, Camus and Audry.
Tequila
Is a Mexican spirit ranging from clear to pale gold in colour.
True Tequila is made in the areas surrounding the city of Tequila.
Some bottles feature the classic worm in the bottle.
Tequila is made from Maguey cactus plants.
Popular brands include:

José Cuervo

El Toro

Coyote.
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Service of spirits
With spirits, there are several options available to customers.
They may order a full nip (30 mls) with a mixer in a short or long glass, or they may order
a half nip (15 mls) with a mixer in a short or long glass.
Sometimes customers order a double (60 ml) but many venues have banned these due to
Responsible Service of Alcohol concerns.
Drinks may be ordered with ice, or without ice.
Industry practice where the customer does not specify nip size, glass size or ice
requirements is to prepare a drink comprising:

A full nip

Ice

Long glass.
Guests may also order the spirit 'neat' – which
means without any mixer, and without ice – or
they may order it 'on the rocks' which means neat
with the addition of ice.
Common mixers with spirits
Common mixers (soft drink) used with spirits are as follows:

Gin – tonic water, lemon squash, bitter lemon, lemonade, orange juice: ‘Pink Gin’
is gin with the addition of a few drops of Angostura bitters that have been swirled
around the glass

Brandy – dry ginger, cola, lemonade

Whisky - dry ginger, cola, soda water

Rum – cola

Vodka – lemon squash, orange juice, tonic water, tomato juice.
RTDs
‘RTD’ stands for ‘Ready To Drink’ and refers to the large and growing range of pre-mixed
drinks that are available in bottles and cans.
They may be spirit or wine-based.
Examples include:

Bacardi Breezers

Vodka Cruisers

Canadian Club and cola

Jack Daniels and cola

Cougar bourbon – with cola; cola zero.
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Other spirits
Applejack
Brandy distilled from the fermented mash of cider apples in the New England region of the
USA.
The best is Pot distilled with a minimum maturation of 2 years in oak casks.
It may be bottled straight or combined with neutral spirits and sold as blended applejack.
Aquavit
Is the drink of Scandinavia and the word comes from 'aqua vitae', Latin for ‘water of life'.
Grain or potato is distilled to produce a neutral spirit which is then redistilled with caraway
and other flavourings such as citrus peel, cardamom or anise.
Aquavit is served ice cold and as it is highly alcoholic it is usually served with food.
Calvados
A brandy made from a mash of cider apples produced in the defined areas of the
provinces of Brittany, Normandy and Maine.
The fermented mash is double Pot distilled and then matured in oak casks for up to 25
years, picking up colour and flavour from the wood.
Eau de Vie (‘Water of life’)
These are true fruit brandies made by distilling the fermented mash of fruit.
They usually have a higher alcoholic content than most liqueurs and are dry to the taste
and the majority are colourless because they are aged in glass.
Kirsch
Originally double Pot distilled cherry brandy from the Alsace region in France.
Kirschwasser
German or Swiss cherry brandy.
Ouzo
Aniseed flavoured spirit of Greece and Cyprus.
Quality ouzo made by double distillation of the basic spirit and then the addition of
aniseed and other herbs before redistillation.
The better quality the ouzo the more milky it becomes with the addition of water.
Pernod
Origin is in Southern France. It was named after Monsieur Pernod who bought the recipe
in 1897.
The original recipe contained absinthe, however this was banned on 14th August 1914 for
making men mad and vicious.
Pernod has a similar taste to ouzo and goes milky with the addition of water.
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Poire Williams
Eau-de-vie de poire is distilled from the pear known as Williams or Bartlett.
It is sometimes marketed in a pear-shaped bottle with a ripe pear inside.
Slivovitz
Plum brandy from Yugoslavia and other Balkan countries.
For more information go to http://www.physics.uq.edu.au/people/nieminen/spirits.html.
Liqueurs
Liqueurs are spirits flavoured with fruits, herbs, roots and plants, sweetened and
sometimes artificially coloured.
Liqueurs are proprietary or generic.
Proprietary brands are those produced by a single company such as Grand Marnier,
Cointreau, Tia Maria, and Galliano.
Generics are types of liqueurs that can be made by any company. As an example,
Seagram produce a range of generic liqueurs that includes Advocaat, Banana, Blue
Curacao, Butterscotch, Crème de cacao, Crème de menthe, Melon, Mint chocolate, Triple
Sec.
Many liqueurs trace their ancestry back to the monasteries where monks collected herbs
and turned them into medicines: in fact, many do have digestive properties.
Liqueurs are made by soaking flavouring materials in a spirit – the number of flavourings
is huge with Chartreuse having a hundred and thirty herbs, and DOM Benedictine at least
thirty.
Liqueurs may be mixed, used in cocktails or served straight. May be lit (set on fire) and
served ‘flaming’
Standard serve size for a liqueur is 30 mls. Here are popular examples:
Advocaat
A low strength liqueur, thick yellow and creamy from raw eggs and spirit.
Anisette
Sweetened version of Anis, a name that comes from the star anise plant.
Bailey's Irish Cream
Cream blended with whiskey, neutral spirits, coffee and chocolate.
Benedictine DOM
DOM stands for Deo Optimo Maximo – To God most good, most great.
It is a famous and popular golden liqueur with a complex, herb flavour.
Chartreuse - Green or Yellow
Brandy distilled with numerous herbs: yellow is sweeter – but weaker.
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Cointreau
Colourless liqueur of the Curacao family made by the Cointreau company. Clear in colour,
orange-flavoured with a dry finish.
Crème de Bananes
Sweet, banana-flavoured liqueur which might be consumed neat or poured over ice
cream.
Crème de Cacao
Sweet liqueur made from cocoa and vanilla beans.
Crème de Cassis
Sweet liqueur made from blackcurrants.
Crème de Menthe
Sweet, mint-flavoured liqueur, available in either a
clear or green colour.
Drambuie
Made from Scotch whisky, herbs and honey: sweet and golden.
Grand Marnier
Distilled oranges steeped in cognac.
Irish Mist Liqueur
Made from heather, honey and whiskey.
Kahlua
Mexican coffee-flavoured liqueur.
Curaçao
Distilled from peel of bitter oranges.
Normally colourless but may be orange or blue using food colouring agents to achieve
this.
Jagermeister
A bitter tasting liqueur made from herbs, roots and spices.
Recommended to be served from the freezer.
Kummel
Distilled grain spirit flavoured with caraway seeds.
Maraschino
Sweet liqueur made from cherries.
Midori
Green honey dew melon-flavoured liqueur.
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Parfait d'Amour (‘perfect love’)
Sweet, highly scented, violet-coloured liqueur.
Peach Brandy
Peaches steeped in brandy.
Royal Mint Chocolate
Like a liquid after dinner mint.
Sambuca
Aniseed-flavoured colourless, red or dark blue (black) liqueur.
Often served with three coffee beans in the glass.
Strega
Means 'witch' in Italian: features many herbs and barks of trees.
Tia Maria
Distilled from sugar cane and flavoured with Blue Mountain coffee.
Van Der Hum
South African cape brandy with tangerine (naatje) and a touch of rum.
Websites for liqueurs
Check out the following for more information:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liqueurs

http://www.tastings.com/spirits/liqueurs.html

http://www.drinksmixer.com/desc29.html.
Beer
Beer is available in draught and packaged form.
Draught beer is beer drawn through the tap from barrels or kegs.
Packaged beer is beer in large and small bottles and cans.
Beer Production
Beer is made by a process known as 'brewing'.
Precise times, temperatures and yeast type vary between breweries and brews.
The major production steps are:

Barley is steeped in water and germinates

It is dried by warm air and ground in the brew house

It is then mixed with water to make a liquid called 'wort'

The wort is boiled up with hops and sugar

The wort is then cooled and the yeast added to start the fermentation process
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
The beer is then clarified, stored and matured

Finally it is filtered, packaged and despatched for
consumption.
Boutique beer
A boutique beer is a beer that is not mass produced.
It is usually made by a small operator such as a pub
brewery (sometimes referred to as a micro-brewer).
Boutique beers may be domestic or international, with
many boutique beers only being available in the premises
where they were brewed, while others enjoy national
exposure.
Commercially produced beer
Commercially produced beer may be seen as beer that comes from commercial brewers
others than boutique breweries.
These beers may be available in different alcoholic contents which are classified generally
as:

Standard strength – which is around the 4.9% alcohol/volume mark

Mid-strength – around 3.3% alc/vol

Light – about 2.2% alc/vol

Low alcohol – 0.9%alc/vol.
These beers may be domestic or international.
Citrus infused beers
A relatively recent addition to the beer market has been the introduction of citrus infused
beers.
These beers may be infused with orange, lemon and or lime.
Imported beers
Most countries now offer beers from many countries – at least in packaged form. These
beers are in addition to the local brews. Popular imported beers include:

Fosters – Australia

Lowenbrau – Germany

Beck’s – Germany

Fürstenburg – Germany

König Pilsener – Germany

Stella Artois – Belgium

Corona – Mexico

Bass – England

Budweiser – USA
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
Hollandia – Holland

Heineken – Holland

Miller – USA

Maes – Belgium

Chimay – Belgium

Duvel – Belgium

Asahi – Japan.
Asian beers
The following list names popular Asian beers and is taken from ‘The Asian Beer Guide’ at
http://www.asianbeerguide.com/:

Beer Lao

Chang Beer

Kingfisher

Kirin Beer

San Miguel

Sapporo Beer

Singha Beer

Taiwan Beer

Tiger Beer

Tsingtao Beer.
More information is available at:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beer_and_breweries_by_region

http://www.beers-of-the-world.com/.
Or do a search for the country you are seeking information about, such as
‘Vietnam+beer’.
Beer variations
Most beer is consumed ‘neat’ but some people prefer to add a little something to their
beer, in order to get a different taste.
Beer variations include:

Shandy – Beer and lemonade

Beer with a dash – Beer with a dash of lemonade

Lager and lime – Beer with a dash of lime juice

Red eye beer – with tomato juice

Black and tan – Beer and stout

Half and half – Beer and stout

Portergaff – Stout and lemonade
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
Stout with a dash – Stout with a dash of lemonade

Wedge of lime in neck of a Corona.
There is a wide variation in sizes of beer glasses from 200 mls upwards.
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Non-alcoholic drinks
Non-alcoholic drinks should be available in all liquor outlets to comply with general RSA
principles. Non-alcoholic drinks may be hot or cold. Examples of non-alcoholic beverages
include:

Varieties of tea – black, semi-black, blended, green, scented

Coffee – including all espresso-based coffees and the flavours that may be added

Milk shakes and flavoured milks

Smoothies

Hot/iced chocolate

Juices – bought-in and freshly squeezed juices

Cordials and syrups

Waters – still, sparkling, flavoured

Soft drinks – also known as aerated waters: either
bulk ‘post mix’ products or products from bottles or
cans

Non-alcoholic cocktails – known as ‘mocktails’

Health drinks – including energy drinks

Frappés

Children’s specialty drinks.
1.2 Identify information required to fulfil
responsibilities of job role
Introduction
The basis of doing any job properly is knowing what is required of you.
All jobs have unique activities (or ‘tasks’) attached to them and, in theory, if everyone
does what they should then the mix of everyone’s efforts will result in the intended
objectives and outcomes for the business and good service to customers.
This section looks at the roles requiring food and beverage knowledge and the tasks
those roles are generally required to fulfil.
Job roles – what’s required?
Waiting staff and bar attendants are the primary hospitality roles involved with food and
beverage service.
Service staff may include:

Head waiter – also known as Room Supervisor or Maître d’hôtel

Food waiters

Beverage/drink waiters

Food and beverage waiters
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
Runners.
It is to be expected that the job requirements for your job will have been discussed at
some length as part of the job interview.
General requirements
Head waiter
This role has the following responsibilities:

Organising staff for the room/dining session

Creating a table/floor plan for individual sessions

Conducting the staff briefing before each session

Liaising with all service staff, guests and management

Welcoming guests on arrival – known as ‘greeting and seating’

Overseeing activities during service to co-ordinate service duties, assist as
required, deal with complaints, respond to issues as they arise

Monitoring service standards

Conducting de-briefings at the end of service sessions

Making suggestions regarding changes to operational matters, recommendations
for special events and advising in relation to optimising sales and service.
Food waiters
This role performs the following duties:

Setting up of the room

Greeting guests

Taking orders

Serving and clearing food

Preparing and presenting accounts

Receiving payment

Farewelling guests

Stripping the room at the end of service.
The level of cash handling varies between properties and some food waiters may also be
required to reconcile takings at the end of the session.
Food waiters may be required to handle simple plated service, silver service, semi-silver
service, or gueridon work.
‘Plated service’ refers to the service style where food is put on plates (‘plated’) in the
kitchen and then carried to the table.
See the videos below for examples of the following:

‘Silver service’ - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8jVoMYMoVfs&feature=related

‘Gueridon service’ - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2VrIrQyslik.
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Beverage or drink waiters
Beverage or drink waiters may have responsibilities for setting up the glassware for tables
and assisting food waiters and or bar attendants in room preparation.
During service they have responsibility for:

Taking drink orders

Delivering drinks to the table

Serving drinks including wine

Making recommendations for beverages to accompany meals

Clearing glassware and empty bottles

Preparing and presenting the beverage account

Processing the drinks account

Farewelling guests.
At the conclusion of service they may be required to work with food waiters to strip the
room, or with bar attendants to clean the bar and/or prepare it for the next session.
Food and beverage waiters
The roles of the food waiter and the drink waiter may be combined into one in situations
where:

The property is small – and cannot afford to hire a
separate food and drink waiter

Management prefers the food and beverage service
roles to be combined in to the one position – for
example, management may feel that service flow for
a table will be better if the one person provides the
food service and the beverage service as opposed to
having a separate person for each role.
The duties involved are a combination of the duties listed
above for the ‘Food Waiter’ and the ‘Beverage/Drink Waiter’.
Runners
‘Runners’ provide a support role for the food waiter. Also known as busboys/girls.
Their duties include:

‘Running’ dishes/meals from the kitchen to the waiter’s station – for the waiter to
serve

Taking used/unwanted items from the room to the kitchen for either cleaning or
storing.
They also provide other support functions such as:

Preparing butters and napkins prior to service

Fetching extra things for a table/waiter as required during service

Conveying messages between waiting staff and/or kitchen staff

Dealing with spills.
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Bar attendants
This role:

Prepares the bar for service by putting away stock, preparing/polishing glasses,
cutting fruit, and preparing drink garnishes, fruit juices and cocktail requirements
(gomme syrup, sour mix)

Serves the beverages and mixes the drinks as
ordered by the drinks waiter

Serves customer direct – where bar service is
part of the dining experience

Accepts payment for drinks/wines served

May be responsible for running the beverage
accounts, finalising individual beverage accounts
for payment and reconciling the beverage takings

Orders stock to replenish supplies at the end of
trading

Cleans/tidies bar at end-of-trade.
Specialist bar attendants are ‘Cocktail bar attendants’ who specialise in the making of
cocktails and generally also create new drinks and display a high level of ‘showmanship’
in the discharge of their drink mixing tasks.
Specific establishment requirements
Information indicating the requirements of the individual roles can be obtained from:
Formal documents
These include Position Descriptions, Job Descriptions, Job Specifications and Job
Analysis sheets.
Where they exist they should:

Set out the main activities each position is responsible for – which should provide
a fairly comprehensive list of the activities for each role

Name specific pieces of equipment that the person needs to be able to use – this
may be a point of sale unit/register, or a hand-held ordering unit/system

Describe the nature of any relationship that exists between the position and other
positions

Who the position reports to

Other staff the position may be responsible for

Date the document was created – and should be reviewed/up-dated.
Note: many Job Descriptions usually contain a statement at the bottom of the list of
stated tasks along the lines of “Any other work as required by management”.
This is a catch-all statement that allows management to ask any staff member to
undertake virtually any work that needs doing even though it may not be specifically
spelled out in the main body of the document.
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Verbal advice from others
Commonly a staff member will simply be told by experienced or senior staff about the
work they are expected to do.
This may occur as part of a formal Induction program or be part of learning on-the-job.
The advice should:

Identify what needs to be done

Indicate when it needs to be done – and by when it needs to be completed

Describe any standards that apply to the work

Include any special house techniques that are approved or used for the work

Detail any legal compliance issues that need to be observed.
In many cases additional advice is given where actual practice by individual staff
demonstrates they cannot/do not meet enterprise requirements.
Formal on-the-job training
Where an establishment provides formal on-the-job training, one of the first training
sessions usually covers the requirements for the job you have been employed to do.
Checklists
Some properties provide checklists for staff to follow to assist them in making sure that all
tasks have been completed as required for their role.
These may be posters/lists on walls in back-of-house areas.
More information?
Visit:

http://www.barkeeper.ie/page.asp?Page=656

http://www.hotelcareer.com/job-descriptions/food-and-beverage.
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1.3 Develop and maintain product knowledge in
line with job role and responsibilities
Introduction
The previous section looked at the roles requiring food and beverage knowledge and the
tasks those roles are generally required to fulfil.
This section identifies how you can develop and maintain the required product knowledge
for various roles and responsibilities.
Context
The hospitality industry in general and food and
beverages in particular are a constantly changing
landscape.
New products, tastes, trends are constantly emerging
and some products lose popularity and fade away
To stay up-to-date with what is happening you need to
use a mix of informal and formal research techniques to keep pace with these changes
especially as they relate to your workplace.
Research
Research is the only way to develop and maintain product knowledge.
The key to effective research is you have to be proactive.
You must want to find out the information and you must take action to do so.
It is not usually the case information will seek you out – you have to take the initiative and
seek it out.
Informal research
Informal research is not structured or formal. It almost occurs ‘by the way’ as you do other
things.
Informal research occurs when you use workplace observation, or ask another team
member or supervisor/manager about the product and services offered by the
establishment and by your competitors.
It also occurs when you obtain information from catalogues or promotional and
information material provided by suppliers, and product manufacturers.
Other informal research options are reading F&B articles in the local newspaper, watching
F&B shows on the television, and reading books with information on food and beverages.
You could become proactive and ask for verbal customer feedback on a particular product
or service by (for example) engaging people in conversation as part of their
eating/drinking experience.
You may also talk to the delivery driver who delivers your F&B products, or the sales
representatives who call in at the workplace and notify the venue of new products and
price rises, and who also take orders for F&B products.
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Formal research
Formal research is more structured and planned than informal research.
Examples of formal research include instances when you seek out further product
information by:

Enrolling in a recognised course at a school or training college

Attending product launches and promotions conducted by growers, manufacturers
and/or suppliers

Attending seminars or industry nights where certain aspects/products are the
focus of the session – and where you can grow your network of industry contacts.
Included in this research is attending or participating in in-house training.
Customer feedback or workplace observation
Staff can learn a great deal about products and services by observing the workplace and
obtaining customer feedback.
This information can also be used to evaluate products, services and promotional
incentives offered by the establishment.
Observation in the workplace may include:

Being aware of new products and services offered on
menus and drink lists

Being aware of product returns – that is being aware of
which products are frequently returned, and finding out
why

Familiarising yourself with promotional displays and
printed materials – so you understand the information
the venue is providing to customers

Speaking with other team members about the services and products they are
familiar with – so you can benefit from their knowledge and experience

Observing customers' reactions to a particular product or service – do they appear
to like the new drink or not? Do diners seem happy with the new food items on the
new menu? How pleased/displeased are they with the new/higher prices?
Need for a particular focus
For any research, questioning or observation to be successful it must be done with one
(or more) specific purposes in mind – you must have a definite idea of what you want to
find out about.
It is also good to know ‘why’ you want to know this information.
To obtain customer feedback the following have proved effective strategies to use:

Ask a customer for their comments after they have bought, eaten or consumed a
product/drink

Seek written feedback by distributing ‘Customer Comment/Feedback’ cards and
encouraging customers to compete and return them – these cards can be written
to request feedback on any topic of interest/concern to you
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
Advise patrons (where applicable) of your online ‘Tell Us What You Think’
feedback facility – and encourage them to provide feedback using this option

Talk to customers – as part of their dining/drinking experience and ask them
questions designed to elicit information about topics you want o find out about

Observe customer reactions to certain thing – are they happy or unhappy about a
certain aspect of service? Do they appear to like or dislike a new dish?
What should I develop and maintain knowledge about?
Again, the best advice is to begin/focus on products and matters which relate to your
workplace while (at the same time, but as a secondary focus) building general industrywide knowledge.
It is therefore necessary to concentrate on:

Current market trends – identifying new products, determining what is gaining in
popularity and learning what is losing popularity/flagging in sales

Local area products – this means knowing what is produced/grown locally and
keeping in touch with developments in F&B produced by local growers and/or
businesses: many tourists to venues are eager to sample the ‘local product’ and
you need to know what is local and what is
not

Seasonal produce – learning, for example
which products are in season, and when fruit
and vegetables come in, and go out of,
season

Enterprise menus and specials – talking to
chefs and participating in tastings at work is
essential so you can accurately pass on
information to customers based on real-life, personal experience of the food/drinks

Enterprise trends – you should to keep up-to-date with changes in customer
needs, customer profiles (age; where they come from) and customer preferences
as well as management plans for the property

Current food and beverage festivals – so you know what you can attend, and so
you can pass this information on to interested customers/tourists

Promotional activities – to identify the Special Events that the venue is organising:
so you can promote it to patrons.
Sharing knowledge
It is important you share all new product knowledge with other staff as you become aware
of it.
Knowledge is no use until it is used and one way to use it is to share it.
Sharing your knowledge can be done in an informal fashion or a formal manner.
Informal sharing
Examples of sharing information informally include:

Talking to colleagues casually while at work or during work breaks

Telling people in a random manner about the information you found out
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Replying to question by including the new information as part of the response.
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Formal sharing
The following are ways you might formally share new F&B
information you have discovered:

Passing on information at a staff meeting

Sharing what you know with other employees at daily briefing
and de-briefing sessions

Developing a written handout containing the information –
and distributing it to other workers.
1.4 Identify features of specific food and
beverages which have potential customer
appeal
Introduction
Being able to identify features of specific foods and beverages which have potential
appeal to customers is an extension of the concept of ‘product knowledge‘ as described in
section 1.1.
This section identifies – and in some cases reinforces previously presented information –
specific F&B features which should be learned.
Why is there a need to learn this?
You must be able to describe the special features of F&B items in order to:

Meet customer expectations – patrons expect you to know about this: they will rely
on you to advice them, provide information and make
recommendations/suggestions

Optimise sales – the more you know about what you
have to sell, the more likely you will be to make
increased sales. Knowledge is not only power but it
also usually translated into revenue and profit

Enhance the customer experience – the more you
can talk intelligently and professionally with
customers, the more they will enjoy the experience
and the higher the levels of satisfaction

Increase the likelihood of extra business – the more
you know and the better you can advise customers,
the greater the likelihood of those customers returning
for another meal/drink and the greater the chance they will tell their friends and
family to come

Meet management expectations – management expects all customer-contact staff
to be sales people and product knowledge is the key to being able to do this
effectively

Demonstrate a focus on the customer and their dining experience – as opposed to
focussing on (just) what the venue wants to sell/achieve.
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Features to focus on
Features should relate to:

The relationship between specific foods and
beverages

Knowledge of specific foods

Knowledge of specific beverages

Products sourced from the local area

Enterprise menus, specials and trends.
The relationship between specific foods and beverages
You should develop knowledge about the foods on your menu and the beverages which
work well together with them.
You should be able to recommend at least one generic ‘food and beverage’
match/combination for every item on you menu.
Matches are commonly food and wine, or food and beer combinations.
Some venues:

List possible matches on their menus

Have a poster behind the bar listing possible matches.
See section 2.1 for more information on this important topic.
Knowledge of specific foods
As a general statement you should learn about all the food items on your menus.
These menus may differ:

Between meals – the lunch menu may be
different to the dinner menu

On days of the week – the food offered on
weekends may differ to the menu items offered
on week days

Dependant on menu types – there is always a
difference between menu items listed on table
d’hôte, à la carte and function menus.
You should seek to find out about:

Characteristics of dishes – which can include capturing details about aspects such
as:

Taste

Aroma

Consistency (tactile/in-mouth) of the product

Special growing/feeding of livestock

Cut of meat/part of the animal used

Cooking style
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Time to prepare – or is the item already cooked and ready to serve?

Service options – is the dish available just as main course, or can it also be served
as an entrée? Is it available only for eat-in dining or can it be served as a takeaway dish?

Price

Serve size – how big is the menu item?

Origin of:

The ingredients in the dish – which are local, which are national and which are
imported?

The name of the dish – if the dish has a special name, what was the origin of that
name? For example, how did ‘Monkey Gland Steak’ get its name?

Opinions (from experts and customers) – in relation to their opinion of taste and
value-for-money

Cultural and dietary aspects – identifying those for whom the dish would be
acceptable/suitable and those for whom it would not be.
Knowledge of specific beverages
You must develop knowledge about beverages available for consumption on the
premises, and those available for take-away consumption.
For all the beverages available in your workplace develop
knowledge about:

The alcohol strength for all alcoholic beverages

The country of origin of products

Prices – for individual drinks and full bottles/units

Different (standard) serve sizes of drinks and packaged products

Taste

Colour

Special characteristics – for example, the gold flakes in Goldwasser or the worm in
certain tequilas

Vintages available – for the wines

Prizes/awards won by wines, spirits and beers

Uses for wines, spirits and liqueurs (as applicable) – such as:

Beverages which can be served ‘neat’

Mixed drinks – knowledge of the mixers which can be used with spirits

Cocktails

Cooking or other food-related uses.
Products sourced from the local area
‘Local’ has two meanings in this context:

The immediate region – any place which is close by

The country in which you live – anywhere in the country can be referred to as
‘local’.
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To help the local economy and promote local products you must identify:

Local wines, beers and other alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages

Locally ‘processed’ items

Raw materials/ingredients/food/products grown or raised locally – including
famous/well-known and items as well as specifically national products not
commonly found elsewhere.
Information you should strive to learn includes:

Names of the products and their characteristics (flavour, appearance)

Names of growers/providers and their location – and how to get there

Quantities/packages available for sale to the public

Whether there are customs restrictions on tourists taking these products out of the
country

Cost

How they are/may be eaten or consumed

Popularity of items with nationals/locals

Basics of how items are grown or produced.
Enterprise menus, specials and trends
Menus
Your knowledge of items must include information
about:

Serve size

Taste – ‘hot’, ‘spicy’, ‘creamy’, ‘bitter’

Which items are ‘fresh’ and which are pre-prepared/frozen and reconstituted

Dishes which are cooked and ready-to-serve – and the cooking time or waiting
time for other items

Items which may be served as main course and entrée

Ingredients

‘Cooking or preparation style

Cultural and dietary acceptability.
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Specials
Specials are items (or menus) only available for a limited time, to celebrate a certain
event (a public holiday or religious event; a wedding or party) and/or as part of a package
deal a visitor may have purchased.
Your knowledge of specials must embrace:

Items available as part of the special deal – food
and beverages

When the special begins – and when it finished

Cost

Who is eligible for the special – the special may
be available to everyone or only to nominated
categories of people (such as tour group
members; those attending a wedding)

What makes the special, special – is it the special low price? Is it the great valuefor-money? Is it the dishes or drinks which are featured?
Trends
It is useful to understand the local or venue-specific trends which apply to food and
beverages as this knowledge can be used to:

Make recommendation about food and drinks

Engage customers in conversation

Demonstrate your professionalism in the industry
and your job

Further determine emerging trends – trends by
their very nature are constantly changing.
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Work Projects
It is a requirement of this Unit you complete Work Projects as advised by your Trainer.
You must submit documentation, suitable evidence or other relevant proof of completion
of the project to your Trainer by the agreed date.
1.1 Identify a venue which provides internal dining (food and beverages) and prepare
and present a detailed list which:

Identifies and gives a description of the menu items available on a standard
lunch or dinner menu including price, cooking style, and ingredients

Identifies and gives a description of the beverage available on a standard drinks
list.
1.2. Identify a food or beverage position in a venue and:

List the food and/or beverage tasks for the position

Explain the strategies you would use to gain initial product and F&B knowledge,
and the practices you could use to maintain relevant information as the role (or
other workplace requirements) change.
1.3. Identify one local food and one local beverage and for each item identify/describe:

The product – name, taste, appearance, other characteristics

Name of supplier or provider or grower or processor

Cost

How and why the items are special?
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Summary
Obtain product information on food and beverages
When obtaining product information on food and beverages:

Be proactive in finding relevant information

Do internal and external research to obtain facts, figures and product knowledge

Undertake formal and informal research activities

Learn about the different courses, dishes and ingredients used

Learn about cooking times, styles, specialist items, national dishes and signature dishes

Be able to name all the food and drinks served – and their ingredients

Learn about beers, wines, spirits, liqueurs and non-alcoholic drinks

Learn about service options for F&B items

Taste test items

Determine the specific F&B knowledge you need for your job role and learn that first

Read all internal documentation – menus, drink and wine lists, job descriptions, training
materials

Share new knowledge with other staff

Spend time learning about special features which have the potential to interest and be
attractive tourists/visitors.
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Element 2:
Provide customers with relevant food
and beverage product knowledge
2.1 Offer advice on suitable combinations of
foods and food and beverages where
appropriate
Introduction
Many customers will require help or advice when choosing beverages to accompany their
selected dishes.
It is part of the standard service by any outlet for staff to help customers choose a
beverage to suit both their preferences and match appropriately with what they are eating.
This section offers advice in this regard.
When could you offer this advice?
Advice about drinks to accompany food can be offered in
response to enquiries, or offered as part of service provision
without being asked.
Typical occasions providing an opportunity or need to advise
customers in this regard include:

Serving a customer at the bar who is thinking about
having a meal

Serving the customer at a table who has ordered, or is
about to order, their food

Greeting and seating the customer – by advising them
of any Specials which may be available

In public areas – where customers approach you and ask a question about the
dining facilities available

Taking a reservation or enquiry over the telephone – where customers make
enquiries about what is on the menu and drink lists

Responding to requests for room service to guest rooms

When helping customers in a bottle shop/take-away liquor situation – by helping
customers to choose a beverage to accompany a meal being prepared at home.
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Ask some questions first
There is a need to ask questions before advising customers about food and beverage
selections (see next section) and there is a need to ask questions before making
recommendation or suggestions for drinks to accompany food.
Basic questions which may need to be asked include:

Do they want an alcoholic or non-alcoholic drink to accompany their food?

Do they want a beverage they can share with others, or is the request for
assistance just for them as an individual?

If they want wine, do they prefer red or white
wine? Do they prefer a still wine or a sparkling
wine?

What have they selected in the way of food? It
is important to identify this in order for you to
suggest an appropriate food and drink
combination

Do they want to try something local? Many
tourists/visitors are eager to try a local/national product specific to your country or
region

Are they looking for a new experience or do they want something they know they
like?
All suggestions you make must reflect the identified needs, wants and preferences of the
guest/s.
One thing you must NEVER do
It is never acceptable to respond to the question “What do you recommend to go with the
fish?” with “I don’t know, I don’t drink”, or simply “I don’t know”.
Even though you may not drink (alcohol), and despite the fact you might not have
personally tasted all the beverages on the drink list it is your job to provide an intelligent
response or suggestion to the patron.
A word of warning
You must understand your advice regarding suitable food and
wine combinations will never always be acceptable to all people
you provide assistance to.
People are individuals and they may not like the suggestions
you make.
This is to be expected so never get upset with yourself or
annoyed at the customers if they ignore your advice or express
disbelief about what you have recommended.
Accept their decision with good grace and, where applicable,
make another suggestion.
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Possible food and wine combinations
The most common request for advice regarding
matching a beverage with food relates to wine.
Some basic suggestions for Western style foods are
presented below but remember:

These are only generic suggestions

There is a great variation in wines of the
same type from different countries and from
different vintages

There can be a significant variation between the tastes of the same menu item
between different kitchens/venues.
Food
Wine
Seafood
Semillon, Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling
Game
Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, Chardonnay, Semillon
Red meat
Cabernet Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, Malbec
Poultry
Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc, Verdelho
Salads
Chenin Blanc, Verdelho, Chardonnay, Riesling
Antipasto
Chardonnay, Rosé
Pasta
Chardonnay, Riesling, Shiraz
Cheese platters
Cabernet Merlot
Desserts
Dessert wines
For information relating to wine and cheese combinations go to:

http://www.spittoon.biz/matching_cheese_and_wine.html.
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Website information
Generic and Western food and wine combinations
For more information on generic and Western matchings of food and wine visit:

http://www.wineaustralia.com/australia/Default.aspx?tabid=827

http://www.winespectator.com/Wine/Wine_Basics/Wine_Basics_Template/0,1199,
17,00.html.
Advice from individual wineries
It is also interesting to look at the advice presented by
individual wine makers in relation to the matching of
their wines with food.
You should look at the individual websites of wineries
who are listed on your workplace wine/beverage list.
As an example of what is available online take a look
at:

http://www.brownbrothers.com.au/yourplace/wi
neFood.
Beer and food
As beer becomes more popular and a wider variety of beer styles become available many
breweries provide online advice regarding the way their various beers can be matched
with food.
Visit individual brewery websites to determine if they have specific ‘food and beer
combinations’ advice, or for information relating to the generic pairing of beer and foods,
take a look at:

http://www.alabev.com/foodpair.htm

http://www.brewdog.com/blog-article/brewdogs-guide-to-matching-food-with-beer

http://www.brew-monkey.com/articles/pairingbeer.php.
The unique nature of Asian foods
While there is much in the way of Western food available on menus in Asia, there are also
many unique Asian dishes.
These dishes are often considerably different to traditional Western dishes featuring an
emphasis on strong flavours, and significant emphasis on sweetness, saltiness, sourness
and spices, as relevant to the selection of curries, barbecued food and stir fried dishes (to
mention but a few)..
General rules (which must be subject to the nature of individual dishes and individual
wines) include:

There is less of a pleasing match of food with strong-flavoured reds

White wines tend to be more acceptable than red wines

There should be a preference for wines which complement the food, as opposed
to ‘contrasting’ the food (see below, this section).
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Websites
Visit the following for more detail on potential wine and food combinations for Asian food:

http://whiteonricecouple.com/recipes/appetizers-spreadable-dips/pair-wine-asianfood/

http://www.gayot.com/wine/pairing/asian-food.html

http://www.asianpalate.com/asian-food-wine/pairing-concepts.
‘Complement’ or ‘Contrast’
You must become sufficiently familiar with
the wines on the drink list in your
workplace to make intelligent
recommendations to compliment the food
available in the menu/s.
The best way to gain this
knowledge/appreciation is to taste the wine
to gain first-hand experience.
One way of choosing wines to match food
and provide a suitable food and beverage
combination is the ‘Complement or
Contrast’ approach as follows.
‘Complementing’ food and wine
When complementing food with wine, try to select wines which will harmonise well with
the dishes and their ingredients – general guidelines are:

Whites with fish, chicken, veal and pork

Reds with dark meat

Reds with cheese

Delicate wines with delicate food

Full-bodied wines with full-bodied food

Sweet wines with sweet food

Champagne or sparkling wine can generally go with anything and with any course
as there are many, many styles of this type of wine.
‘Contrasting’ food and wine
‘Contrasting’ relates to selecting a wine which stands distinctly on its own when compared
to the food being eaten and is viewed as a separate taste experience.
This approach seeks to distinctly differentiate the wine from the food, as opposed to
creating a reciprocal/harmonious match with the food being eaten.
It is, however, best to apply the concept a style of wine goes well with a style of food and
then fine-tune your selection from that point, taste-testing dishes and wines, and taking
professional advice from wine experts.
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2.2 Provide assistance to customers on selection
of food and beverage items
Introduction
There is always the possible need to provide assistance to customers in their selection of
food and beverage items.
This section identifies strategies to provide high levels of relevant service when providing
this assistance.
Provision of general assistance
You should provide assistance to customers at every opportunity.
This assistance may need to be provided to regular customers as well as tourists/visitors
who have never been to the venue before.
The keys to providing general assistance are:

All information should be provided clearly and accurately/honestly

Make sure you speak clearly, confidently and audibly.
Often, customers will ask you for this help, but frequently – by observing customers, or
listening to what they are saying – you can offer this advice before they ask for it, thus
providing outstanding customer service.
Remember, not all those who need help will ask for it: it is part of your professionalism to
be proactive in offering it.
If you are ever in doubt about whether to offer
assistance: ask the customer if they would like
some help. Never hold back on offering
assistance simply because you are unsure
about whether it is wanted or not.
You must bear in mind some people are too
'frightened' to ask, they may be in a strange
town, they may in a different culture, or they
may be amongst people who are speaking a
different language.
In addition, customers may have had a bad day and feel if they ask for something, they
will not get it anyway.
Or, they may have had a previous bad experience with service and feel asking anyone
will simply be a waste of time: in these cases, your offer of help can turn a negative
service situation into a positive one.
When might customers need help in deciding what to drink?
Advice may need to be given when:

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Customers are unsure about what they would like – sometimes regular customers
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
The drink or brand they have ordered is unavailable – after apologising you must
be able to recommend a suitable alternative

It is a special occasion – customers often want ‘something different’ to celebrate a
special occasion. This may be a promotion at work, a new addition to the family, or
they are having a birthday: suggest something really different to their traditional
drink – Champagne or sparkling wine is a common choice for many

You have a new product in stock – let the customers know: tell them what it is like,
what it goes with, how much it costs, how strong it is, and so on

The customer is feeling ‘off colour’ or a bit low – you may want to suggest some
refreshing style of drink, or a non-alcoholic alternative to their usual

They are dining – see next section

They do not want to drink alcohol, or they need to limit their alcohol intake – you
have a moral and legal duty to assist patrons who do not want to consume
alcohol, or want only a little.
Ask some questions first
When advising customers it is a good starting point to ask a few questions first:

Do they want a hot or cold drink?

Do they want something alcoholic or nonalcoholic?

Would they prefer a beer, a wine or a mixed
drink?

Have they tried your cocktails?

Do they prefer a red or a white wine?

Do they want a bottle or is just a glass their preference?
Information to provide
When you have determined customer preferences/wants/needs what they need it is
useful if you can give them information about things such as:

Taste, colour and aroma of the product – let them have a look at the bottle/product
… perhaps a free small taste (if house rules allow this)?

Whether it is imported or domestic – including identification of the country of origin:
in some cases it is a ‘selling point’ if it is domestic, and in others it is a ‘selling
point’ if it is imported

How it may be consumed – give the customers some options about how they can
experience the beverage: can it be served over crushed ice? Can it be mixed with
a fruit juice or aerated water? Can it be made into a cocktail?

The alcoholic strength – never guess at this (for responsible service of alcohol
reasons): read it from the label

Size of the drink, glass, can, bottle or carafe which can be served – try to match
the size offered to the number of people in the party/at the table

Any special points about it – mention industry awards it may have won, mention
things like the worm in certain tequilas, any special advertising campaigns running
for it, any competitions people can enter if they buy some of the product.
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Giving assistance on food
When describing items, make sure you make them sound appealing by using descriptive
words like “succulent", “delicious”, “fresh this morning”, “made fresh this afternoon”, but
make sure you are not misleading in what you say.
If you know the steak is tough, then do not describe it as “juicy and succulent, melt in the
mouth”.
Items which may need to be covered include:

Soup of the day – make sure you know the correct name and the ingredients. Is it
thick? Thin?

Fish of the day – what is the name of the fish? What cut is it (whole; fillet; steak;
cutlet)? How is cooked and presented?

Roast of day – what sort of meat? What type of joint?

Daily specials and signature dishes

The vegetables for the session – How are they cooked?

Sauces – what sort of sauces are available and what are they used on (Meat?
Fish? Vegetables?).
Many venues have a staff briefing before each service session where the kitchen advises
waiting staff about the food, specials, and vegetables being served for the session.
Answering questions
If the customer asks questions about the food, these must be
answered courteously and honestly giving attention to providing all the
information required by customers.
Find out if the venue allows you to give ‘taste tests’ of dished to
customers who are considering what to order.
See also section 2.3 below.
You must develop knowledge about:

The tastes of dishes – many people will ask “What does it taste like”? and you
need to be able (at least) to provide a generic description (for example such as it
is ‘hot’, ‘spicy’, ‘creamy’, ‘crisp’, ‘moist’, ‘sweet’ or some other basic yet accurate
description as appropriate to the individual dish

Ingredients in dishes

Cooking/preparation times

Whether things like MSG, sugar, and flour are present in dishes – in case
customers have allergies

Serve sizes – are they big or small? Is there a particular weight attached? For
example, the steak may be 800 gms

Whether items are fresh, frozen, canned – people often ask the question “Is it
fresh or frozen?”

Why a certain dish has the name it does

What different cooking styles mean

Menu and cooking terminology.
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Element 2: Provide customers with relevant food and beverage product knowledge
Go beyond just providing food and beverage assistance
Certainly you have to provide specific food and beverage assistance to customers but
never believe this advice, recommendations or suggestions are the end of the assistance
you are expected to provide.
I should go without saying if anyone anywhere is in need of help – you provide it.
Never, never, never refuse to help someone by saying, "Sorry, that's not my area" or “It’s
not my job”.
Always stay alert to offer help in situations such as:

Carrying drinks for them to a table – where waiters are busy or there is a large
number of drinks to be taken to a table

Rounding up their children who may have gone wandering a little too far from the
table – this helps provide ‘Wow’ service

Getting a copy of today's newspaper for someone who wants to read an article
they have heard of

Helping guests with luggage – in or out of the property

Holding a door open – for guests/customers who are coming in or leaving

Supplying nasal tissues to someone who seems to need them – without having to
be asked

Obtaining a street directory for the customer to look at if they are unsure about the
local area

Phoning a taxi if the customer indicates they want when

Offering/getting some extra ice for a customer if they seem to have run out but
they still have some drink left

Going to another part of the venue to get a bottle of wine the guest wants, but
which is not on the wine list in this particular area.
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Element 2: Provide customers with relevant food and beverage product knowledge
2.3 Respond courteously and authoritatively to
customer questions in relation to menus and
drink lists
Introduction
All questions customers ask must be answered appropriately.
This section provides tips on answering customer questions and must be read in
conjunction with section 2.1 and 2.2.
The basics
All responses to customer questions about food and
beverages must be answered:

Courteously

Correctly/accurately

Honestly.
When responding you must:

Speak clearly

Speak confidently

Talk loud enough so people can hear you – without shouting.
The context of customer questions
Customers ask questions for lots of reasons and this is to be expected.
Good business practice is to plan and prepare for anything you think/know is going to
happen, so it makes sense to plan for the way you respond to customer questions.
Your patrons can often be in strange surroundings, not know what is available or simply
be seeking to communicate with you: it is important to bear in mind in the hospitality
industry; the personal interaction between staff and customers is often the service
element distinguishing one venue from another.
Questions are part of the communication process and it is through this communication
you (and the customers) can build the relationship fundamental to developing a positive
rapport.
This highlights customers ask questions for various reasons – they are not being rude,
they are not stupid – they often simply want to be noticed and acknowledged, or they
genuinely want information about things they do not know (enough) about.
Remember:

74
It is part of your job to help customers by answering their questions – answering
customer questions is not an additional task added to your Position Description
you are being asked to undertake free-of-charge: you are being paid to answer
customer questions
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
Customer questions are not an interruption to your work – they are an integral part
of it

Never give customers the feeling their question is stupid or weird, or the answer
should be ‘obvious’

These notes have suggested you ask questions on several occasions so as you
can provide the best service or advice, so why customers not do the same thing
so they can optimise the enjoyment they get from their dining experience?
The basics in responding to questions
When responding to questions asked by customers:

Be polite

Always address them promptly

Never give the impression their questions is:

A nuisance, an interruption or an imposition

Stupid

The one-hundredth time you have been asked the same question

Smile when dealing with the question

Give customers your full attention

Give customers time – do not rush your response/explanation

Ensure they understand your answer, directions or recommendations – ask if
everything you have said to them is clear: ask if they have any other questions.
What if I don’t know the answer to a question a customer asks?
Never just say, "I don't know!"
It is a fact of life no-one knows everything, and as a staff member, it is quite possible you
will be asked a question you do not know the answer to.
That, in itself, is not a problem: the potential problem is how you deal with that
situation.
It is acceptable to say, "I don't know…", but you must follow it up with, "… but I'll find out
for you" and then take whatever action is necessary to find the answer.
Regardless of how much work and research you do there will always be occasions when
you are asked a question you cannot answer: when this happens, do not get flustered but
treat it as a learning experience and:

Apologise to the customer

Tell them you do not know the answer to their
question

Tell them you will go and find out, ask the kitchen,
ask bar staff or speak to management

Do so

Go back to the customer and pass on what you have found out.
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Element 2: Provide customers with relevant food and beverage product knowledge
2.4 Respond courteously and authoritatively to
customer questions in relation to menus and
drink lists
Introduction
It is vital you are able to provide accurate advice to customers to assist them meet special
dietary or cultural needs.
This section provides advice on how this may be achieved.
Some customers will have special food requests.
These may be based on dietary and cultural needs and may also have important medical
considerations making it critical to fulfil these requests because failing to do so can be
literally life-threatening.
What special requests might apply?
Customers can ask for an unlimited number of special requests
and where possible you should do everything to accommodate
them within operational, safety, cost and resource limitations.
Never agree to a special request made by a guest/customer unless
you know it can be met.
This means you will often need to check with the kitchen before
you respond to a special food request or query.
Special requests can include:

Timing issues – such as customers/tables asking for their food to be served ‘as
quickly as possible’, or asking there is a gap of an hour between each course

Cultural issues – some guests may ask for food and beverages to meet their
cultural and/or religious needs.
Always check with the kitchen or your supervisor before committing the venue to
meeting these needs.
Refer to notes below and visit the following sites for information:

http://www.jewfaq.org/kashrut.htm

http://www.inmamaskitchen.com/FOOD_IS_ART/mideast/saudi_cooking.html.

Dietary requirements – see below

Personal preference requests – in relation to serve size, extra amounts of certain
foods, no sauce or no chips, a special way of cooking not listed on the menu, or
the inclusion or exclusion of nominated ingredients from a dish

How steaks are to be cooked – see below

Entrées required as main courses – or main course meals requested as entrées.
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What special dietary needs may patrons ask you to accommodate?
The range can be quite large and include:

Vegetarian requests – this is a common dietary-related request and can include:

Lacto-ova vegetarians/Ova-lacto vegetarians – these are the majority of
‘vegetarians’: they eat dairy products and eggs but not meat of any kind (meat,
poultry or fish)

Lacto-vegetarians – they do not eat meat, poultry or fish: they do not eat eggs but
they do eat dairy products

Pescatarians – people who do not eat meat, poultry or animal flesh but do eat fish

Vegan – this definition is open to various definitions so it is best to check exactly
what the diner means when they say they are a ‘vegan’

Generally a vegan can be seen as anyone who does not eat meat, poultry, fish,
eggs or dairy products and doesn’t eat foods derived from animals (such as
gelatine)

The person may also ask they are served only raw/unprocessed foods, or foods
which have not reached a temperature of above 46ºC (because they believe foods
above this temperature have had some/most of their dietary goodness removed/be
harmful to the human body

Requests for low-salt meals

Requests for low-sugar/no sugar meals –for diabetics

Requests for lactose-reduced milk – for those who are
lactose intolerant

Requests for gluten-free food – from patrons who have
celiac disease

Requests for a macrobiotic diet – for those who are
especially health-focussed they will request
unprocessed vegan foods, no oil and no sugar.
Important note
It is extremely important to make sure special requests relating to dietary issues and/or
identified medical conditions receive extra/special attention and care as there can be
severe consequences if these dietary needs are not met.
These needs can be seen to include any situation where the customer/guest has
mentioned they have special needs in relation to:

Allergies

Medications

Health-related conditions –such as diabetes

Specific diets which are mentioned.
The consequences (such as the possibility of anaphylactic shock, increased blood sugar
levels and other reactions diners may have to various foods or substances) can result in
the property being sued where the health of the guest suffers as a result of being served a
meal which does not comply with their stated requirements.
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Element 2: Provide customers with relevant food and beverage product knowledge
Remember all properties have a common law ‘duty of care’ towards their patrons and this
obligation definitely extends to situations where customers have asked for a certain
meal/food and are served something which does not comply with their stated requests
and when this results in injury to those persons.
Keys in dealing with health-related special requests
The keys in relation to this situation are:

Always check with management or the kitchen to determine whether or not a
specific stated dietary request can be accommodated or not

Make doubly sure those preparing the dish know the specific dietary requirements
which have been requested

Never assume the kitchen can accommodate dietary needs of patrons – even if
you have accommodated similar requests in the past

Double check with the kitchen when you pick up a dish for service to the table –
ask them if they have prepared the food as requested and obtain positive
confirmation before taking the dish to the table

Ensure appropriate emergency procedures are in place to manage situations
where customers are adversely affected by foodstuffs while on the premises –
these procedures may be included in the Emergency Management Plan for the
premises and may include the procedures for providing first aid in the property and
for summoning professional assistance.
Cultural needs
Jewish guests
Jewish customers may wish to eat ‘kosher’ food
– meaning food deemed by them to be ‘proper’
according to Biblical beliefs and laws.
A full understanding of kosher food is complex
and the following notes are designed to provide
an overview rather than a detailed study.
Kosher meat may only be sourced from certain
allowed animals such as ruminants with split
hooves, domestic birds (such as chicken and
turkey) and fish with fins and removable scales.
All ruminants must be slaughtered by special slaughtermen according to Jewish law, and
during food preparation, special other considerations must be observed such as ensuring
that milk and meat are not mixed together.
Special requirements also apply to the equipment used (that is, making it kosher),
including special cleaning techniques and resting periods between usage.
A limited number of establishments have addressed the needs of those seeking kosher
food and provide all necessary prerequisites, supervision and requirements: they
advertise their ability and capacity to provide these services and a web search will readily
identify them.
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Element 2: Provide customers with relevant food and beverage product knowledge
Muslim guests
Muslims eat ‘halal’ food – that is, food which is allowed or
lawful.
Foods which are not halal are referred to as ‘haram’ and
these foods include pork (and its by-products), any animal
not slaughtered according to special requirements, blood,
carnivorous animals, birds of prey and animals without
external ears.
Muslims may also not drink alcohol.
Any foods not obviously halal, or haram, are deemed
‘mashbooh’ and should be avoided because of their
uncertain origin/nature.
Hindu guests
Hindus have a great respect for food and the way it interacts with other aspects of day-today life.
While they are not total vegetarians, they do not each much meat as they regard the
killing of animals for food as bad karma.
They generally shun spicy foods, mushrooms, garlic and onions but will eat other genuine
vegetarian dishes which are not bitter, sour or salty.
Degrees of ‘doneness’ of steaks
It is important to note on the order how the guest wants their steak cooked.
Degrees of doneness are:

Blue – steak is seared
on both sides then
served

Rare – steak is served
when browned on both
sides, and meat still
contains blood

Medium rare – steak
has less blood than a
rare steak, though blood
is still just present

Medium to well-done –
steak is cooked all the
way through, no sign of
blood

Well-done: steak is
cooked very well – a
little burnt on the outside
and definitely no sign of blood.
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Element 2: Provide customers with relevant food and beverage product knowledge
Work Projects
It is a requirement of this Unit you complete Work Projects as advised by your Trainer.
You must submit documentation, suitable evidence or other relevant proof of completion
of the project to your Trainer by the agreed date.
2.1 Obtain a food menu and a beverage/drink/wine list from a venue and prepare a list
showing suitable beverage combinations for all main courses listed on the menu.
2.2. Using the menu and beverage/drink/wine list used for Work Project 2.1 prepare
recommendations which you could make to guests as follows:

Two food items for someone who is very hungry

Two dishes for someone who is not very hungry

Two foods suitable for someone who is a diabetic

Two examples of food items for someone who is Muslim

Three food items for someone who is a vegetarian

Two drinks for a person who says they want a fresh fruit beverage

Two alcoholic beverages which are local/domestic.
2.3. Using the menu used for Work Project 2.1:
80

Develop a list of at least 10 questions you could expect guests to ask about the
menu items listed on the menu

Prepare sample answers/responses to the questions you have prepared.
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Element 2: Provide customers with relevant food and beverage product knowledge
Summary
Provide customers with relevant food and beverage product knowledge
When providing customers with relevant food and beverage product knowledge:

Be prepared to offer help and advice at every opportunity – be proactive

Ask some questions to identify guest needs, wants and preferences before making
recommendations

Ensure suggestions reflect the identified preferences of the guest

Learn the dishes in your workplace and learn the beverages which match them/make a
suitable accompaniment.

When recommending wines consider the ‘complement’ or ‘contrast’ approach

Use product knowledge as the basis for information/help provided

Try to obtain first-hand knowledge about the food and beverages you serve – try to taste
test everything

Determine the specials/food before each service session – from the kitchen

Be alert to the potential to provide extra service when providing customers with F&B
product knowledge

Respond to questions and queries in a courteous and honest manner

Always tell the truth about the items you recommend – tell the ‘bad’ as well as the ‘good’

Prepare for questions from customers – try to determine the questions they might ask and
plan a suitable response

Never say “I don’t know” or “It’s not my job”

Be very careful when responding to food queries relating to health, diet or medical issues

Always check with the kitchen before taking a special food order

Make sure the kitchen understands the requirements for any special food requests you
place with them.
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Element 2: Provide customers with relevant food and beverage product knowledge
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Presentation of written work
Presentation of written work
1. Introduction
It is important for students to present carefully prepared written work. Written presentation
in industry must be professional in appearance and accurate in content. If students
develop good writing skills whilst studying, they are able to easily transfer those skills to
the workplace.
2. Style
Students should write in a style that is simple and concise. Short sentences
and paragraphs are easier to read and understand. It helps to write a plan
and at least one draft of the written work so that the final product will be
well organised. The points presented will then follow a logical sequence
and be relevant. Students should frequently refer to the question asked, to
keep ‘on track’. Teachers recognise and are critical of work that does not
answer the question, or is ‘padded’ with irrelevant material. In summary,
remember to:

Plan ahead

Be clear and concise

Answer the question

Proofread the final draft.
3. Presenting Written Work
Types of written work
Students may be asked to write:

Short and long reports

Essays

Records of interviews

Questionnaires

Business letters

Resumes.
Format
All written work should be presented on A4 paper, single-sided with a left-hand margin. If
work is word-processed, one-and-a-half or double spacing should be used. Handwritten
work must be legible and should also be well spaced to allow for ease of reading. New
paragraphs should not be indented but should be separated by a space. Pages must be
numbered. If headings are also to be numbered, students should use a logical and
sequential system of numbering.
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Presentation of written work
Cover Sheet
All written work should be submitted with a cover sheet stapled to the front that contains:

The student’s name and student number

The name of the class/unit

The due date of the work

The title of the work

The teacher’s name

A signed declaration that the work does not involve plagiarism.
Keeping a Copy
Students must keep a copy of the written work in case it is lost. This rarely happens but it
can be disastrous if a copy has not been kept.
Inclusive language
This means language that includes every section of the population. For instance, if a
student were to write ‘A nurse is responsible for the patients in her care at all times’ it
would be implying that all nurses are female and would be excluding male nurses.
Examples of appropriate language are shown on the right:
Mankind
Humankind
Barman/maid
Bar attendant
Host/hostess
Host
Waiter/waitress
Waiter or waiting staff
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Recommended reading
Recommended reading
Counihan. C. & Van Esterik, P., 2112 (3rd ed’n), Food and culture – a reader, Routledge,
NY
Cousins, J., 2010, Essential food and beverage service for levels 1 and 2, Hodder
Education, London
Dahmer, S.J. & Kalh, K.W., 2009 (2nd ed’n), Restaurant service basics, John Wiley &
Sons, Hoboken, N.J
Davis, B. & Stoner, S., 2012 (5th ed’n), Food and beverage management, Routledge, New
York
Davis, B. 2012 (5th ed’n), Food and beverage knowledge, Routledge, NY
Hering, R., 1994 (13th ed’n), Hering's dictionary of classical and modern cookery and
practical reference manual for the hotel, restaurant and catering trade : brief recipes,
professional knowledge concerning wine, cocktails and other drinks, menu knowledge
and table service, Virtue, London
Lillicrap, D.R., Cousins, J. & Smith, R., 2010 (8th ed’n), Food and beverage service,
Hodder Education, London
McVety, P.J., 2009 (3rd ed’n), Fundamentals of menu planning, John Wiley & Sons,
Hoboken, NJ
Powers, T. & Barrows, C.W. & Reynolds, D., 2012 (10th ed’n), Introduction to
management in the hospitality industry, Wiley, Hoboken, N.J
Rey, M.A. & Wieland, F., 2012 (4th ed’n), Managing service in food and beverage
operations, Educational Institute of the American Hotel & Lodging, Lansing, Mich
Schaefer, J.J., 2011, Serving people with food allergies: kitchen management and menu
creation, CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL
SmallPrint, 2008, (Version VC6), SITHFAB011A: Develop and update food and beverage
knowledge, SmallPrint, Australia
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Recommended reading
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Trainee evaluation sheet
Trainee evaluation sheet
Develop and maintain food and beverage product knowledge
The following statements are about the competency you have just completed.
Please tick the appropriate box
Agree
Don’t
Know
Do Not
Agree
Does Not
Apply
There was too much in this competency
to cover without rushing.
Most of the competency seemed relevant
to me.
The competency was at the right level for
me.
I got enough help from my trainer.
The amount of activities was sufficient.
The competency allowed me to use my
own initiative.
My training was well-organized.
My trainer had time to answer my
questions.
I understood how I was going to be
assessed.
I was given enough time to practice.
My trainer feedback was useful.
Enough equipment was available and it
worked well.
The activities were too hard for me.
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Trainee evaluation sheet
The best things about this unit were:
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
The worst things about this unit were:
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
The things you should change in this unit are:
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
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