Meet the winners of the first-ever Servies Awards presented by Yelp for Restaurants
Friends, restaurateurs, noble stewards of cuisine, lend me your ears! The time has come to announce and appreciate the winners of the Servies—the first-ever awards solely dedicated to front-of-house (FOH) staff. Think of these as the Oscars or Golden Globes of restaurant work: Each award recognizes a specific category of front-of-house expertise.
We set the benchmark high and searched every corner of the country to find our winners, who truly deserve the kudos they’ve earned. Without its stars, the restaurant industry wouldn’t be the dynamic, culture-building place it is.
Nearly 7,500 front-of-house restaurant workers were nominated from all 50 states. After more than 18,000 votes, seven people and one team won—but they’re all our heroes. To show our appreciation, Yelp provided a $3,000 cash prize, a pair of Snibbs, and of course, a trophy to each category winner.
So, without further ado, let’s introduce the categories and their winners. This year’s categories are:
- Best Hustle
- Best Host
- Best Manager
- Best Vibe
- Best Team Player
- Best Server
- Best Front-of-House Team
- Best Bartender
And away we go!
Best Hustle
First up is Best Hustle, and the first-ever Servies winner in this category is Aleigha Spreadbury. Aleigha works at Walthers Twin Tavern in North Canton, Ohio. She started as a 20-year-old host. Years later, she now trains new employees, helps in the kitchen, and jumps in to help wherever needed. Her ability to wear so many hats and help her restaurant as well as her diners is the definition of best hustle.
“The best part of my job has been to be able to talk with my customers, make them feel comfortable and welcome in our restaurant.”
Best Host
This year’s Servies for Best Host goes to Felicia Tobin, of Floridino’s in Chandler, Arizona. As restaurant veterans and customers know, hosting is a flurry of a job. As Felicia put it, “It’s non-stop. You’re on your feet, you’re hustling, you’re getting drinks, you’re running food, you’re pushing tables together—it’s just non-stop.”
That’s spot on, Felicia. And the personal connection is crucial as well—for Felicia, knowing what the customers like is her favorite part of the job. Making it run smoothly is a team operation, of course, so maintaining tight relationships is vital. And while customers may overlook the role of host, it’s as crucial as could be.
Best Manager
Clayton Favela, manager of V Los Angeles and this year’s winner for Best Manager, has a keen eye for the artistic side of restaurant management. And as a former professional ballet dancer, it makes perfect sense. He explained, “People go to a restaurant for the same reason they go to a dance show. They just want to escape reality for a minute and experience something new. I’m just an artistic director that performs that show nightly.”
Clayton has worked his way up from bussing to barback, then assistant general manager, and now general manager. It’s a classic hero’s journey in the industry and one we can all recognize.
“When I found out I won the Servies award for Best Manager, I was immediately brought to tears, and I was just speechless. It’s not like any way you get recognized in this industry,” he said.
We’re glad to have you in the industry, Clayton, and we look forward to you continuing to choreograph the restaurant floor only the way you can.
Best Vibe
For Jennifer Rust of Laurelwood Public House & Brewery in Portland, Oregon, a good vibe starts with a compliment and a smile. Indeed, making customers feel noticed, welcomed, and appreciated is a huge part of the job. Done right, a great vibe will keep customers coming back again and again.
An Oregon native and an industry veteran since the age of 19, Jennifer found her niche early. She’s got a keen understanding of the FOH experience—as she put it, “The front of house are just a different breed of people. There’s usually about a hundred different things going through my brain at any point in the night. We’ve got to think quickly. We’ve got to go, go, go, and do it with a smile on our face.”
For Jennifer, the Servies award serves as vital recognition for her role in making Laurelwood run just right. Many don’t quite get what it takes to get everything rolling right, so this appreciation helps cement her reputation among her family and friends and the industry.
Best Team Player
Restaurant work is a team sport. Working well with a team is an essential part of the job—and Lauren Forker from the Applebee’s in Benton Harbor, Michigan, does it better than most. Being sociable and empathetic helped Lauren stand out—as well as her get-it-done attitude.
The last couple of years have certainly not been easy for the industry, and Lauren and her team stepped it up to help customers feel comfortable. “I don’t think people realize the power that the guests have with the servers,” said Lauren. “I take a lot of people’s feelings in when I wait on people. Especially through COVID, it was really hard—we went through a dip of employment, so you’d be taking on double the tables that you used to.”
We know just how hard that is and how comforting a friendly face is in a trying time—both for teammates and customers. It’s that human connection that keeps the world turning, and people like Lauren make restaurants worth visiting.
Best Server
There’s no substitute for experience and a rock-solid work ethic. So, it makes perfect sense that the Servies for Best Server should go to 33-year veteran Melissa Fmura of Perko’s Café in Modesto, California. Having grown up on a dairy farm, Melissa knows all about hard work and conscientiousness—there’s no sleeping in when there are cows to milk, and the same goes for opening restaurants.
People are a bit more talkative than cows, however, and Melissa’s genuine, friendly attitude shines through with her customers and teammates. “To be a great waitress, you need to get along with people,” she said. “If you get someone that’s having a bad day, you try to make their day better. And I just love people. It’s not just waitressing to me—it’s making friends with my customers.”
Serving tables is a heck of a lot of work, much of which often goes unnoticed. So we’re happy to notice and reward the heck of a job Melissa has done to earn this first Servies.
Best Front-of-House Team
For many people, getting into the restaurant industry is a lifelong dream. Sometimes, it’s a bit crazy, too—but if there are no guts, there’s no glory. The courage it took for Sarah from Cozy Corners in Barbeau, Michigan, to purchase the establishment during the pandemic is truly admirable. As long-time customers, Sarah and her husband pulled the trigger and jumped on the opportunity to buy the spot. Now, it’s running at full tilt.
Sarah’s team pulled together to make Cozy Corners as cozy as possible. It’s that team that the Servies is for since an FOH team that clicks is a thing of beauty. “It was really, really scary, but we had fantastic people that helped us get through it,” Sarah said. “This entire staff is like our family, and we have worked so hard to make it what it is.”
For Sarah, the Servies award represents a wholesome trend. “Most people don’t realize what it takes to provide the good food, the good service, and the good atmosphere all together. And with the Servies, I feel like this movement that’s being created to stand up for the servers in this industry—people are starting to realize more and more that servers are people also. They’re not just there to serve you.”
The team spirit and jubilation just have to make you smile. Kudos to all for a job very well done.
Best Bartender
Bartending is a unique job—that’s for sure. That’s especially true when the bartender is a mother and wife and has to hold down the fort at home and at the bar. For Tiffany Carroll of Hurricane Grill in Neptune Beach, Florida, that’s certainly the case. What’s also the case for many bartenders, like Tiffany, is that the typical 9 to 5 just isn’t for them. Meeting new people and keeping customers happy is plenty entertaining for a career.
Being a bartender means needing supreme people skills. As Tiffany put it, “You learn a lot about people and see a lot about people. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve paid tabs for people, or they’ve needed a ride home, or we’ve had to call an Uber… or just comfort them when someone’s passed away or their dog’s passed away.”
She’s also on the same page we are in appreciating FOH teams. “I think the Yelp Servies Awards did an awesome job of bringing attention to the front of the house.”
Thanks, Tiffany, and we clearly think you’ve done an awesome job, too. We can’t wait to visit you at the bar.
Excellence is a virtue
We put our money where our mouth is when it comes to supporting excellence in the restaurant industry, and we’ll continue to do so. We live and breathe FOH operations and want to do all we can to make sure restaurants—and the restaurant industry—grow and remain a vital part of our culture.
We also want to make sure restaurateurs have the best tools at their disposal to do just that. That’s why we created our FOH operations tools, like Yelp Guest Manager and Yelp Kiosk. Stepping into the future of the restaurant industry can be a bit more comfortable with leading-edge technological support on your side.
Want to see if Guest Manager is right for you? Reach out to us for a free demo, and we’ll show you around. It’ll definitely help your restaurant level up, and who knows, it might even help you win a Servies!