Busser

A busboy is an assistant to a waiter or waitress, mainly specializing in setting and clearing tables or in some types of restaurants, in bringing the introductory foods, for example tortilla chips and salsa in a Mexican restaurant or bread in an Italian restaurant. It is also not uncommon for the busboy to be held responsible for serving drinks and sweeping the floor under his tables. Sometimes, they also perform extra duty for the waiter as an assistant to the waiter. The most popular method of organization is for the busboy to be assigned a station, or area of tables, which he or she shall serve. Typically, a busboy receives a fraction (ranging from 10-30%) of the tips from the station in which they worked during their work shift as well as a separate, fixed payment or wage.

Alec Baldwin was a busboy at the hip New York disco Studio 54. Actor Dick Cavett began his career as a busboy, as did hotelier Raymond Orteig, and cartoonist Wally Wood. Surprising to many, Ho Chi Minh was, in his early adulthood, a busboy in Boston at the Parker House Hotel. Kirby Enoch, famous modern artist, worked at a local restaurant where he got a start in art. Actor and comedian of MADtv fame Ike Barinholtz also served as a busboy. The Coconut Grove fire was started accidentally when a busboy lit a match. A band called The Busboys had success with two songs "The Boys Are Back In Town" and "Cleanin' Up The Town" featured in the movie Ghostbusters.

On a sidenote, busboys are quite common in the works of comic artist Corey Lewis.

• Busboys were portrayed as habitual cannabis users and as lazy in the film, "Waiting..." (played by comedian Andy Milonakis and Max Kasch).