AI exposure by occupation, O*NET 35-9031.00
Will AI replace Hosts and Hostesses, Restaurant, Lounge, and Coffee Shop?
Hosts and Hostesses, Restaurant, Lounge, and Coffee Shop: AI can already handle 1 of 20 tasks; most of the work is hands-on, and the part AI can address mostly needs a frontier-tier model.
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Every task, scored
The 20 tasks O*NET 30.3 lists for Hosts and Hostesses, Restaurant, Lounge, and Coffee Shop, from most to least exposed. 1 reach 60 or more, the level at which AI already handles a task.
| Task | AI exposure | Evidence | Model tier |
|---|---|---|---|
| Answer telephone calls and respond to inquiries or transfer calls. | Observed | Efficient | |
| Supervise and coordinate activities of dining room staff to ensure that patrons receive prompt and courteous service. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Confer with other staff to help plan establishments' menus. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Hire, train, and supervise food and beverage service staff. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Maintain contact with kitchen staff, management, serving staff, and customers to ensure that dining details are handled properly and customers' concerns are addressed. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Inspect dining and serving areas to ensure cleanliness and proper setup. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Provide guests with menus. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Greet guests and seat them at tables or in waiting areas. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Assign patrons to tables suitable for their needs and according to rotation so that servers receive an appropriate number of seatings. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Speak with patrons to ensure satisfaction with food and service, to respond to complaints, or to make conversation. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Operate cash registers to accept payments for food and beverages. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Assist other restaurant workers by serving food and beverages, or by bussing tables. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Direct patrons to coatrooms and waiting areas, such as lounges. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Prepare cash receipts after establishments close, and make bank deposits. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Take and prepare to-go orders. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Inform patrons of establishment specialties and features. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Receive and record patrons' dining reservations. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Order or requisition supplies and equipment for tables and serving stations. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Perform marketing and advertising services. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Inspect restrooms for cleanliness and availability of supplies, and clean restrooms when necessary. | Estimated | No tier |
Observed: scored from AI use recorded in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), 1 of 20 tasks. Estimated: scored from the task's O*NET 30.3 work activity, 19 of 20. Importance is O*NET's 1 to 5 rating of how central the task is. Model tier is the lowest tier that can do the task under the published rubric; "No tier" marks hands-on work.
The model tier this role needs
A frontier-tier model or lower covers 30% of the role's importance-weighted task work. 30% of the work is something AI can address at some tier, and 70% is hands-on.
Efficient, standard and frontier tiers come from the JobRoute model tier reference. The recommended tier is the lowest one that covers 80% of the work AI can address. How the method works.
Wages, employment and outlook
- US employment
- 432,690
- Median annual wage
- $31,200
- Middle half of earners
- $27,570 to $36,250
- Projected change, 2024 to 2034
- -1.5%
Employment and wages: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, national. Projection: BLS Employment Projections 2024 to 2034.
Adjacent roles
The occupations that reuse the most of this role's skills, with the usual time to move. These are the first places to look when you plan to redeploy or retrain people in this role.
- Waiters and Waitresses 69% skill overlap, about 11 months to move Exposure20
- Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers 68% skill overlap, about 11 months to move Exposure16
- First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers 60% skill overlap, about 14 months to move Exposure32
- Ushers, Lobby Attendants, and Ticket Takers 60% skill overlap, about 14 months to move Exposure34
- Food Service Managers 60% skill overlap, about 14 months to move Exposure41
Skill overlap and transition time from the JobRoute role adjacency graph on O*NET 30.3 skills.
Questions about Hosts and Hostesses, Restaurant, Lounge, and Coffee Shop and AI
Will AI replace Hosts and Hostesses, Restaurant, Lounge, and Coffee Shop?
AI already handles 1 of the 20 tasks O*NET lists for this occupation, at a task exposure of 60 or more, and the role's importance-weighted exposure is 23 out of 100. JobRoute scores tasks, not whole jobs, so the score shows how much of the work changes rather than whether the job disappears. BLS projects employment to change by -1.5% from 2024 to 2034.
What is the AI exposure of Hosts and Hostesses, Restaurant, Lounge, and Coffee Shop?
23 out of 100 on JobRoute's task exposure measure, the importance-weighted average of the role's O*NET task scores. Higher means more of the work is AI-doable today. 1 of the 20 task scores are observed in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), and the other 19 are estimated from each task's O*NET work activity.
Which Hosts and Hostesses, Restaurant, Lounge, and Coffee Shop tasks can AI already do?
The tasks with the highest exposure are: Answer telephone calls and respond to inquiries or transfer calls. It is the only task that reach 60 or more.
What AI model tier does this role need?
A frontier-tier model or lower covers 30% of the role's importance-weighted task work, and 70% is hands-on work that no model tier covers. JobRoute assigns each task the lowest tier that can do it under a published rubric and recommends the lowest tier that covers 80% of the work AI can address.
How many people work as Hosts and Hostesses, Restaurant, Lounge, and Coffee Shop, and what do they earn?
432,690 people in the United States, with a median annual wage of $31,200 (BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025). BLS Employment Projections expect a change of -1.5% from 2024 to 2034.
How to cite
Data version 2026-11-02, JobRoute method v1.0.0. Download all occupations or this occupation as JSON. Methodology.
JobRoute (2026). AI exposure: Hosts and Hostesses, Restaurant, Lounge, and Coffee Shop. Data version 2026-11-02, method v1.0.0. Built on O*NET 30.3, BLS OEWS May 2025 and the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026). CC BY 4.0. https://www.jobroute.ai/jobs/hosts-and-hostesses-restaurant-lounge-and-coffee-shop
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