counterman

American  

[koun-ter-man] / ˈkaʊn tərˌmæn /

noun

plural

countermen

1. a person who waits on customers from behind a counter, counter, count, as in a cafeteria.

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Etymology

Origin of counterman

First recorded in 1850–55; counter ¹ + man

Example Sentences

As he launched his acting career, Mr. Constantine supported himself by working as a night watchman at a department store, counterman at a hamburger chain and barker at a shooting gallery.

From Washington Post • Sep. 9, 2021

As a student, Mr. Chirac attended a summer course at Harvard in 1953 and worked at a Howard Johnson’s in Boston, starting as a dishwasher and working his way up to counterman.

From New York Times • Sep. 26, 2019

Tucker, the counterman, said: “I did have a little bit more faith in him a year ago compared to what I do now.”

From The Guardian • Jan. 20, 2018

But from your counter seat, you can observe the counterman make egg creams the old-fashioned way, by spritzing rapidly stirred cold milk and syrup with a jet of seltzer from a bottle.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 1, 2014

Mickey the counterman heard him and left off making a Coca-Cola.

From "The Cricket in Times Square" by George Selden