How to Create a Server Resume (Skills, Examples)

How to Create a Bartender Resume (Skills, Examples)

If you want to land a job as a bartender, you need to make your resume stand out. Hiring managers looking for a bartender have possibly seen hundreds of resumes from other candidates, so it’s important to present them with a strong resume. When hiring a bartender, a manager will look for a particular set of skills, experience, and knowledge. Remember, a resume is your introduction to a business, so it’s important to present yourself as the best option for their open bartender position. 

To capture a hiring manager’s attention, you should create a bartender resume that is easy to read and contains the information they want to see. Learn how to write a strong resume that will make you stand out and how to improve your chances of landing a position as a bartender.

Professional Experience

In order to make your resume stand out, it’s important that your resume highlights your previous bartending experience and any desire to learn more or gain new experience. A strong bartender resume should clearly indicate that you have been a bartender, know what to expect and what is expected of your position. 

When creating a resume, you should highlight your past professional experience with bullet points that showcase your knowledge to set yourself up as a strong candidate for the position. To do so effectively, you should only list recent experience from within the last ten years. Anything older than that will not be considered relevant, as hiring managers want to know what your recent position was and how up to date your working knowledge is.

When writing bullet points, focus on your most recent position and showcase any major accomplishments, such as compliments customers wrote about their experience with you, being named the employee of the month or receiving any promotions. When writing bullet points about your professional experience, it’s best to keep them short, but to use keywords that best highlight your responsibilities. Look at the job description for the position you are applying to and include the same words used to describe the job duties. This will make your resume stronger because the hiring manager will clearly see that your experience matches what they are seeking in a candidate.

Also keep in mind that hiring managers often consider how long you have worked in your previous positions. Try to include the positions you have worked at for the longest amount of time to show that you are a stable, loyal and responsible employee. 

Personal Information

Sometimes it’s important to explain your personal experience that is relevant to the position because these examples can help make you appear as a stronger candidate. Hiring managers view personal information as an extension of your experience, so choose to share personal experience that better highlights what makes you the best person for this job.

Use bullet points to list your personal experience and explain their relevance. For example, if you are applying for a bartender position, you can include any personal experience serving or making drinks, or talking with customers. Whether you have volunteered at a school event to serve drinks or operate a buffet, bartended at a social or school event, or even if you helped your nieces with their weekly lemonade stand–you can utilize personal experiences that showcase skills or experience to further indicate your qualifications and interest in the job.

Skills

When a hiring manager receives too many resumes, they will quickly browse them. This often means one of the first things they look at is your list of skills. In order to make yourself stand out, you want to make sure your resume includes the skill sets they want to see:

• Organized and proficient in inventory management and POS systems

• Management experience able to train, educate and lead new hires

• Fast, diligent worker able to make cocktail requests on the spot

• Positive, friendly and outgoing attitude 

• Certified, licensed bartender with extensive knowledge of wine, beer and liquor 

For a bartender position, consider listing skills that show your experience using point-of-sale systems, such as imputing drink orders, printing receipts, or using credit card processors and handling cash sales. 

Moreover, bartenders usually have to have a set of specialty skills, so if you learned any specific or useful skills from your previous positions or classes, it is a good idea to list those on your resume. Some examples might be related to crafting cocktails, measuring liquids, prepping fruits or other garnishes and any other tricks of the trade that you find extremely useful.

Moreover, it’s often important for a bartender to have experience checking identification and keeping customer information organized, such as credit cards, so listing organizational skills or noting that you have an eye for detail might help you appear as a strong candidate.

When applying to work as a bartender, you can also highlight your restaurant specific skills, such as cleaning tables and dishes, answering phones, re-stocking or labeling inventory, and working in a fast paced environment. 

Before you send in your resume with your application, take a good look and make sure you feel it clearly communicates your qualifications to be hired as a bartender. You might want to ask a friend or colleague to look it over to be sure it captures your bartending work history and to confirm that it looks professional. If you put in the time and effort to create a strong resume, you should be able to improve your chances of getting an interview and landing a bartender job.

Sample Resume

OLIVIA JONES

330-416-5770 ojones@gmail.com

723 E 45th St, Los Angeles, CA 98102

SUMMARY: Server with 6 years of experience working in fast-paced restaurants, catering events, and casual café environments. My career began with a position as a busser and food runner, diligently working my way up to being a server. I am hard working, reliable, and have great customer service skills. My priority is to always maintain a positive attitude and be a team player with a flexible schedule.

WORK EXPERIENCE

SERVER 

Madres Kitchen Catering – Los Angeles, CA 

May 2020 – Present

• Punctually arrived for every shift with a positive attitude, ready to work.

• Greeted all guests in a friendly manner and seated them at their assigned tables.

• Confirmed orders and served meals with efficient pacing during events.

• Assisted the manager in training new servers and any additional side work or cleanup.

SERVER

La Tierra Restaurant – Los Angeles, CA

September 2018 – March 2020

• Provided excellent and friendly customer service when welcoming guests, taking orders, and delivering and removing dishes.

• Ensured guests enjoyed their experience by listening intently, recommending menu items, being knowledgeable about food preparation and allergens, and checking in with customers in an appropriate and timely manner.

• Managed orders and financial transactions using the Toast Point of Sale system.

BUSSER & FOOD RUNNER

Samantha’s Cafe – Canton, OH

July 2016 – August 2018

• Welcomed customers, took drink orders, and assisted with the delivery of food to tables.

• Promptly cleared dishes and properly cleaned, sanitized, and wiped down tables.

• Performed any additional work, assisting hostesses and servers as needed.

If you want to further increase your chances of getting hired as a bartender, consider these other options:

Write a cover letter

Specifically, write one that is customized to the restaurant or business you want to work for. It should explain your interest and qualifications for the position in greater detail. Doing so can increase your chances of landing an interview. A good tactic to make a cover letter stand out is to addresses the hiring manager by name.  You can often find the name of the hiring manager by looking through the company’s website, or by calling the restaurant to ask who is in charge of hiring the bartender. This small detail shows that you took the extra step to make your application stand out, which shows you take initiative.

Network with people who work at the restaurant

The restaurant industry operates similar to other industries where networking can help you get your foot in the door. Especially to become a bartender, knowing the right people can help you get a job. It’s okay if you don’t know anyone who works at the place you are interested in––but your previous co-workers might. Reach out to other bartenders you know or that you have worked with in the past and let them know where you are applying. If someone knows someone, they might be able to help you out, or at least make sure your resume is seen.

Apply in person

An easy way to stand out against other candidates is to apply in person. You can go to the restaurant where you want to be a bartender and ask for an application. Moreover, ask if the hiring manager or lead bartender is available and, if they are, prepare a quick pitch about yourself. Some things to consider telling them are: who you are, why you want to work for them, your most recent bartending experience and a cocktail recipe you love or designed, which might give them something to remember you by. Taking this extra step and showing up in person can help the hiring manager put a face to your name when they later review your application to be their bartender.

Related Restaurant Resources

• Restaurant Manager Resume

• Hostess Resume

• Dishwasher Resume

• Chef Resume

• Busser Resume

• Line Cook Resume

• Server Resume

• Barista Resume

• Prep Cook Resume

• Kitchen Manager Resume

• Sous Chef Resume

• Restaurant Assistant Manager Resume

• Pastry Chef Resume

• Executive Chef Resume