Bartender Resume Examples and Writing Tips
Bartending is a tricky role to describe on a page. You can mix a drink, connect with customers, and work seamlessly on a team – it’s a role centered on skills and experience and seldom even requires education. Writing a bartender resume is a tall order, but we’re here to help. In this guide, you’ll learn the main sections to list, along with realistic bartender resume examples. We also provide targeted tips to make you stand out from the crowd.
Key sections to include in a bartending resume
Every bartender's resume is a little different, but they contain a header, resume summary (or objective), work history, and skills. Our bartending resume template above shows this format well.
Keep in mind that bartender resumes are unique from many other resumes in that they don’t always require education. Adding a degree can help, but it isn’t always necessary.
Each job role has unique quirks like this – for more ideas, check out our resume examples.
Header
Your resume header is a very brief, but important section. You might also know it by the name “personal details.” It’s a quick list of your personal information, including:
- Full name
- Job title
- Phone number
- Email address
- Location (city and state)
- LinkedIn URL
Pay attention to this section – one wrong character in your phone number and the recruiter won’t be able to contact you.
Here’s an example bartender resume header to get you started:
Art Palmer
Bartender
555-8448
artpalmer@gmail.com
Santa Monica, CA
linkedin.com/artpalmer/
Resume objective or summary
Your resume summary is a quick description of your work experience and achievements. Think of it as a two- to four-sentence paragraph hook to grab the hiring manager’s attention. This means you want to include some eye-catching information.
Use this example for inspiration:
“Experienced and passionate bartender with over 10 years of experience in mixing drinks, managing inventory, and working with teams. Keen skills in connecting with customers and building long-lasting relationships, leading to strong brand loyalty. Excited to engage customers and employees as Lead Bartender at Gray Rock.”
Work experience
This section is important for all professions, but it’s vital for bartenders. Education isn’t always a requirement for bartending roles, so most employers are looking for relevant, vibrant work experience that jumps off the page.
Start with your job title, and then list the name of the business, its location, and your date of employment. Finish with a bullet list of engaging, quantified achievements.
Here’s an example of what we mean:
Bartender
The Local, Santa Monica, CA
July 2014 – March 2024
- Connected with customers, remembering their favorite orders and anticipating needs, increasing customer retention by 20%
- Managed bar inventory and implemented cost-reducing practices, reducing waste by 10%
- Prepared more than 100 unique drinks, maintaining a sanitary work area
Education
A bartender server resume doesn’t always need education – as bartenders are often entry-level jobs – but it doesn’t hurt to add what education you have.
Don’t overcomplicate it: list your degree name, the name of the institution, its location, and the dates you attended.
Here’s a quick example:
Associate of Science, Food Service Management
Orange Coast College, Costa Mesa, CA
2010 – 2012
Hard skills
Bartenders rely heavily on learned technical skills, such as drink preparation, food safety, and inventory management. These abilities are critical to provide because relevant skills, like POS system proficiency, are what employers are looking for.
Let’s take a look at the main hard skills for a bartender resume:
- Drink order preparation
- Food and beverage service
- Food safety and sanitation
- Payment processing
- Point-of-sale (POS) systems
- Mixology
- Work area management
- Inventory management
Soft skills
Soft skills are overlooked for many roles, but they display how you interact with others and manage your work. For bartenders, this means how you communicate with customers and teammates, and how you handle a rush of varied tasks, like handling sales and inventory.
Here are the main soft skills to consider for your bartending resume:
- Communication and interpersonal skills
- Time management
- Organization
- Persuasion
- Conflict resolution
- Active listening
- Teamwork
- Critical thinking
Keep in mind that your skills section can be separated into hard and soft, grouped as one, or even tucked into a side column. See examples of different formatting in our resume templates for more insights.
Optional sections
Think of these sections as little “bonuses” – they aren’t necessary, but they can add extra zest to your bartender resume, especially if you have little work experience.
The main optional sections are volunteer work, languages, certificates, and hobbies and interests.
If you have any volunteer work serving food and drinks, we encourage you to add it in. This also goes for any volunteer work in a client-facing role, like managing a college help desk. This experience shows employers that you can communicate and build rapport with customers.
Tips for writing a bartender resume
Now that you have the necessary sections, let’s dress them up with a few tips and tricks. Incorporating these tactics helps make your resume stand out from the crowd and tells the hiring manager that you’re something special.
Interested in more tips and tricks? Browse our selection of resume articles for more advice.
Prioritize work experience over education
Bartending is a role that relies heavily on hard experience, so employers want to see that above everything else, even education.
Education can be valuable, but most bartending schools teach you how to mix drinks – not how to talk to people, work with others, make substitutions, and think creatively.
We encourage you to list all your relevant work experience, but if you’re new to this type of career, list experience that has related transferable skills, like food service roles.
Tailor your resume to each unique job post
Even the best resume isn’t suitable for all applications, so ensure you customize each resume you send out. Read the job description carefully and incorporate the skills and experience it asks for, paying attention to the specific wording.
For example, if the job ad asks for “Mixology” instead of “Drink mixing,” list the former in your skills section.
Advertise your sales experience
A bartender resume isn’t all about mixing drinks. Be sure to stress your interpersonal and sales skills, including negotiation, persuasion, and active listening.
Bartenders need to work with people, build rapport and relationships, and be skilled salespeople.
Craft a high-quality bartender resume
You’re an expert in making cocktails, managing inventory, and building partnerships with customers – now it’s time to build your resume writing skills. Create a beautiful bartender resume by using our tips:
- Focus on work experience and skills above education
- Emphasize your interpersonal skills, like active listening and communication
- Tailor each resume you send off to suit the job ad
Let’s put these tips to good use. Jump over to CVwizard’s Resume Builder to craft a bartending resume that turns the hiring manager’s head.
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