Bartender Resume Examples and Templates for 2023

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Jacob Meade

Certified Professional Resume Writer (CPRW, ACRW)

Jacob Meade is a resume writer and editor with nearly a decade of experience. His writing method centers on understanding and then expressing each person’s unique work history and strengths toward their career goal. Jacob has enjoyed working with jobseekers of all ages and career levels, finding that a clear and focused resume can help people from any walk of life. He is an Academy Certified Resume Writer (ACRW) with the Resume Writing Academy, and a Certified Professional Resume Writer (CPRW) with the Professional Association of Resume Writers & Career Coaches.

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Bartender Resume Templates and Examples (Downloadable)

Entry-level
Bartender_Entry-level-1.pdf

Example #1 Entry-level

Mid-career
Bartender_Mid-career-1.pdf

Example #2 Mid-career

Senior-level
Bartender_Senior-level-1.pdf

Example #3 Senior-level

How to Write a Bartender Resume

Your resume has one purpose: to get you interviews for your next bartender job. You can ensure your resume serves that purpose if you focus on your most relevant skills and display them as clearly as possible. The section-specific tips below will help you give your resume the focus and clarity it needs to move your job search forward.

1. Write an engaging profile summarizing your qualifications

A strong Profile section draws the hiring manager’s attention to your unique strengths. Use this section of your resume to briefly describe your overall experience and record of success.

The tone of language on your Profile should be clear and direct (as opposed to the more casual tone of a LinkedIn profile and the active, confident voice of a cover letter). Use simple sentences and straightforward descriptions of your experience to achieve that direct tone. You may be tempted (or think you need) to use “promotional” terms like “Exceptional” or “Outstanding at,” but a more straight-shooting phrase like “Focused on,” “Skilled in,” or “Committed to” is better.

(Note, it’s usually easier to write your Profile after you’ve built the other sections of your resume.)

Mid-Career Profile Example

Bartender with 7+ years of experience in high-volume nightclubs and bars. Expert mixologist with hundreds of drink recipes memorized. Enthusiastic about creating and preparing distinctive, popular drink recipes. Firm grasp of Oregon alcohol sales laws. Bilingual: Fluent in English and Spanish.

Senior-Level Profile Example

Bartender with 15+ years of experience and thorough knowledge of beer, wine, and spirits. Skilled at mixing unique cocktails for customers in a fast-paced environment. Collaborated on seasonal drink menus with beverage director at the DoubleTree Hotel. New hire trainer and ABC-Certified trainer for responsible alcohol service.

2. Add a well-rounded experience section

A good bartender doesn’t just create the perfect cocktail or generate the highest sales per shift, although those are important skills. Great bartenders also enhance the guest experience by ensuring every patron has fun in a safe environment. When working in a busy club or restaurant, it’s important to have strong teamwork skills and interact professionally with many types of customers, including the more difficult ones.

Highlighting your ability to get along with coworkers and promptly handle all kinds of customer requests can help round out your bartending skills. The more specific you can get about your past successes, the better you’ll be able to create an impression of the type of employee you are.

Entry-Level Experience Example

Bartender / Server, Addison’s American Grill, Columbia, MO | September 2022 to Present

  • Recognized for maintaining excellent customer service on busy nights and with large parties 
  • Used suggestive selling methods to increase cover average and improve the guest experience
  • Won “Employee of the Month” 3 times based on strong teamwork and high guest satisfaction scores

 

Senior-Level Experience Example

Lead Bartender, DoubleTree Hotel, Dallas, TX | June 2016 to Present

  • Work high-volume shifts in both the cocktail lounge and fine-dining restaurant
  • Reconcile receipts at the end of the night using Micros POS system
  • Conduct monthly inventory of all bar stock with the bar manager
  • Train new hires to mix drinks properly, serve drinks responsibly, and ensure customers are satisfied
  • Collaborated on seasonal drink menus and invented several lucrative cocktail recipes

 

3. Include relevant education and certifications

If you’ve attended a bartending school, completed responsible-server training, or earned a certification in your field, include these credentials on your resume. It can also help round out your resume to feature any details on your secondary or postsecondary education.

Following are templates and examples to help you format your education and certification details:

Education

Template:

[Degree Name], [School Name], [City, ST] | [Year – optional]

Example:

Associate Degree — Hospitality Management, Collin County Community College, Austin, TX

Certification

Template:

[Certification Name], [Awarding Organization] | [Year – optional]

Example:

Certified Bartender, Logan’s Professional Bartending School, Austin, TX

4. List relevant key skills and proficiencies

You can enhance your bartender resume by including a “Key Skills” or “Areas of Expertise” section. In most cases, you should add this section right below your Profile summary. A good “Key Skills” section gives the hiring manager a quick overview of your expertise and value. It also helps your resume get past applicant tracking systems (ATS), which will almost certainly be required if you’re seeking a bartender job at a large franchise. Consider including any of the terms below:

Key Skills and Proficiencies
Cash Handling Conflict Resolution
Customer Service & Satisfaction Drink Order Preparation
Efficiency Improvement Food & Beverage Service
Food & Wine Pairing Food Safety & Sanitation
Inventory Monitoring Menu Memorization
Mixology Payment Processing
Personnel Training Point-of-Sale (POS) Systems
Process Improvement Task Prioritization
Team Collaboration Time Management
Work Area Maintenance Workplace Safety & Security

How to Pick the Best Bartender Resume Template

For bartenders, a clear and straightforward resume template is usually best. Choose a visual template that lets the hiring manager quickly take in relevant information about you and your background. Use a simple font, and avoid any template that calls undue attention to itself with more elaborate design elements.

Bartender Text-Only Resume Templates and Examples

Years of Experience
  • Entry-level Entry-level
  • Mid-career Mid-career
  • Senior-level Senior-level

John Smith
(123) 456-7890 | [email protected] | Columbia, MO 39769 | LinkedIn

Profile

Bartender, server, and bar back with nearly three years’ experience at popular local restaurants. Confidently suggest food and drinks to guests, drawing on strong knowledge of food and wine pairings. Trained in both front- and back-of-house operations.

Key Skills

  • Customer Service & Satisfaction
  • Drink Order Preparation
  • Efficiency Improvement
  • Mixology
  • Payment Processing
  • Process Improvement
  • Task Prioritization
  • Team Collaboration
  • Time Management
  • Work Area Maintenance
  • Workplace Safety & Security

Professional Experience

Bartender / Server, Addison’s American Grill, Columbia, MO | September 2022 to Present

  • Recognized for maintaining excellent customer service on busy nights and with large parties
  • Used suggestive selling methods to increase cover average and improve the guest experience
  • Won “Employee of the Month” 3 times based on strong teamwork and high guest satisfaction scores

Bar Back, Outback Steakhouse, Columbia, MO | July 2020 to September 2022

  • Ensured the bar was well-stocked with ice, glasses, and alcohol during busy shifts
  • Helped change kegs and clear the lines when needed
  • Assisted bartenders with overall efficiency and customer service

Education

Hotel & Restaurant Management Program, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO | Expected 2023

  • Intern at Bleu Catering Company to increase knowledge of catered events
  • Core course topics include accounting for restaurants, sales strategies, and kitchen operations

Technical Skills

Squirrel and Micros POS systems

John McPhearson
(123) 456-7890 | [email protected] | Portland, OR 39576 | LinkedIn

Profile

Bartender with 7+ years of experience in high-volume nightclubs and bars. Expert mixologist with hundreds of drink recipes memorized. Enthusiastic about creating and preparing distinctive, popular drink recipes. Firm grasp of Oregon alcohol sales laws. Bilingual: Fluent in English and Spanish.

Recognition

Runner-up, Portland’s Master Mixologist Competition | 2019

Key Skills

  • Cash Handling
  • Customer Service & Satisfaction
  • Drink Order Preparation
  • Efficiency Improvement
  • Mixology
  • Payment Processing
  • Process Improvement
  • Task Prioritization
  • Team Collaboration
  • Time Management
  • Work Area Maintenance
  • Workplace Safety & Security

Professional Experience

Bartender, Risky Jay’s Nightclub, Portland, OR | June 2016 to Present

  • Lead bartender on weekend nights, ensuring team members correctly prepare drinks and process payments
  • Create custom cocktails and shots for patrons
  • Help inventory and order supplies and stock
  • Work with security to identify over-intoxicated patrons

Bartender / Bar Back, Guys & Dolls, Portland, OR | September 2012 to May 2016

  • Trained new hires to properly make drinks and keep bar area clean and orderly
  • Showed high efficiency serving multiple customers at a time
  • Offered helpful drink recommendations to guests
  • Consistently top-ranked for sales during last year of tenure

Education

Business Degree — Hotel & Restaurant Management, Oregon State University, Portland, OR | 2016

Language

Fluency in Spanish

Jenny Thomas
(123) 456-7890 | [email protected] | Plano, TX 75097 | LinkedIn

Profile

Bartender with 15+ years of experience and thorough knowledge of beer, wine, and spirits. Skilled at mixing unique cocktails for customers in a fast-paced environment. Collaborated on seasonal drink menus with beverage director at the DoubleTree Hotel. New hire trainer and ABC-Certified trainer for responsible alcohol service.

Key Skills

  • Cash Handling
  • Customer Service & Satisfaction
  • Drink Order Preparation
  • Food & Wine Pairing
  • Efficiency Improvement
  • Menu Memorization
  • Mixology
  • Payment Processing
  • Process Improvement
  • Task Prioritization
  • Team Collaboration
  • Texas Dram Shop Laws
  • Time Management
  • Work Area Maintenance
  • Workplace Safety & Security

Professional Experience

Lead Bartender, DoubleTree Hotel, Dallas, TX | June 2016 to Present

  • Work high-volume shifts in both the cocktail lounge and fine-dining restaurant
  • Reconcile receipts at the end of the night using Micros POS system
  • Conduct monthly inventory of all bar stock with the bar manager
  • Train new hires to mix drinks properly, serve drinks responsibly, and ensure customers are satisfied
  • Collaborated on seasonal drink menus and invented several lucrative cocktail recipes

Lead Bartender, Della’s Disco, Dallas, TX | January 2009 to March 2016

  • Supervised a 5-person bartending team on busy nights
  • Courteously served beer, wine, and cocktails to customers
  • Monitored patrons for signs of over-intoxication and worked with security staff to prevent violent or untoward behavior
  • Inventoried beverage stock weekly

Bartender / Cocktail Server, Applebee’s Restaurant, Austin, TX | September 2004 to December 2008

  • Worked solo shifts on slower nights, serving bar guests and making service bar drinks for servers
  • Cleaned and restocked bar area each night
  • Trained new bartenders and cocktail waiters
  • Performed wait staff duties by taking food and drink orders for bar patrons
  • Taught Texas ABC Responsible Alcohol Service classes for district restaurants

Education

Associate Degree — Hospitality Management, Collin County Community College, Austin, TX

Certifications

Certified Bartender, Logan’s Professional Bartending School, Austin, TX

Texas ABC certified for responsible alcohol service

Frequently Asked Questions: Bartender Resume Examples and Advice

What are common action verbs for bartender resumes?+

It’s easy to get stuck when writing your resume job descriptions. You know you do more than “bartend,” but you may find it hard to develop a good mix of verbs to capture your work. To help you over the hump, we put together this list of strong resume verbs. Consider using any of these as the first word of your bullet points in your Experience section:

Action Verbs
Allocate Assist
Collaborate Coordinate
Create Deliver
Engage Enhance
Facilitate Greet
Improve Inform
Introduce Memorize
Mix Monitor
Order Prepare
Prioritize Process
Promote Provide
Recommend Reduce
Relay Serve
Streamline Support
Train Upsell

NOTE: The above verbs are all in the present tense. Use the present tense to describe your current job duties. But use the past tense (e.g., “Created,” “Improved”) to describe any projects you’ve completed or achievements you’ve had in your current job. Also, use the past tense to describe both duties and achievements in all your previous jobs.

How do you align your bartender resume with a job posting?+

The Bureau of Labor Statistics forecasts that bartender jobs will increase by about 18 percent between 2021 and 2031. This growth rate is much faster than the average for all US vocations.
 
You can get more interviews in this growing field if you tailor your resume for each application you send. When you find a bartender job posting that interests you, consider the required qualifications. (Often, the skills and experience that hiring managers look for most are right at the top and may be mentioned more than once.) Are there any you possess but haven’t featured on your resume yet? For instance, do you have experience in the same cuisine or beverages, or have worked in a similar work environment?
 
If so, consider mentioning that experience in your resume Profile or Key Skills section. This extra step will make your resume more relevant to the job, and more likely to attract the hiring manager’s notice.

What is the best bartender resume format? +

In nearly all cases, you should opt for a Combination (or Hybrid) resume because it’s easiest for hiring managers to learn about your pertinent skills and experience. It’s also easiest for you to modify based on your job goals.
 
With the Combination format, you highlight your most relevant skills and experience in your Experience or Work History section and an intro section. (This combination of work history and intro content is where the format gets its name.) Your resume intro may take the form of a Profile summary, Key Skills section, and/or Career Highlights section. By carefully choosing the details for these sections, you can (a) position yourself for your target job and (b) give hiring managers a clear, quick view of what you offer them.

Expert Advice: Include a cover letter with your resume

Craft a strong cover letter to increase your chances of landing an interview. The key to optimizing your cover letter is to customize it based on each employer you apply to. Read our Bartender cover letter guide to learn how. See our Server and Waiter/Waitress cover letter guides for other related examples.