Bartenders mix and serve drinks to patrons, directly or through waitstaff.

  • Clean glasses, utensils, and bar equipment.
  • Collect money for drinks served.
  • Balance cash receipts.
  • Check identification of customers to verify age requirements for purchase of alcohol.
  • Clean bars, work areas, and tables.
  • Attempt to limit problems and liability related to customers' excessive drinking by taking steps such as persuading customers to stop drinking, or ordering taxis or other transportation for intoxicated patrons.
  • Take beverage orders from serving staff or directly from patrons.
  • Serve wine, and bottled or draft beer.
  • Plan, organize, and control the operations of a cocktail lounge or bar.
  • Stock bar with beer, wine, liquor, and related supplies such as ice, glassware, napkins, or straws.
  • Serve snacks or food items to customers seated at the bar.
  • Mix ingredients, such as liquor, soda, water, sugar, and bitters, to prepare cocktails and other drinks.
  • Slice and pit fruit for garnishing drinks.
  • Ask customers who become loud and obnoxious to leave, or physically remove them.
  • Arrange bottles and glasses to make attractive displays.
  • Create drink recipes.
  • Supervise the work of bar staff and other bartenders.
  • Order or requisition liquors and supplies.
  • Plan bar menus.
  • Prepare appetizers such as pickles, cheese, and cold meats.
Work Context
  • Contact With Others — 93% responded "Constant contact with others".
  • Spend Time Standing — 79% responded "Continually or almost continually".
  • Deal With External Customers — 56% responded "Extremely important".
  • Face-to-Face Discussions — 62% responded "Every day".
  • Physical Proximity — 47% responded "Moderately close (at arm's length)".
  • Freedom to Make Decisions — 42% responded "A lot of freedom".
  • Indoors, Environmentally Controlled — 74% responded "Every day".
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Work Activities
  • Performing for or Working Directly with the Public — Performing for people or dealing directly with the public. This includes serving customers in restaurants and stores, and receiving clients or guests.
  • Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships — Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time.
  • Estimating the Quantifiable Characteristics of Products, Events, or Information — Estimating sizes, distances, and quantities; or determining time, costs, resources, or materials needed to perform a work activity.
  • Getting Information — Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
  • Training and Teaching Others — Identifying the educational needs of others, developing formal educational or training programs or classes, and teaching or instructing others.
  • Handling and Moving Objects — Using hands and arms in handling, installing, positioning, and moving materials, and manipulating things.
  • Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Material — Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials to identify the cause of errors or other problems or defects.
  • Judging the Qualities of Things, Services, or People — Assessing the value, importance, or quality of things or people.
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Detailed Work Activities
  • Stock serving stations or dining areas with food or supplies.
  • Process customer bills or payments.
  • Enforce rules or regulations.
  • Balance receipts.
  • Enforce rules or regulations.
  • Communicate with customers to resolve complaints or ensure satisfaction.
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Knowledge

Customer and Personal Service
  • Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
English Language
  • Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
Education and Training
  • Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
Sales and Marketing
  • Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.

Skills

Active Listening
  • Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Service Orientation
  • Actively looking for ways to help people.
Social Perceptiveness
  • Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
Speaking
  • Talking to others to convey information effectively.
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Abilities

Oral Expression
  • The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
Oral Comprehension
  • The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
Speech Recognition
  • The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
Near Vision
  • The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
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Personality

People interested in this work like activities that include ideas, thinking, and figuring things out.
They do well at jobs that need:
  • Achievement/Effort
  • Persistence
  • Initiative
  • Leadership
  • Cooperation
  • Concern for Others
  • Social Orientation
  • Self Control
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Technology

You might use software like this on the job:

Web page creation and editing software
  • Facebook Hot Technology
Data base user interface and query software
  • AZZ CardFile
Point of sale POS software
  • The General Store
  • Point of sale POS software
  • NCR NeighborhoodPOS
  • NCR Advanced Checkout Solution
  • MICROS Systems HSI Profits Series
  • Intuit QuickBooks Point of Sale
  • Focus point of sale POS software
  • Compris software
Internet browser software
  • Web browser software