How to Hire a Good Bartender

The interview... almost sounds like a death sentence for both parties. The employer understands how long it will take to select candidates before finding a suitable one, but the applicant is nervous, worried and always thinks about how to sell all his knowledge, skills and abilities at a higher price.

And then the X day comes when they meet. The manager is already exhausted by dozens of candidates and the bartender is exhausted by dozens of establishments. How to find a connection when it seems that each side has no strength and energy left. Let's figure it out.

State requirements and responsibilities

When opening job search resources, you can see a huge number of “empty” advertisements, where the list of qualities only includes “friendly, sociable and friendly.” You will agree that almost everyone falls under these requirements.

The clearer and more specific you are about the requirements for a candidate, the less work you will have to do during face-to-face interviews, and the less you will have to weed out unsuitable applicants.

1. First, write in the ad the name of the establishment and its location . The applicant must immediately have an idea of the location of the bar. If it takes him 3 hours to get to work, then such an establishment is unlikely to be suitable, so the location must be designated;
2. Bar concept . Be sure to describe the main message, idea, concept of your bar. In addition to the ability to pour drinks, a person must organically fit into the general environment of the bar, share its ideology and be part of the team as a whole.
3. Responsibilities . Let's be honest, the list of job responsibilities of a bartender is extremely large, and depending on the format of the bar, work schedule, staff, location, target audience and other aspects, the range of job responsibilities of a bartender will vary greatly. Therefore, it is worth immediately indicating what exactly you expect from the applicant - perfect knowledge of classic cocktails or latte art skills in three projections.
4. Requirements . A good manager always builds a team. You need to understand that ideal people do not exist, and some are strong in one thing, and others in another. Let's say you already have a creative, creative late and executive narcissist, and all the documentation of the bar is in terrible condition. Therefore, you need a bartender on your team who is punctual, knows how to work with basic windows office programs and knows how to work in a team. First, clearly formulate in your head who you need to close all the gaps in the bar’s work, and then start looking for this person. In a team, one always complements the other, and what one is strong at, the other misses or simply doesn’t see.
5. What can you give ? It is clear that you will indicate the work schedule, salary, benefits package. But what else? Your job advertisement should be as “tasty” as possible for the applicant, so that he wants to give his experience, his skills and his potential to you. The process of finding a job and getting hired is completely mutual. Not only should the bartender be liked, but the place itself should be ideal for this particular person. Therefore, the unique conditions, features, and features that the employer can offer must be indicated in order to find exactly your ideal gold bar in a pile of stones and sand.

Interview Questions

Conventionally, interview questions can be divided into three groups: professional, personal, development .

In professional ones, it is worth finding out about the person’s experience, his professional knowledge (for example, the recipe for classic cocktails or the stages of producing strong alcohol). Personal questions allow you to understand how much time and effort a person can devote to work, so they should not be ignored either.

Well, development is what the applicant wants to receive from you and your institution. How long is the prospect of his work in your institution, is it worth spending resources on his training and, in general, are you on the right track with him.

How to check experience at an interview

The easiest option is to call the establishment indicated in the application form . Call and ask the manager directly if that person worked there and ask for a reference. At HoReCa, everyone is usually quite open and will happily share information about a past employee, and it doesn’t matter whether this information is positive or negative.

The second option is to send an official request to the company’s email , and in the format of business correspondence find out how long and how well the person worked in the previous place.

And the third option is to take his word for it . And alreadyform your opinion about the bartender based on his communication with guests, work with colleagues and professional skills.

How to do it right is up to you, we will just remind you that trust is something that is very difficult to earn, but very easy to lose.

What is important in the work of a bartender and barista?

When a person is hired for a certain position, a good manager always considers two areas - hard skills and soft skills.

• hard skills are professional skills. In the case of a bartender, these are pouring skills, cash transactions, knowledge of cocktail recipes, etc.
• soft skills are the so-called flexible or social skills, such as communication, responsiveness, friendliness, etc.

Both are very important, but the lower the position, the more hard skills dominate over soft skills. That is, when line personnel with a limited number of functions are hired, it is the hard ones that are important. A barbek must be able to polish glasses so as not to break them, squeeze citrus juice, brew premixes and cordials , and so on. And the higher the position held, the greater the interaction within this position with people (guests, staff, partners), the more important software begins to acquire.

Therefore, it is worth having a clear understanding of the position, its function for the establishment, its importance in the team, and based on this understanding, formulate an offer for the applicant.