Bar Attendant
What the work is
Prepares, mixes and serves alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks to patrons in a bar in a licensed establishment.
Would you enjoy the work?
These are the main tasks in the official description. Mark how each one sounds to you.
- Takes orders from patrons for drinks
- Prepares and serves alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks to patrons
- Creates and follows cocktail recipes using garnishes and other specialised ingredients
- Checks identification to verify legal drinking age
- Cleans and maintains bar area, including equipment and utensils
- Stocks and replenishes bar inventory and supplies
- Monitors patrons for signs of intoxication and refuses service as necessary
- Assists with bar opening and closing procedures
Try it
A simulation and a case study from this kind of work, set in a busy corner pub with a bar, a bistro and a beer garden, in a fictional suburb. They are fictional.
The kind of days you could have
Good days
- A Friday night where the bar is three deep and every drink goes out right
- A regular tells you that you made their week just by remembering their name
- You craft a drink from a half-remembered description and it's exactly what the customer wanted
Hard days
- Closing at midnight and still being on your feet at two in the morning
- A customer who has had enough and does not want to hear it from you
- A rush, a broken till and a queue that just keeps growing
Written by Career Calling as a general guide. Real roles vary by employer and place.
Work a mission
Step into a simulated workplace in this field, with a brief from your manager.
Description and tasks: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Occupation Standard Classification for Australia, 2024, Version 1.0 (opens another site), occupation 471131, used under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence. The skill guide above is our plain English summary.