Whether you’re considering becoming a bartender, you’re a server looking to make a change, or you’re an experienced bartender looking to grow, there are a number of different bartending jobs that may be right for you.
First, let’s look at the most well-known bartending job: bartender. A bartender is responsible for pouring and serving drinks, but the role doesn’t stop there. Bartender job responsibilities include a wide range of tasks, such as managing money and processing payments, interacting and engaging with customers, and taking inventory while managing stock levels.
In addition, bartenders handle various physical duties like stocking the bar or moving shipments of product. Working as a bartender is often fast-paced and demanding, especially on high-traffic nights and weekends.
If you have little or no experience, the thought of being thrown behind the bar in the middle of a busy Saturday night may seem really scary. Sure, you’ll receive on-the-job training, but even your training can occur during a high-pressure, high-volume time.
The good news is, there are other types of bartending jobs that allow you to build up some experience and get comfortable with the environment. One such bartending job is a barback.
Similar to a bartender, a barback has many responsibilities, but at the core, a barback supports the smooth operation of the bar. The role can be compared to a busser, except in a bar environment instead of a food-service or kitchen environment.
The barback may be responsible for:
Barback bartending jobs don’t often require specific bartending experience to start, and many hiring managers consider serving experience applicable.
Becoming a barback is a great way to dip your toe into a bartending job and learn the ropes, without the same pressure and expectations of the bartender role.
In establishments that have table alcohol service, there are often multiple roles designated for support. The first is a server, and the second is the bartender who works the service bar.
Known as a service bartender, this position is responsible for making the drinks for table service guests. This role is particularly useful for bartenders developing people skills (or those who may be better with less people engagement) or new hires looking to develop their drink mixing skills without the fast-paced pressure mentioned previously.
Moving up the ranks in seniority and responsibility, the last type of bartending role is the bar manager. The manager is responsible for overseeing the operations of a bar.
As a manager, duties include:
The following table summarizes the different types of bartending jobs:
| Bartending Job | Main Focus | Key Responsibilities | Experience Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bartender | Pouring and serving drinks | Payments, customer interaction, inventory, stocking | Often busy; experience helpful |
| Barback | Supporting bar operations | Restocking, garnishes, ice, kegs, glassware, cleaning | Little or no bartending experience required |
| Service Bartender | Making drinks for table service | Preparing drinks for servers and table-service guests | Useful for developing drink-mixing skills |
| Bartending Manager | Overseeing bar operations | Hiring, inventory, money handling, training, compliance | Senior role with greater responsibility |
As you can see, there are many types of bartender jobs to choose from, so you can find the one that’s right for you given your interests, level of experience or education, and desired career path.
Visit our complete guide for more information on the steps to becoming a bartender.