Bartender to waiter/waitress
A bartender already meets 30% of what the waiter/waitress role asks for. The move turns on 21 required skills not yet in the profile.
76.2/ 100
1 How much of what a waiter/waitress is expected to do is already part of a bartender’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the waiter/waitress role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A waiter/waitress role treats 8 of its required skills as things a bartender already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- comply with food safety and hygiene
- identify customer's needs
- maintain customer service
- prepare hot drinks
- process payments
- serve beverages
What stands in the way is 21 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 14 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A waiter/waitress role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a bartender background worth leading with.
- already held prepare hot drinks assisting and caring
- already held serve wines assisting and caring
- already held educate customers on tea varieties communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held sparkling wines engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held take food and beverage orders from customers communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held apply foreign languages in hospitality communication, collaboration and creativity
All 14 carried skills, including the 8 the waiter/waitress role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 29 missing skills fall into 9 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn prepare the restaurant for service required
- still to learn arrange tables required
- still to learn assist VIP guests required
- still to learn assist customers required
- still to learn prepare alcoholic beverages required
- still to learn serve food in table service required
- still to learn supervise food quality required
- still to learn welcome restaurant guests required
- optional, not held prepare service trolleys optional
- optional, not held decant wines optional
- optional, not held prepare flambeed dishes optional
- still to learn advise guests on menus for special events required
- still to learn maintain relationship with customers required
- still to learn present menus required
- still to learn work in a hospitality team required
- still to learn assist clients with special needs required
- optional, not held recommend wines optional
- still to learn check dining room cleanliness required
- still to learn measure customer feedback required
- optional, not held maintain incident reporting records optional
- optional, not held process reservations optional
- still to learn attend to detail regarding food and beverages required
- still to learn clean surfaces required
- optional, not held use food cutting tools optional
- still to learn alcoholic beverage products required
- still to learn dietary regimes required
3 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a waiter/waitress role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 food and beverages on the menu study this
- 02 prepare the restaurant for service practise this
- 03 advise guests on menus for special events practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 14 skills that carry over
- already held comply with food safety and hygiene skill
- already held identify customer's needs skill
- already held maintain customer service skill
- already held prepare hot drinks skill
- already held process payments skill
- already held serve beverages skill
- already held serve wines skill
- already held take food and beverage orders from customers skill
- already held apply foreign languages in hospitality skill
- already held detect drug abuse skill
- already held educate customers on coffee varieties skill
- already held educate customers on tea varieties skill
- already held local area tourism industry knowledge
- already held sparkling wines knowledge
The 3 learning areas not shown above
- still to learn maintain personal hygiene standards required
- still to learn food and beverages on the menu required
- optional, not held laws regulating serving alcoholic drinks optional
8 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held laws regulating serving alcoholic drinks optional
- optional, not held prepare service trolleys optional
- optional, not held decant wines optional
- optional, not held prepare flambeed dishes optional
- optional, not held recommend wines optional
- optional, not held use food cutting tools optional
- optional, not held maintain incident reporting records optional
- optional, not held process reservations optional
24 held skills the waiter/waitress role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role assemble cocktail garnishes skill
- not needed by the target role change kegs skill
- not needed by the target role clean beer pipes skill
- not needed by the target role clear the bar at closing time skill
- not needed by the target role compile drinks menu skill
- not needed by the target role compile drinks price lists skill
- not needed by the target role create decorative food displays skill
- not needed by the target role devise special promotions skill
- not needed by the target role display spirits skill
- not needed by the target role enforce alcohol drinking laws skill
- not needed by the target role execute opening and closing procedures skill
- not needed by the target role handle bar equipment skill
- not needed by the target role handle gas cylinders skill
- not needed by the target role handle glassware skill
- not needed by the target role handover the service area skill
- not needed by the target role maintain bar cleanliness skill
- not needed by the target role prepare fruit ingredients for use in beverages skill
- not needed by the target role prepare garnish for drinks skill
- not needed by the target role prepare mixed beverages skill
- not needed by the target role present drinks menu skill
- not needed by the target role serve beers skill
- not needed by the target role setup the bar area skill
- not needed by the target role stock the bar skill
- not needed by the target role upsell products skill
4 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn food and beverages on the menu required
- still to learn alcoholic beverage products required
- still to learn dietary regimes required
- optional, not held laws regulating serving alcoholic drinks optional
Other moves recorded from bartender
- cocktail bartender 74% covered · moderate
- barista 45% covered · substantial
- quick service restaurant crew member 38% covered · substantial
- sommelier 33% covered · substantial
- hotel concierge 27% covered · substantial
- quick service restaurant team leader 24% covered · substantial
- night auditor 24% covered · substantial
- hospitality establishment receptionist 22% covered · career change
Common questions about this move
Can a bartender become a waiter/waitress?
Yes, and it is a career change move. A bartender already covers 30% of what a waiter/waitress is expected to do: 14 skills carry over, 8 of which the waiter/waitress role treats as required.
What skills does a bartender need to become a waiter/waitress?
21 required skills are missing, plus 8 optional ones. They fall into 9 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by assisting and caring. The single most important is food and beverages on the menu.
How hard is the move from bartender to waiter/waitress?
Its learning distance is 76.2 out of 100, which is the career change band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.