Café Worker Resumes & Guide

If you intend to search for a Café gig on Google, be prepared for a plethora of job advertisements. There will always be a demand for café works and a multitude of people wanting the position. It is therefore incredibly important to create a wonderful Café Worker Resume that sets you apart from other applicants.

Begin by looking through our top-notch Café Worker resume samples to give you some ideas and inspiration.

We will show you how to create an informative resume that contains all the necessary information employers hope to find. The only thing left to do is to get stuck in!

Café Worker Resume Examples

(Free sample downloads are at the bottom of this page)

Café Worker Resume Writing Guide

Resume Sections:

1. Contact information
2. Profile Summary
3. Work History 
4. Achievements
5. Education 
6. Skill Section
7. Certification & Licensing
8. Extras: Languages/Awards/Publications/Volunteering/hobbies

What to Highlight in a Café Worker Resume

For any position you apply for, it is crucial that you market yourself effectively. This information in your resume what the employer is specifically looking for. Hiring managers and recruiters would be looking for certain things on your resume that will help them decide whether to invite you for an interview or not.

Let's unpack this one by one:

First – Remember to include your work experience and any skills and qualities that show the employer you are the perfect candidate.

Café Workers carry out their duties under the supervision of a Café Manager. Your responsibilities are likely to include seating customers, taking food and drinks to tables, taking orders, collecting dirty dishes, cleaning tables, and refilling glasses. 

Second – Highlight that you are able to stand on your feet for long hours, have strong communication and listing skills, and that you have effective people skills. Physical fitness and interpersonal skills are crucial to your job.

Then – A way to make a meaningful impact on the reader is to split your job description up into key duty areas: 

Menu Presentation: Presenting menus to customers and offering suggestions or recommending certain items when asked. Taking orders for food and drinks.

Serving: Provide the orders you have taken to the kitchen and fetch them when they are ready. Serving food and drinks to customers, taking away empty dishes when they finish to clear their table.

Upselling: Ensuring that patrons are happy and have everything they need while recommending additional courses such as desserts or after-dinner drinks.

Checks: Handling issues, charging slips, and taking payments. 

Cleaning: Removing dirty dishes and setting and cleaning tables.

Inventory: Ensuring that the service area is always well-stocked with compulsory items.

Supervisory: If you are a more senior Café Worker that has been accountable for overseeing other Café Worker staff, provide the duties you were responsible for here. Examples include in-service training, timekeeping, making salary payments, and scheduling shifts.

Finally, review the cheat sheet below and make sure you have ticked off all these points.

Make sure to include the following details: 

• The places you are happy to work in and if you are happy to travel to events using your own transport. 
• The marks and ratings you have achieved at culinary schooling if needed. 
• Specialized skills such as the ability to make special cocktails, wine pairing, booking systems, or billing applications. 
• Include every industry area you have worked in, such as hotels, country clubs, restaurants, pubs, events companies, catering coordinators, and wedding venues.

Summary & Objective Examples

It is no secret that first impressions can make a significant impact on a person. Essentially, your resume allows the reader to form a first impression of you based of the information you include. 

It is for this reason that your resume needs to be of the highest quality and should only include relevant information. 

To effectively grab the reader’s attention, you need to include the following: 

• A professional profile 
• A concise introductory paragraph that summarizes your best career achievements. (situated at the beginning of your resume) 

If you are unsure of whether to choose a summary or objective, it may help to think of the following. 

If you have extensive experience working in this industry, a career summary is the better option to choose. 

If your experience is on the thinner side, utilize a career objective paragraph to highlight the goals and qualities you have and the impact you can make if you are hired. 

How to write the perfect career summary/objective:

1. Begin by reading through the job description to outline the specific skills and qualities the employer is looking for. The more your resume mimics the job description, the greater your chance of being selected for an interview. 
2. The first thing you should write is your years of experience and the most admirable positions you held or responsibilities you were given. 
3. Next, include the most attractive skills and qualities that you can offer and explain how you can make a meaningful difference. These skills and qualities will need to be proven later on in the experience section.
4. Lastly, finish with any educational degrees/diplomas and certifications/licenses you have obtained. Examples include a Culinary Arts certificate or a bachelor’s degree in Hotel and Hospitality Management. Typically, a high school diploma is sufficient, however, if you wish to work in more senior roles or more up-market establishments, post-school qualifications are crucial.

Take a look at the examples below:

Summary Example 1

"Customer-oriented Barista with over 9 years of experience and an excellent reputation in customer service and satisfaction. Adept at all facets of café operations with ongoing formal academic training in business administration. Demonstrated leadership skills that help teams achieve customer service goals and optimize business workflows. Looking to apply my experience and take the next career step with an organization that thrives on providing exceptional customer service while fostering relationships with the community and public."

Summary Example 2

"Professional and industrious Cafe Worker with a stellar customer satisfaction record. Skilled multitasker who thrives in a fast-paced, high-pressure work environment. Flexible scheduling availability to include all evenings, most weekends, and special events as required. Seeking a position at Starbucks as a Senior Café Worker."

Summary Example 3

"Friendly and fast-working Café Worker with 3+ years of experience working at busy chain cafes in the Sheboygan Falls area. Skilled in customer service, coffee and food pairing, and inventory management. Looking to leverage exceptional service and dedication to great coffee to become the barista shift supervisor at Grand Cafe."

Summary Example 4

"Personable and customer-oriented junior waiter with 5 months part-time experience at a small coffee shop making coffee beverages. Passionate about fair trade coffee and exotic blends. Skilled at latte art, multiple espresso machines, and customer service. Achieved 100% on-time attendance record during entire employment span. Seeking a Café Worker role at ABC Company."

Pro Tip: Write your career summary once you have finished your entire resume. It will make the writing process far easier because your information will all be in order and it will prevent you from forgetting any important points.

Employment History

Café workers are needed almost everywhere which means that there is no shortage of job opportunities but, this also means there will be lots of competition. The best way to one-up the competition is by creating a banging resume that highlights the duties and responsibilities you were given in previous positions. 

When listing information in this section, we recommend that you use reverse chronological order, as it puts your most recent (and often more impressive) experience first. Use about 5-6 bullet points per job description when listing your duties and responsibilities.⁠ A chronological resume can help you pass the ATS test (the Applicant Tracking System utilized by many restaurants to pre-select applicants).

Café Worker at Star Bucks

(Feb 2018 – Jan 2022)

Expected to deliver high-quality customer service to promote the culture, values, and mission of Starbucks at a large store with a lot of customer traffic for sit-down and take-way options

• Accurately input customers’ orders into POS system and communicated orders to fellow baristas effectively.
• Maintained an organized and clean workspace to ensure operations ran smoothly and to enable colleagues to easily locate resources and products.
• Prepared and provided consistent hot and cold beverages, whole bean, and food products by following recipes and presentation standards.

Café Worker at Wimpy

(Feb 2019 – Dec 2021)

Primary function is to provide excellent customer service consistently by building rapport with customers and conversing with patrons while preparing orders.

• Communicated with customers to assess purchasing needs and provided recommendations based on expertise of new and current products and customers’ preferences.
• Managed inventory and product levels by stocking, rotating, refilling, and preparing fresh coffee products and specialty products.
• Maintain general items such as coffee makers, ice makers and espresso machines that are used regularly.

Job Descriptions Examples

Still, need more content for your resume? Review the examples below and you are welcome to copy and paste them as is.

Samples:

• Responsible for preparing and cooking a wide variety of food for customers, employees, and visitors.
• Handle and prepare food in accordance with sanitary regulations.
• Prepare cold plate combinations by arranging ingredients aesthetically.
• Help with salad and dessert preparation.

• Prepare and serve food for consumption on the café premises or prepare them up for takeout orders.
• Responsible for taking customer orders.
• Clear used cutlery and plates when tables are vacated or when the customer is finished.
• Clean tables thoroughly for the arrival of more customers.
• Maintain general items such as coffee makers, ice makers and espresso machines that are used regularly.
• Operate the cash registers to receive payments from customers.

• Plan, prepare, and maintain cold prep menu items in accordance with the company’s recipes and place in cooling stations or on the serving line.
• Prepare menu items in accordance with health standards.
• Serve customers on the food line and in the dining room.
• Perform light baking and assist in the preparation of ingredients that are to be stored and used the following day.
• Follow all health regulations for proper food handling and hygiene when preparing food and when using materials, utensils, and equipment.
• Communicate with the manager and/or complete ordering and inventory needs.
  

Accomplishments

It can be very tempting to simply copy and paste a generic list of responsibilities from one resume to the next. This, however, is a terrible idea and will only hinder your chances of landing an interview. 

The accomplishment section is where you can really make an impact and showcase the things that make you stand out from everyone else. 

Make a list of your most admirable achievements and portray them in punchy statements to attract the recruiters’ attention. Remember to quantify your statements with numbers to give meaning to your statements.

Examples:

Flat, Simple Examples (WHAT NOT TO DO):

• Knowledgeable on 45+ coffee varieties from around the world.
• Achieved a great guest satisfaction score based on receipt surveys.
• Achieved on-time attendance record during the entire employment span.

Accomplishment Statement Examples (DO THIS RATHER):

• Knowledgeable on 45+ coffee varieties from around the world.
• Achieved a 98.4% guest satisfaction store over a 2-year period based on receipt surveys.
• Achieved 100% on-time attendance record during the entire employment span.

Quantifying Your Resume

As we mentioned in the section above, quantifying your resume is vitally important. Not only does it make reading your resume more interesting, it proves that you are as good as you say you are.

Try your best to answer the following question when listing any of your duties or accomplishments: “How many?” or “How often?”

• How many working hours do you log in every week?
• What is the average turnover for your tables? 
• How many tables on average do you service per shift? 

Examples

• Developed a task management system that sped up workflow by 32%.
• Decreased diners’ waiting time by 20% due to a new table placement idea.
• Kept up 94.7% rating for customer satisfaction for 18 months in a row.

Now see what happens if we remove the quantification – Everything Falls FLAT

• Developed a task management system that sped up workflow 
• Decreased diners’ waiting time due to a new table placement idea.
• Kept up a good rating for customer satisfaction

Education Section

Although this field of work does not require crazy degrees and qualifications, your education section, and how you structure this section, is still important. 

This is a section that can make a meaningful impact on the reader and get you closer to landing an interview.

List your formal training as well as any diplomas, in-house training, or courses you have completed or are in the process of completing. 

When listing your qualifications, you simply need to list the name of the qualification, the name of the institution, and the date you finished. 

You may use your job as a café worker to pay for further studies as a stepping stone into the food management industry.

Or if you only have a high school diploma, beef this section up by mentioning any on-the-job training, workshops to leadership that has added value to your theoretical and practical knowledge to perform your job successfully.

Here are some examples for Cafe Workers

2019 – Bachelor’s Degree in Food Management, University of Memphis, TN

Food Service Fundamentals, Introduction to World Cooking Methods, Latin American Cuisine, Coffees and Teas from Around the World, Pastries and Baked Goods, Food Safety, Restaurant Inventory and Recordkeeping.

2017 – Certified Restaurant Cafe Worker: American Hotel and Lodging Association Educational Institute.

2017 – ServSafe Alcohol Certification: National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation.

2016 – High School Diploma, Burke Senior High School, Omaha, NE. GPA: 3.22 on a 4.0 scale.

Skills

This industry does require certain technical skills, but employers are also very interested in your soft skills. These include the personality traits and people skills you possess that determine whether you will be a good fit as a future employee. Integrate your soft skills into your summary and accomplishment statements. 

Technical skills

Latte Art & Milk Steaming	Speed and Efficiency
Food Safety and Hygiene	Arithmetic & Cash Handling
Coffee Bean Grinding	Point-of-Sale System (POS)
Espresso Machine & Tamping	Ability to Work Well Under Pressure
Knowledge of Coffee Brews & Roasts	Food & Beverage Pairing
Brewing Coffee Manually & Automatically

Soft Skills

Personal hygiene	Multitasking
Enthusiastic	Diplomatic
Accountable	Deadline driven
Energetic	Collaborative
Cooperative	Responsible

Associated Qualifications & Certifications

Diploma and Certificate in Culinary Arts	American Culinary Federation, Inc. (ACF)
Diploma in Majoring in Culinary Arts	Alcohol Seller and Cafe Worker Certification
Certified Food Protection: Association of Nutrition and Foodservice	Professionals (ANFP)
Food Protection Certificate: NYC Health Academy	Barista Guild Certification Level 2, The Barista Guild of America
Society for Hospitality and Foodservice Management (SHFM)	Certified Dietary Manager, Certified Food Protection Professional (CDM, CFPP)
ServSafe Food Safety & Food Handler Certification	Association of Nutrition & Foodservice Professionals (ANFP)

Optional Extras for Café Worker Resumes

Just as a burger is incomplete without extra fries, so your resume is incomplete without an optional extras section to really seal the deal and secure your interview. This section can be used to show the reader any further experience you have or any admirable qualities to possess. 

Below are several tasty examples of extras to add to your resume: 

Resume Licenses & Certifications – If you have any food service certifications or food-handling licenses, list them in this section.

Resume Volunteer Work – This is a clever way to highlight your working experience if you do not have loads of “real-world” work experience. If you have any volunteer work stashed under your apron, mention it as well. 

Second Language on a Resume – If you are proficient in other languages, include it in this section. In the restaurant industry this is a huge advantage.

Hobbies on a Resume – Including your hobbies and interests will allow the employer to form a better idea of the person you are and whether you are well suited to their restaurant or not.

Café Worker Resume Downloads

Professional information of Café Workers

Sectors: Food & Beverages, Travel and Hospitality, Tourism and Recreation
Career Type: Functional, Services

Person type:  Worker, Administrator, Helper, Assistant, Trainee, Education levels: High School Diploma 
Salary indication: Average of $21 972 per annum (Glassdoor)

Labor market: Expected 10% growth between 2019 – 2029 (BLS)
Organizations: Restaurants, Food Emporiums, Guesthouses, Hotels, Coffee Shops, Cafe’s, Delis