Laken Pinkerman

• Facilitated memorable experiences for diverse groups by tailoring presentations to cater to different age groups, cultural backgrounds, and language abilities.
• Increased customer satisfaction through attentive listening and personalized tour adjustments based on group interests.
• Vastly expanded my knowledge of the spirits industry, specifically bourbon, and its products.
• Created cocktails for the seasonal menu.
• Lead demos and sales events for the brand, often including tastings.
• Upsold bottles of spirits to patrons.

While my previous job was more focused on high-volume, fast-paced service, this job has allowed me to grow in wine knowledge and the opportunity to "play" with ingredients to create craft cocktails.

• Demonstrated strong multitasking skills by managing multiple tables simultaneously without compromising service quality.
• Served food and beverages promptly with focused attention to customer needs.
• Worked with POS system to place orders, manage bills, and handle complimentary items.
• Collaborated with team members during busy shifts for efficient workflow and excellent guest experiences.
• Managing to have up to six full-service tables at a time, while often stepping behind the bar to help them on the service well.
• Cultivated warm relationships with regular customers.
• Maintained clean and organized dining areas to uphold restaurant hygiene standards.

I began working at Carson's Food and Drink as a hostess. As time went on, I was promoted to busser, then to bar back, then server, bartender, and finally, service manager. During my years at Carson's, I found a love for the service industry, and knew that I wanted to work in that type of environment long-term.

Service Manager

• Resolved customer complaints in professional and timely manner, turning potentially negative experiences into opportunities for continued patronage.
• Hired, trained and supervised team of service staff members to meet business goals, including a mass hiring for a second location.
• Coordinated with other departments to maintain streamlined and productive workflow.
• Worked to maintain an environment that employees were comfortable and happy working in, while ensuring their work was satisfactory to the company's standards.
• Expedited food, bussed tables, worked behind the bar, and and jumped in wherever necessary during peak hours.

Bartender/Server

• Served high customer volumes during special events, nights, and weekends, seeing, on average, 300 covers per night.
• Performed opening and closing duties, printing sales reports, setting up for incoming shift, preparing cash drawers, and taking inventory.
• Contributed to a positive work environment through effective teamwork and communication with colleagues.
• Trained new bartenders on drink preparation, product promotion, garnish preparation, and sanitation protocol.
• Upsold menu items to customers, driving up per sale revenues and maximizing profits.
• Worked the service well during peak hours to maintain fast ticket times, while working with a beverage menu of over 40 craft cocktails.
• Established a knowledge of spirits, beer and wine, and how to pair them with certain dishes.