Bartender - New Italian Restaurant | Yonge & St. Clair | Now Hiring |
About Us
A new Italian restaurant is opening at Yonge and St. Clair this fall. The room seats guests over two levels and serves both lunch and dinner, and it is backed by an established Toronto restaurant group with a long record in Italian hospitality.
The food is Italian home cooking done properly — simple, seasonal, approachable dishes built on quality ingredients and real technique. The drinks list is built around Italian wine, aperitivi and amari, alongside a serious espresso program.
Hospitality here is about honesty, and it should come from the heart. We greet every guest warmly and genuinely, we take the time to understand who is in front of us, and we communicate constantly, so that a table is looked after by the whole team rather than by one person working alone. In everything we do, the guest has the right of way.
We are hiring the entire front of house team ahead of opening. Everyone joining now joins the opening team: you will help set the standards rather than inherit them, and you will be trained on them properly before the first guest walks in.
The Role
The Bartender owns the execution and the integrity of the beverage program. The role has two faces: precise, high-volume production for the dining room, and direct hospitality for the guests seated at the bar, who are yours from the welcome to the farewell.
You also carry the restaurant's final authority on responsible alcohol service. Where the bartender declines to serve, that decision stands, and management supports it every time.
What You Will Do
- Make every cocktail to spec, from batches to builds to garnish. Free-pouring outside spec is not how we work.
- Pour wine and beer to correct measure, in correct glassware, at correct temperature.
- Prepare and serve espresso-based coffees to the standard of the coffee program.
- Run full service to bar seating: greeting, menus, water, food and drink orders, quality checks and payment.
- Open and close the bar — batches, rail, prosecco and beer, fresh garnish and juice, stock counts, and the bar communication book.
- Manage par levels, ordering, inventory, cost and waste.
- Monitor consumption across the whole room, not only at the bar, and raise a concern early rather than late.
- Keep the bar clean and reset constantly. It is the most visible workstation in the restaurant.
What We Are Looking For
- Minimum two years of bartending experience in a full-service restaurant or cocktail bar.
- Demonstrated knowledge of classic cocktails, spirits categories and wine.
- Familiarity with Italian wine, aperitivi and amari is a strong asset.
- Barista skills and espresso experience are a significant asset.
- Smart Serve certification required prior to first shift; Food Handler certification an asset.
- Comfortable with POS systems.
- Legally entitled to work in Canada.
Hours and Conditions
Evening, weekend and holiday availability required. Continuous standing for the length of a shift, the ability to lift and carry up to 50 lbs (kegs, cases and ice), repetitive motion, and work around cold, wet conditions and sharp tools.
What We Offer
Hourly wage plus participation in the gratuity pool as per restaurant policy, and a structured eight-day training path — including a mock service assessed by the management team — before you run a shift on your own.
Equal Opportunity
We are an equal opportunity employer. We provide employment opportunities on the basis of qualifications, skills and abilities, and we make reasonable accommodation for qualified individuals with known disabilities in accordance with the Ontario Human Rights Code and the AODA. Accommodation is available on request at any point in the recruitment process — tell us what you need and we will arrange it.
Pay: $17.60 per hour
Benefits:
Work Location: In person
