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Being a barista in Australia

Posted by Camille Tissot on Oct 16, 2019 11:12:34 AM

A large three-quarter full cappuccino with oat-milk, please! Yes, that's what it sounds like to order a coffee. 

Did you know that three-quarters of Australians have at least one cup of coffee a day? It only takes one sip of a good coffee to start the day in style (and in a good mood!). If you do the maths, good beans + good barista = good coffee, right? 

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As Australia has become one of the biggest countries of coffee connoisseurs, being a barista will never go out of fashion. In this blog post, we look at tips (and perks!) you need to know if you want to become a barista in Australia.


Australia and its coffee culture 

First things first, let’s rewind a bit and understand how the coffee culture managed to take over Australia over the past few years. 

Originally from Arabia, coffee shops have always been a place where people could socialize and drink coffee. In the 1870s, the idea of “going out for a coffee” became popular across Europe and beyond. Surprisingly, pubs closed for a while and coffee shops were the places to go to for men and women who wanted to socialize and drink coffee, no alcohol involved! 

Of course, this didn’t last long and coffee shops were forced to apply for their liquor licenses and serve alcohol as well as coffee.  

And here we are, in 2019, obsessed with our daily coffee. With beans coming from all over the world and coffee shops at every street corner, the art of coffee is not only a trend, but it has also become a huge part of Australia’s culture with the possibility to try different bean flavors, have almond or soy milk and even drink your coffee in an avocado shell (Yep, that's a real thing!) #avolatte 

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Photo credit: @Forkwithus 


What it takes to become a barista 

A barista has a passion for coffee and is willing to work in a fast-paced hospitality environment. As well as floor staff, cafés and restaurants need their baristas. The main role for a barista is to prepare and make coffee-based drinks, but that’s not everything! Being a barista also requires you to keep your equipment clean and operating properly. Working as a barista is a competitive market where you’ll need to understand coffee making techniques and master your milk pouring game. 

Indeed, being good at making coffee takes a lot of practice. You don’t necessarily need qualifications to become a barista, it’s a learn-on-the-job kind of role but you can always find hospitality courses to help guide you and teach you best practices. 

If you already work as a waiter/waitress and want to become a barista, the best way is to learn from your head barista, get extra training and prove to your manager that you are good at making coffee. 

As well as cultivating your creativity, being a barista is also great for developing interpersonal skills. Put it that way, if you make a good coffee, customers will come back. If you know your usual customers' orders and names, then you’ll see them every day (or even twice a day!). Customers that come back will make your manager happy. And that, my friend, is how you become a GREAT barista. Plus, you’ll get to drink coffee all day long.


How to start working as a barista 

Now that you know everything about the coffee culture in Australia and what it takes to become a coffee-master, here are some tips to land your first barista job.

  • Polish your resume and cover letter
  • Make a list of all the coffee shops you’d like to work at and simply pop in to say “Hi!” with your resume and cover letter
  • If you can’t become a barista straight away, start as a waiter/waitress 
  • Be autonomous and learn all things coffee on your own time (online courses like Espresso coffee fundamentals by Typsy are a great place to start!) 

Whether you are currently traveling the world and need some extra cash to fly out to your next destination, studying to become a hospitality superstar or looking at a transition job while you sort your life out, you definitely should consider being a barista. As well as learning all things coffee, you’ll be able to develop communication skills, interact with customers and allow your creativity to flow through your latte art. These skills will always be needed no matter which career you end up in. 

When it comes to coffee, Australia thinks forward and that’s why baristas will always be needed, no matter what. Need we say more? Get ready to froth milk, create some Instagrammable coffee art and make lattes in a waffle cone. 


 Typsy  coffee courses

Typsy’s 1000+ hospitality lessons are practical, effective, and fun! You can learn more about everything from coffee to service and leadership skills.

Best of all, you can access Typsy as and when it suits you.

Learn your way - starting today.


Have a question? We’re always ready to talk.

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Topics: Hospitality career tips, Hospitality staff, Restaurants