Okay I need to vent. I've been scoping barista and counter jobs around Bushwick/Ridgewood and half the IG stories say “open call 10-12, bring a hard copy resume.” Fine, I’m not above it. But the last three places: one had a QR code on the door and wouldn’t take paper. One took the paper and then read it over my shoulder like I wasn’t standing there. One manager literally said “we don’t review resumes, just come to the group interview,” so why did I spend thirty minutes looking for a working printer near Myrtle-Wyckoff???

I’m not mad about the grind, I’m mad that nobody can decide if we’re supposed to be digital or analog. I’ve started carrying a printed copy, a PDF on my phone, and a QR code to my resume, just so I can read the room. Is anyone else seeing this? Have you tried bringing one of those mini Bluetooth printers to open calls, or is that too much?

Wait this is helpful because I’m new to all this. I just moved from central Jersey and I’ve been doing café shifts at a small place there, not NYC. I saw an open call in Astoria next week and I don’t have a printer in my apartment. Does the hard copy thing actually matter if they’re going to make you fill out the same info on a clipboard anyway? Also do they make you do a drink trial during the open call? I can make a flat white but I’m slower than the people I see on TikTok.

I’ve worked FOH and barista shifts in the city for a long time, and this is one of those weird test-to-see-if-you’ll-jump situations. A lot of independent spots, especially the ones run by managers who came up in the 2010s Bushwick coffee boom, are still fixated on in-person open calls because they want proof you can show up before noon on a Tuesday. The hard copy resume is less about the content and more about: did you prepare enough to find a printer, and do you have the social sense to hand it over folded or in a folder?

That said, the QR-only contradiction is lazy. The right move is to assume both will happen. Email yourself the PDF in advance, print a few copies at the library if your building doesn’t have a printer, and keep one in a cheap plastic sleeve so it doesn’t get wet on the train. If they only scan a QR, you hand them the phone. If they ask for paper, you don’t look stunned.

For first_apartment_sam: yes, open calls often include a quick trial drink. It depends on volume, but I’ve seen managers ask everyone to pull a shot, steam a small pitcher, or do a timed pour. They’re not looking for third-wave competition quality at an open call. They want consistency, cleanliness, and whether you can reset the station without being told. Being a little slower but calm will beat fast and messy. Just say you’re still getting used to their machine and ask about dose and basket size before you start. That alone puts you above half the people who show up.

I'm not a coffee person but I did hiring for a juice bar in Manhattan for like three years, and open calls are 90% show. You're checking if they put on deodorant and didn't bring their roommate to the interview. Paper resume is the old head thing; the QR code is the owner thinking they're tech. Bring both and move on. Real advice: bring your own sharpie for the clipboard. Those pens are all dried out.

Manager side here. I’ve run open calls for a few Astoria/LIC spots, and I’ll offer a less cynical read. A hard copy resume is genuinely useful in a loud café when you’re juggling fifteen people and the Wi-Fi is struggling. I can scribble notes on the paper (“ok latte, slow on register, asked about tips”) and then later match it to the person’s face. When someone hands me a phone, I either have to ask them to wait while I read a tiny PDF or fake it and scroll with my thumb over the screen. It slows the line.

The problem is that owners now want to look modern, so they slap a QR code on the door and tell you to “apply online.” That creates the exact mismatch ferryfanatic is describing. My advice: treat the printed resume as a formality and your phone as backup. Print at a library or a FedEx Office, not a bodega. Also, if a manager says they don’t review resumes but still asked for one, that’s a red flag about their own disorganization. I would not work there unless the hourly situation is truly special.

For the open call itself: bring your own pen, wear non-slip shoes even if they’re sneakers, and keep your availability written somewhere on the resume. The number of people who show up and can’t say their Monday-to-Friday availability out loud is shocking.

astoria_arch this is the exact insider perspective I needed. The scribble-on-paper thing makes sense, especially in a loud café with no Wi-Fi. I actually started carrying a little folder with three printed resumes and a pen clipped to it, and now I feel less paranoid. I also keep a PDF copy saved to my lock screen because I’ve had a manager wave away my phone like I was showing them a text from my mom.

Has anyone tried the print kiosks at the chain pharmacy on Knickerbocker? I keep finding them jammed or out of toner, which is why I almost used the bodega printer and got the “you want color or black and white?” side-eye. I’m this close to printing at home with a little thermal label maker just for the bit.

Update: I went to the open call in Astoria. They did ask for a printed resume at the door, but they also had a clipboard. I got called to make a cappuccino on their La Marzocco and I was so nervous I forgot to tamp the portafilter. The bar was quiet, but it was basically just hot water with a coffee ghost in it. The manager said 'interesting,' not in a good way. Does that mean I'm done? Also thanks bike_lane_lou for the tip about asking about the dose—I did ask and it made me look more serious than I felt.

Don't stress too hard. Forgetting to tamp is a classic first-day nerves thing, but fix it next time: put the portafilter on the counter, tamp straight down, then a little polish spin. If nobody showed you the grinder or the tamper, that's on them too. Bring your own tamper? Nah, that's extra. But bring a notebook and write down the machine model and their house recipe. Managers love it when you treat it like a stage instead of a line.

For printing, most branches of the public library give you a few free pages a day if you have a card, and some of them have mobile print where you email the PDF and pick it up. Or just hit a local 24/7 internet café in Flushing if you're already out there. Cheaper than feeding quarters to a broken copier.

first_apartment_sam — no, one bad open call doesn’t blacklist you from coffee jobs. Astoria has a million cafés and they mostly don’t compare notes unless you walked out mid-rush or stole milk. What managers remember is whether you were clean, polite, and easy to train. A forgetful tamp is fixable; an attitude is not.

Here’s what I’d do before the next one. Practice the two drinks you’re most likely to get asked to make: a latte and a cortado. Time yourself with your phone, but don’t rush the purge and clean steps. At the open call, wipe the steam wand after every single use, even if they say not to worry. That one habit reads as “has real café experience” more than a perfect pour. If you get a chance, ask what their current best seller is and offer to make that. It shows you’re thinking about their menu, not just proving you can operate a machine.

And for everyone else in this thread: the paper-vs-QR nonsense isn’t going away, but the real filter is still showing up early, looking put together, and being able to talk to a stranger for five minutes without mentioning TikTok growth or your photography side hustle. Unless you’re applying to be their social media manager, leave that at home.