Catering Assistant

Job Title - Catering Assistant

Salary - FTE - £21,575.00 **prorate to £8630.00 per annum**

Hours - 15 hours (Thursday & Friday 9:00-17:00)

Contract - Type - Permanent - Part Time

Location - Sage House, Tangmere, PO20 2FP

**Overview**

Are you passionate about home cooked food and all the traditional favourites? Do you love to connect and make people smile while delivering excellent customer service front of house and create a real buzz in our Café at Sage House in Tangmerethen come and join our team of like minded people who are making a difference every single day.

Our Catering Assistant position is a parttime role, 2 days a week and will be front of house in our café where we create a positive and friendly environment for our customer who are living with dementia and their carers. in addition to customers from our local community.

You will also work with our fantastic team of volunteers who are both in the kitchen or serving front of house. The Café is often buzzing and is well attended every day. It also brings people in from the local community for lunch and snacksnot forgetting our hungry staff

There’s so much scope to make this a role your own and bring your flare to every day. As a charity we’re experiential and brave and we’re always up for trying new things. Daisy’s Café plays an incredible role within the Hubit’s welcoming, bright and central to all we offer and often the first connection point.

We’re a busy charity, we’re constantly innovating and experimenting with new ideas, so embracing that creative flare, while working collaboratively with the broader team to help make great things happen in and around our Café will be a huge asset.

**Job Purpose**

This is a hands-on role which will deliver quality, friendly catering services for and on behalf of Dementia Support. This will include assisting with preparation of light meals, keeping front of house clean and tidy and representing our Charity in a positive and friendly welcoming manner. The Catering Assistant will work with the Cook and team of Volunteers to provide a great service to all our customers. If you are a team player willing to assist in the kitchen and café then this could be the ideal role for you

**Responsibilities**
- Prepare the café for the day, this may involve moving chairs & tables, wiping tables, stocking the fridge with food and drinks
- Providing a friendly welcome to all visitors and offer excellent standards of customer service and care. Be polite, approachable, patient and attentive
- Learn quickly and be able to work well within a team and with Volunteers. Provide support and direction to volunteers assisting in the café and kitchen
- Be happy working in a busy environment and being able to multitask
- Be adept at taking and recalling orders accurately and processing payments for orders by cash and card by using the till
- Serving customers efficiently with food and drinks at the counter and taking food to tables with cutlery and serviettes
- Support the Cook in the completion of simple food preparation of savoury pastries, sandwiches, cakes etcand for event buffets or activity groups
- Ensure gluten free food preparation is completed separately to non-gluten free food preparation and that serving utensils are kept separately
- Address immediate customer concerns, questions and needs in order to provide an optimal experience and raise with Service Manager when appropriate
- Clearing & cleaning vacated tables ready for the next customer.
- Clean and sanitize all equipment, serving utensils in the kitchen and front of house in the café and restock to correct storage areas noting any damages and items to be replaced
- Use of the kitchen equipment such as dishwasher, microwave and maintaining the coffee machine and hot water urn
- Mop all kitchen/storeroom floors with disinfectant after service
- Ensure weekly cleaning is completed as per the cleaning schedule
- Clean out and wipe down the cake baking and seasoning cupboards weekly and keep front of house clean and tidy
- Any other ad hoc duties that may be reasonably required

**Skills**
- Familiar with health and cleanliness standards for food preparation and presentation
- Have exceptional interpersonal skills for working with the general public
- Be a team player and willing to take on additional tasks to get the job done
- Familiar with a variety of food types, menus, recipes, and general aesthetics and food presentation
- Excellent time management and communication skills
- Ability to work in high pressure situations
- Organised and able to use initiative, completing work efficiently
- Take pride in your work and have a keen eye for detail

**Qualifications & Experience**
- Hold a minimum of Level 2 Food Safety & Hygiene Catering Certificate - Essential
- Experience of working in a café/kitchen environment - Essential
- Experience of working in a customer facing role including cash handling, ideally within the catering sector