Commis Chef at Channing House

ABOUT US

Channing House is a leading not-for-profit Life Care Community in Palo Alto, founded in 1960. We believe that older adults thrive in a vibrant setting that supports active, engaged and healthy living. We provide a sustainable, innovative community that promotes this lifestyle, while embracing respect and dignity for all who live and work here. Our team of 170 staff members, from Front-Line to Leadership, drive the mission of Channing House, providing services to the 265 highly engaged residents who call Channing House their home.

POSITION SUMMARY

The Cook works to store, prepare and cook a variety of hot and cold food items for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and special/catered events. Responsibilities include the production and packaging of food, with a focus on recipes that require a more advanced level of cooking skill. The Cook I also contributes to overall kitchen cleanliness and organization. Together with the entire team at Channing House, your role contributes to promoting a healthy and vibrant home for our residents.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

This position will be responsible for, but not limited to the following essential duties and responsibilities:

Food Preparation and Storage 70% of job duties-

• Prepare and cook to order foods that may require short preparation time.
• Receive inventory, move and lift foodstuffs and supplies for proper storage.
• Produce some batch goods using basic cooking techniques.
• Prepare foods under direct supervision or instruction
• Clean and sanitize work stations and equipment.
• Operate a variety of kitchen equipment to measure and mix ingredients, wash, peel, cut and shred fruits and vegetables, and trim and cut meat, poultry or fish for culinary use.
• Follow recipes and/or product directions for preparing, seasoning, cooking, tasting, carving and serving soups, meats, vegetables, desserts and other foodstuffs for consumption.
• Prepare food in accordance with current applicable federal, state and corporate standards, guidelines and regulations to ensure high-quality food service is provided.
• May perform other duties and responsibilities as assigned.

Customer Service 15% of job duties:

• Prepare meals for customers requiring special diets.
• Prepare food and serve customers at an a la carte. Operate a grill station.
• Read food order or receive verbal instructions on food required by patron, and prepare food according to instructions.
• Provide the highest quality of service to customers at all times.
• Taste products, read menus, estimate food requirements, check production, and keep records in order to accurately plan production requirements and requisition supplies and equipment.

Training and Policy Adherence 15% of job duties:

• Ensure compliance with various licensing and regulatory agencies, including but not limited to: Santa Clara County Department of Health, CDPH, CDSS, CalOSHA, etc.
• Attend all allergy and food-borne illness in-service training.
• Report all accidents and injuries in a timely manner.
• Participate in regular safety meetings, safety training and hazard assessments.
• Attend training programs (classroom and virtual) as designated.

Upholding Company Standards:

Consistent commitment to:

• Establish and maintain effective team relationships with fellow staff; apply effective communication and listening skills
• Demonstrate professionalism in all interactions with all residents, colleagues, clients, vendors, and members of the public
• Provide a supportive and caring environment to meet the needs of residents as individuals and as members of a shared community
• Adhere to all company policies, procedures, safety, and compliance practices, and business ethics codes

JOB REQUIREMENTS / QUALIFICATIONS

To perform this job successfully, a person must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill and/or ability required.

Years of Related Professional Experience:

• 2-3 years of related work experience.
• Knowledge of basic operation of equipment and cash-handling procedures preferred.

Educational/Position Requirements:

• High School diploma, GED or equivalent experience preferred.

Computer/Software/Technical Applications:

• Ability to use a computer.

Languages:

• Ability to speak and comprehend English the primary language used in the workplace; ability to speak and/or comprehend other languages utilized by clients is a plus.

Required Licenses/ Certifications/ Background:

• Must possess or be able to obtain a California Food Handlers Card before starting employment
• ServSafe certification preferred

Travel Required:

• 0%

Skills:

• Speaking Talking to others to convey information effectively.
• Active Listening Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
• Reading Comprehension Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• Critical Thinking Use logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
• Writing Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
• Service Orientation Actively looking for ways to help people.
• Customer Service Manages difficult or emotional situations involving residents, resident families, and/or staff; responds promptly to needs of residents, resident families, and/or staff; responds to requests for service and assistance.
• Social Perceptiveness Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
• Time Management Managing one's own time and the time of others.
• Professionalism Presents self in a highly professional manner to others and communicate with co-workers and other departments with professionalism and respect. Maintains a professional relationship with all coworkers, vendor representatives, supervisors, managers, residents, and resident families.
• Quality Management Looks for ways to improve and promote quality.
• Safety and Security Observes and ensures staff compliance with safety and security procedures; determines appropriate action beyond guidelines; reports potentially unsafe conditions; uses equipment and materials properly.
• Cultural Awareness - Demonstrates knowledge of EEO policy; shows respect and sensitivity for cultural differences; promotes a harassment-free environment.
• Culinary Excellent working knowledge of food preparation and technical skills. Familiarity with kitchen equipment, cooking and presentation.

Abilities:

• Oral Comprehension The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Oral Expression The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
• Written Expression The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
• Deductive Reasoning The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
• Problem Sensitivity The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
• Speech Clarity The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
• Learning Willingness to be open to learning and growing.
• Information Ordering The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
• Ethics Treats people with respect; inspires the trust of others; works with integrity and ethically; upholds organizational values.
• Positivity Ability to maintain a positive attitude.
• Presentability Maintains high standards for work areas and appearance. Upholds dress code requirements.
• Quality Demonstrates accuracy and thoroughness; looks for ways to improve and promote quality; applies feedback to improve performance.
• Attendance/Punctuality Consistently at work and on time.
• Dependability Follows instructions, responds to management direction; takes responsibility for own actions; keeps commitments.

Reporting Relationships:

• Number of Direct Reports (if applicable): 0

Work Environment:

• Generally in an indoor setting.
• Supervise activities and events outdoors. May be exposed to heat/cold during support of outside activities.
• The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate to loud.
• Some exposure to smoke, steam, high temperatures and humidity
• Position requires ability to work nights, weekends and some holidays.

Physical Demands:

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. While performing the duties of this job, the employee is frequently required to:

• Stand on your feet throughout work period. Significant walking or other means of mobility.
• Repetitive use of hands and fingers using tools such as knives, peelers and other kitchen instruments
• Prolonged periods using hot stove/oven and industrial kitchen equipment
• Possess multi-limb and eye-hand coordination
• Able to reach, bend, stoop, push and/or pull, and frequently lift/move up to 40 pounds.
• Utilize specific vision abilities for viewing work related processes and materials handling.
• Occasionally must be able to distinguish flavor profile when completing preparation lists
• Talk or hear during face-to-face communications in a noisy commercial kitchen work area

Channing House Diversity Statement:

Channing House is an equal opportunity employer. Channing House is committed to providing a work environment free of harassment, discrimination, retaliation, and disrespectful or other unprofessional conduct based on actual or perceived race (including traits historically associated with race, such as natural hair, hair texture, hair type, and protective hairstyles), color, age, religion, national origin, ancestry, citizenship, immigration status, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, and related medical conditions), gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, reproductive health decision making, disability (including sensory disability and use of a service animal by a person with a disability), HIV/AIDS and Hepatitis C status, a legally protected medical condition, genetic information or data credit history, genetic information, status as a victim or domestic or sexual violence (including harassment, sexual assault, or stalking), expunged juvenile record, arrest or conviction records (except as legally required), use or non-use of lawful products off of Company premises during non-working hours, performance of duty in a uniformed service military or veteran status, or any other basis protected by local, state and/or federal law. Channing House also prohibits discrimination, harassment, disrespectful, or unprofessional conduct based on the perception that anyone has any of those characteristics, or is associated with a person who has or is perceived as having any of those characteristics.