Job Description

Job Information

• Location: Haftt Cafe & Hookah Lounge, 980 N. La Cienega Blvd., West Hollywood, CA 90069
• Schedule: [Full-time/Part-time]; evening, late-night, weekend, and holiday availability required
• Reports to: Kitchen Lead; Manager on Duty during shifts; General Manager (or ownership, until a General Manager is in place) for overall performance
• Classification: Hourly, non-exempt (overtime eligible)
• Base Pay: Starting at $18.47 per hour, with more offered based on experience

About Haftt

Haftt Cafe & Hookah Lounge is a social dining and lounge destination offering Persian kabobs, pizzas, appetizers, salads, desserts, Persian tea, nonalcoholic beverages, and hookah. Haftt does not serve alcohol.

The kitchen is the foundation of our guest experience. Accurate preparation, consistent quality, proper timing, cleanliness, and reliable communication are essential to ensuring the rest of the operation can serve guests successfully.

The Role

As a Prep & Pantry Cook, you will complete daily food preparation and produce salads, cold items, appetizers, and assigned pantry dishes while helping keep the kitchen clean, stocked, and ready for service.

This is a hands-on kitchen position. During regular service you will combine preparation, cold items, and appetizers; during peak periods you will be assigned a primary station according to ticket volume. Hot-line cooking is handled by our Line Cooks, but you will set up stations, keep the line supplied, and support it when assigned. Depending on the shift, you may prepare and marinate meats for kabobs, prepare pizza ingredients, produce appetizers and salads, wash dishes, receive deliveries, clean equipment, and complete closing duties.

Candidates must be able to demonstrate practical kitchen skills, including safe knife handling, ingredient preparation, portioning, labeling, sanitation, organization, and the ability to follow recipes accurately.

What You'll Do

Preparation

• Review daily preparation needs and complete assigned prep lists accurately and on time.
• Wash, cut, trim, portion, marinate, label, and properly store ingredients.
• Clean, trim, portion, and marinate meats used for Persian kabobs.
• Place meat on skewers with consistent sizing, spacing, weight, and presentation.
• Prepare vegetables, herbs, sauces, dressings, garnishes, and other ingredients.
• Prepare pizza dough, sauces, cheese, toppings, and other required ingredients.
• Maintain sufficient preparation levels for anticipated business without creating unnecessary waste.

Pantry production

• Prepare and assemble salads, cold items, and appetizers according to Haftt's recipes and presentation standards.
• Produce assigned pantry dishes during service, reading and completing kitchen tickets accurately and in the proper sequence.
• Follow established recipes, ingredients, garnishes, plating, and portion standards without making unauthorized changes.
• Check food for quality, freshness, temperature, taste, appearance, and proper preparation.
• Help ensure orders are complete and correct before they leave the kitchen.

Station setup and line support

• Set up, stock, and organize stations before and during service so the pantry and line are ready.
• Support Line Cooks and other kitchen stations during busy periods or staffing shortages, as directed by the Kitchen Lead.
• Take your assigned primary station during peak periods and stay focused on it.

Food safety and storage

• Label, date, cover, rotate, and store food according to FIFO procedures.
• Monitor refrigerator, freezer, dry-storage, and station organization.
• Prevent cross-contamination between raw meat, cooked food, produce, allergens, and ready-to-eat products.
• Follow required cooking, cooling, reheating, holding, and storage temperatures.
• Safely operate knives, food processors, mixers, slicers, and other kitchen equipment.

Communication and coordination

• Communicate sold-out items, low inventory, substitutions, and preparation delays immediately.
• Coordinate with servers, the Kitchen Lead, and management regarding allergies, modifications, unavailable products, and substitutions.
• Report shortages, spoiled products, damaged items, and inventory concerns promptly.
• Receive and inspect deliveries for quantity, temperature, quality, damage, and freshness when assigned.

Cleaning and team support

• Keep prep tables, cutting boards, knives, sinks, equipment, shelves, floors, and storage areas clean and sanitary.
• Wash dishes, cookware, utensils, and kitchen equipment when assigned or when operationally necessary.
• Complete opening, closing, cleaning, restocking, trash removal, and equipment-shutdown duties.
• Notify management immediately of equipment problems, food-safety issues, injuries, pest activity, or unsafe conditions.
• Follow instructions from the Kitchen Lead and management, written procedures, checklists, and corrective training consistently.

What You'll Bring

• Demonstrable professional kitchen experience is strongly preferred.
• Practical knife skills and the ability to safely and consistently prepare basic ingredients.
• Strong organization, labeling, and portioning habits.
• Experience preparing Persian kabobs, marinades, salads, appetizers, or pizza ingredients is highly desirable.
• Ability to follow recipes, portions, and presentation standards precisely.
• Understanding of kitchen sanitation, temperature control, storage, FIFO rotation, and cross-contamination prevention.
• Ability to manage multiple preparation priorities and keep prep on schedule during service.
• Strong attention to quality, freshness, consistency, order accuracy, and timing.
• Ability to identify shortages and communicate them before they interrupt service.
• Reliability, punctuality, and willingness to complete the entire assigned shift.
• Dependable evening, late-night, weekend, and holiday availability.
• Willingness to assist with dishes, cleaning, receiving, restocking, and closing - not only food preparation.
• Ability to accept feedback, correct mistakes, and consistently follow established procedures.
• Respectful communication with servers, baristas, hookah attendants, support staff, and management.
• Comfort working independently while remaining part of a small, flexible team.

How Success Is Measured

Performance in this role is evaluated on prep-list completion, product freshness, portion accuracy, ticket times for pantry items, and station cleanliness.

Practical Skills Evaluation

Selected candidates may be asked to complete a paid working interview or practical skills assessment, as permitted by applicable law. The evaluation may include:

• Safe knife handling and basic vegetable preparation
• Ingredient identification and organization
• Following a recipe or preparation instructions
• Portioning, labeling, and consistency
• Sanitation and workstation cleanliness
• Appetizer, salad, or kabob preparation
• Station setup and organization
• Communication and performance during service

Prior job titles alone will not replace the need to demonstrate the practical skills required for the position.

Certifications and Requirements

• California Food Handler Card required within 30 days of hire.
• Completion of Haftt's recipe, equipment, food-safety, sanitation, and emergency-procedure training.
• Ability to stand and work for extended periods.
• Ability to bend, reach, twist, and perform repetitive preparation tasks.
• Ability to safely lift and carry approximately 40 pounds.
• Ability to work around knives, grills, ovens, open flames, hot surfaces, raw meat, cleaning products, and commercial kitchen equipment.
• Ability to work in a kitchen connected to an environment where hookah smoking occurs.
• Evening, late-night, weekend, and holiday availability as required.

Schedule and Work Environment

This position regularly includes evening, late-night, weekend, and holiday shifts. Preparation, opening, cleaning, and closing duties may take place before or after published guest-service hours.

The kitchen can be hot, busy, and fast-paced. Because Haftt operates with a relatively small team, employees may be assigned to preparation, appetizers, salads, pantry dishes, dishwashing, receiving, cleaning, or closing based on business needs.

Haftt provides training on its recipes, portion standards, equipment, kitchen procedures, and service expectations. Employees must retain the training and follow corrected procedures consistently.

Pay and Benefits

• Base pay: Starting at $18.47 per hour, with more offered based on experience
• Complimentary staff meal during eligible shifts
• Employee dining discount
• Paid sick leave and other benefits as required by applicable law
• Training and opportunities for additional kitchen responsibilities as the team grows

How to Apply

Please apply directly through the job platform where you found this posting.

Questions about the role, or a request for a reasonable accommodation during the application or interview process, may be sent to careers@hafttcafe.com.

Equal Opportunity and Fair Chance Employment

Haftt Cafe & Hookah Lounge is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Employment decisions are based on qualifications, demonstrated skills, experience, performance, availability, and legitimate business needs. Haftt does not discriminate based on any characteristic protected by applicable law.

Haftt will consider qualified applicants with criminal histories in accordance with applicable California and local fair-chance requirements.

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