Retreat Center Cook

Spirit Rock is looking for a great cook, with catering or large-scale corporate lunch service background being the best fit. We offer great benefits, good pay and a wonderful work life balance. The latest shift is over at 7:30 PM with two of the four available shifts being done by 2:00 PM.

We are currently sourcing from the Marin Farmers Market and will take cooks to the market if they are interested. We do a weekly market menu where the kitchen manager and a cook can collaborate on the menu to use farms like Full Belly, Marin Roots and Star Route farms among others.

Beyond full health benefits and paid vacation, we offer the unique experience of being able to be paid to sit retreat at the center. This time accrues like regular vacation time and is a great way of learning about or continuing your meditation practice.

Spirit Rock's Retreat Center Cooks work collaboratively to prepare meals for all residential retreats, internal meetings and special events. They also train and supervise retreatants performing work meditations in the kitchen, and model behavior that supports mindfulness practice in the retreat environment.

This is a five day a week fully on-site position with no remote work available.

Specific Responsibilities

Food Preparation

• Prepare and serve tasty and nutritious lacto‐ovo vegetarian meals on schedule.
• Follow recipes and adjust quantities as needed.
• Collaborate on new recipes and create independently as needed.
• Maintain an orderly and efficient kitchen work space.
• Ensure the work environment meets or surpasses hygiene and safety standards set by regulations.
• Train and support retreatants in kitchen tasks.
• Provide ongoing guidance and problem solving support to retreatants and other cooks as needed.
• Assist with special events as needed.

Other

• Attend kitchen staff meetings and all staff meetings as scheduled.
• Attend staff training on First Aid/CPR, emergency preparedness and others as assigned.
• Keep up to date with kitchen‐related emails, schedules and kitchen updates.
• Help put away food deliveries, keep the kitchen clean and stocked, and assist with retreatant work meditations.
• Other related assignments as necessary.
• Performs daily recordkeeping tasks including quantity logs, inventory and recipe modification.

Qualifications

• Minimum one year of professional cooking experience focused on organic ingredients and seasonal produce, in a high volume vegetarian kitchen, preferably in a contemplative work setting.
• Flexibility in schedule on a daily and weekly basis, and ability to work evenings and weekends.
• Strong interpersonal communication skills; ability to take direction; ability to function as both team leader and team player.
• Ability to remain calm in a sometimes fast-paced work environment and ability to work compassionately with retreatants.
• Reliable transportation to Spirit Rock, which is located in a rural area with limited public transportation access
  
• Physical: Required to lift, carry, push or pull objects up to 50 pounds. Frequently required to perform moderately difficult manipulative tasks such as lifting large pans of food in and out of the oven, carrying heavy boxes of produce, performing repetitive motions of cutting, stirring and whisking. Ability to work in a standing position for up to 8 hours in the kitchen.