Overview
Kitchen Staff Jobs in Topsham, ME at Knead & Nosh
Are you looking to be more than just an employee?
Do you want to help build something from the ground up and directly share in its success? At Knead & Nosh, we believe a bakery is only as strong as its team. We are looking for energetic, mission-driven individuals to join us as Founding Team Members in a new, dynamic, and creative culinary environment.
We are a startup focused on establishing deep community roots and growing through excellence. We don’t care if you’ve never touched bagel dough. We value your growth mindset, your reliability, and your desire to be part of a collective success story. We will teach you the craft; you bring the heart and the hustle.
Why Join Us? Shared Success
We operate on a "Shared Success" philosophy: we all do better when the business does better.
- Compensation Philosophy: We believe in a "Performance + Base" model. We offer a competitive base wage with significant "upside" through our quarterly profit-sharing program. Our goal is to ensure that as the bakery grows, your total hourly take-home pay grows with it.
- Quarterly Profit Sharing: Every quarter, the bakery sets aside 10% of our Distributable Profit into a shared pool for staff bonuses.
- Transparency & Security: This program is designed to ensure the bakery remains financially healthy while providing you with long-term job security.
- Keep Your Tips: 100% of tips are distributed to non-exempt, non-managerial staff based on total hours worked.
The Role: Cross-Trained Specialist
Phase 1: The Ground Floor (First 3 Months) To ensure operational redundancy and handle the "morning rush," every team member is cross-trained in all four operational divisions. You will spend your 3-month probationary period becoming proficient in essential skills:
- Hospitality & Guest Experience: Mastering POS operations, coffee brewing, and front-of-house sanitation.
- Culinary & Component Prep: Learning food safety, basic scaling/mise en place, and station sanitation.
- Dough Production: Learning scaling and mixing basics and mixer sanitation.
- Oven & Finishing: Mastering bagel topping, bao steaming logistics, and tray management.
Phase 2: Developing Your Specialty Once you’ve mastered the essentials, you’ll work with the team to identify which division you want to "level up" in. Whether it’s rolling bagels, component cooking, or proofing management, we will help you grow your expertise.
Specialty Opportunity: Saturday Farmers Market
We are looking for at least one team member interested in leading our Saturday Farmers Market presence. This role involves driving, transporting equipment/product, and managing the market stall independently.
Who You Are
- A Lifelong Learner: You’re excited to gain new skills and don’t have "old habits" that get in the way of learning the Knead & Nosh way.
- A Team Player: You identify with the bakery’s mission and care about minimizing waste to increase the shared profit pool.
- Mission-Driven: You want to be part of an independent shop that thrives on "outstanding service" and "long-term customer relationships”.
- Community-Minded: You believe a local business has a responsibility to give back and are excited to support our partnerships with organizations like the Mid Coast Hunger Prevention Program.
- Flexible: You’re happy to jump from the oven to the front counter whenever the team needs you.
Essential Physical Requirements
To perform the daily duties of this role, candidates must be able to perform the following, with or without reasonable accommodation:
- Facility Access: Ability to navigate stairs to reach upper-level storage, the office, and the staff break room.
- Material Handling (Bulk): Ability to lift, move, and scale bulk ingredients, including 50-pound bags of flour and 60 lb pails of barley malt syrup.
- Dough Extraction & Mixing: Ability to stand and reach into a fixed-bowl spiral mixer to extract dough batches weighing up to 38 pounds.
- Equipment Operation & Reach: Ability to safely reach and operate a double-stack convection oven and monitor/extract bagels from a 37-inch-high boiling kettle.
- Sanitation & Cleaning: Ability to stand and reach into large equipment (mixer bowls and kettles) and deep 3-compartment sinks for thorough cleaning.
- Stamina & Pace: Ability to remain active and on your feet for a 6–8 hour shift in a fast-paced environment.
Availability & Expectations
- Shift Windows: We are looking for staff available for shifts starting as early as 5:00 AM or ending as late as 4:00 PM. (Note: Start times may adjust slightly as we refine our production schedule for opening).
- Commitment: Priority is given to candidates seeking year-round, long-term employment.
- Learning: A "lifelong learner" attitude is essential; prior bakery experience is not required, but a "can-do" spirit is.
- Certification: All employees must obtain a ServSafe Food Handler certification (facilitated by the bakery).
Pay: $18.00 – $27.00 per hour
Benefits:
- Paid time off
- Professional development assistance
- Retirement plan
Work Location: In person
Title: Kitchen Staff
Company: Knead & Nosh
Location: Topsham, ME
