Assistant Manager - Early Morning Brenen's Cafe - OSU Campus

Job Description

Job Description

Brenen’s Cafe | The Ohio State University Campus

Brenen’s Cafe is looking for a dependable, hands-on Assistant Manager to help lead our weekday café operation on The Ohio State University campus.

This is an excellent opportunity for an experienced restaurant or café professional who prefers an early-morning, Monday-through-Friday schedule . A major part of this role is helping open the café, baking and preparing products, organizing the team, and making sure we are fully prepared for a successful breakfast and lunch service.

We are looking for a strong second-in-command who can support the General Manager, take ownership of daily responsibilities, and lead the team without needing constant direction.

Schedule

• Full-time position
• Monday through Friday
• No regular weekend shifts
• Early-morning availability is required
• Shifts begin before the café opens to allow time for baking, food preparation, and setup
• Located on The Ohio State University campus in Columbus, Ohio

Exact starting times may vary depending on the needs of the café and the university schedule.

Primary Responsibilities

The Assistant Manager will work alongside the General Manager to oversee daily café operations, including:

• Opening the café in the early morning
• Baking breads, pastries, and other café products
• Completing morning food preparation and product setup
• Preparing, slicing, portioning, and organizing ingredients
• Ensuring the café is fully stocked and ready before service
• Leading and positioning employees for successful shifts
• Managing breakfast and lunch execution
• Maintaining food quality, presentation, and portion standards
• Providing friendly and professional customer service
• Supervising, training, coaching, and motivating team members
• Maintaining a clean, organized, and food-safe workplace
• Ordering products from approved vendors
• Monitoring inventory, product levels, and food waste
• Assisting with employee scheduling
• Handling customer concerns professionally
• Supporting opening, cleaning, prep, and other daily café duties
• Stepping into any position necessary to help the team succeed

This is a hands-on leadership position. The Assistant Manager must be willing and able to learn and perform every job in the café.

Ideal Candidate

Our ideal candidate:

• Has restaurant, café, bakery, deli, or food-service management experience
• Has experience in a Panera-style, fast-casual, bakery-café, or high-volume lunch environment
• Enjoys working early mornings
• Has baking, culinary, food-preparation, or kitchen experience
• Is culinary-minded or able to learn recipes and preparation standards quickly
• Is excellent with customers
• Can manage preparation, baking, product setup, lunch execution, and employee positioning
• Is professional, dependable, organized, and detail-oriented
• Can recognize what needs to be done and take action without constant direction
• Communicates clearly with employees, customers, and management
• Is comfortable giving direction and holding employees accountable
• Leads by example and is willing to work alongside the team

Minimum Qualifications

Applicants must have:

• At least two years of supervisory or management experience
• Restaurant, café, bakery, kitchen, or food-service experience
• Strong early-morning and weekday availability
• A high school diploma or equivalent; college education is preferred
• Knowledge of food-safety regulations and health department standards
• Basic knowledge of inventory, ordering, food costs, and profit-and-loss statements
• Basic math and accounting skills
• Strong leadership, communication, customer-service, and conflict-resolution skills
• Reliable transportation and consistent attendance
• A professional appearance and attitude
• The ability to work full-time, Monday through Friday

Physical Requirements

The Assistant Manager must be able to:

• Stand and work on their feet for shifts of approximately eight hours
• Regularly lift and carry 35–50 pounds
• Bend, stretch, push, pull, and reach
• Perform repetitive food-preparation and baking tasks
• Continuously use both hands and wrists
• Work safely and efficiently in a fast-paced café environment

Why Join Brenen’s Cafe?

Brenen’s Cafe has been part of the Ohio State community for decades. We take pride in serving high-quality food made with quality ingredients, offering unique menu combinations, and providing exceptional customer service.

This position offers the consistency of a weekday schedule while still providing the energy and opportunity of a busy campus café. For the right person, the Assistant Manager position could be the beginning of a rewarding long-term career with us.

If you are an experienced café or restaurant leader who enjoys early mornings, baking, preparing excellent food, serving customers, and helping a team succeed, we would love to hear from you.

Apply today to join the Brenen’s Cafe team on The Ohio State University campus.