Lead Cook

necessary & sufficient coffee® | Printers Row, Chicago
Full-time | $21–$23/hour
Typical schedule: Friday-Tuesday | NO LATE NIGHTS Ready for your first real kitchen leadership role?

necessary & sufficient coffee® is an independently owned, woman-owned Chicago café built around seasonal food, sustainability and craft.

We’re hiring a hands-on Lead Cook for our small breakfast-and-lunch kitchen in Printers Row. This is a terrific next step for a strong professional cook who is ready for more responsibility, creative input and leadership experience.

You’ll cook every day, help guide prep and service, support a small kitchen team and gradually build the operational skills required to run a successful kitchen. You do not need to arrive as a finished chef-manager. You do need strong cooking fundamentals, dependable follow-through and a genuine desire to learn.

• Cook and help lead daily prep, production and service
• Organize prep lists, recipes and stations
• Maintain consistent food quality, timing and presentation
• Follow and reinforce food-safety and cleanliness standards
• Train and support kitchen teammates
• Help execute catering and grab-and-go production

Working with ownership and operations leadership, you’ll deepen your skills in:

• Inventory, ordering, pars and waste
• Recipe writing and food costing
• Seasonal menu development
• Kitchen documentation and systems
• Catering planning and execution
• Leading a small kitchen operation

• Professional kitchen experience and strong prep, knife and cooking skills
• Dependable attendance and punctuality
• A calm, organized approach during busy service
• Clear, respectful communication
• An interest in food costing, ordering and kitchen leadership
• Availability for the posted schedule
• Illinois food-safety manager certification, or willingness to obtain it within [30/60] days

$21–$23/hour, based on experience , plus catering tips and delivery pay.

Benefits include:

• PTO: 1 hour earned for every 26 hours worked
• 401(k) with employer match: 4% match eligibility in 6 months
• Mileage reimbursement
• Performance-based bonus
• Disability and life insurance
• Shift meal and drink
• Retail discount

Transportation requirement: 3x weekly food delivery between locations, delivery of catering orders - several per month, (you receive the delivery fees and tips associated with food catering)

Apply with your résumé or work history and your schedule availability. Qualified candidates will have a brief phone conversation, one in-person interview and, for finalists, a paid working interview. We communicate clearly and move promptly.

Bring your cooking skills, curiosity and appetite for doing things well. We’ll bring the coffee.