Lead Barista

Lead BaristaPearl & Leaf is seeking a strong working Lead Barista who genuinely lives for drink making, tasting, testing, and iteration, has excellent taste, and can help build and refine the Pearl & Leaf beverage menu while remaining fully hands-on in daily service. This is not an overbuilt beverage-director role. The right person should enjoy making drinks themselves, turning ideas into testable concepts, improving recipes repeatedly, training teammates, and keeping quality consistent shift after shift.What This Role OwnsWork regular barista shifts and personally prepare drinks during normal service.Take beverage ideas from leadership and turn them into practical, testable drink concepts.Create, test, and iterate milk teas, fruit teas, matcha beverages, coffee drinks, seasonal drinks, and specialty beverages.Evaluate flavor, sweetness, acidity, texture, aroma, temperature, dilution, and presentation, and clearly explain why a drink works or does not work.Standardize successful recipes so they can be reproduced consistently by other employees.Train baristas on recipes, technique, workflow, presentation, sanitation, and service standards.Monitor drink consistency during service and coach the team when quality drifts.Help develop prep methods, batch recipes, station setup, labeling, and beverage production procedures.Work with the Store Manager on ingredient needs, shortages, quality issues, and operational requirements.Participate in tastings, seasonal menu development, launch preparation, and product feedback sessions.Interact naturally with customers and gather useful feedback on new and existing drinks.Participate in beverage-focused social media, product launches, demonstrations, and marketing content when requested.Hard Skills and Technical RequirementsMinimum 3 years of professional barista, specialty beverage, cafe, bubble tea, tea, or comparable beverage experience.Strong hands-on beverage preparation skills and demonstrated knowledge of recipe balance and consistency.Experience with at least several of the following: espresso, coffee, tea, milk tea, fruit tea, matcha, syrups, toppings, cold beverages, shaken drinks, or blended beverages.Ability to convert a concept into a repeatable recipe with specific ingredients, quantities, steps, yield, and presentation standards.Ability to taste analytically and explain adjustments clearly.Understanding of beverage station setup, sanitation, food handling, storage, labeling, and freshness standards.Ability to train others and maintain recipe consistency across different employees and shifts.Comfort working quickly and accurately during high-volume service.Comfort using Toast POS and basic operational checklists.Soft Skills We ValueDeep passion for beverages. The ideal candidate genuinely lives for drink making, tasting, testing, and iteration.Strong creative taste without losing sight of consistency or operational practicality.Experimentation mindset and willingness to test, receive feedback, and improve repeatedly.Clear communication and ability to explain flavor decisions simply.Coachability and willingness to collaborate with leadership rather than treating menu development as a solo function.Patience when training others.Attention to detail.Reliability and ownership.Warm, guest-friendly personality.Organization and cleanliness.Bias toward making, testing, and improving rather than over-planning.Brand and Marketing ExpectationsComfortable appearing and speaking on camera for appropriate Pearl & Leaf and DM Plaza content.Able to explain drinks, ingredients, flavor choices, and preparation in a natural and engaging way.Comfortable participating in drink launches, tastings, demonstrations, behind-the-scenes content, and other marketing activities.Application RequirementsTell us about a beverage you developed or significantly improved. What did you change and why?Share photos, menus, recipes, or a portfolio of drinks you personally created, if available.Be prepared to explain your exact contribution to any drink, menu, or concept included in your application materials.Preferred QualificationsExperience developing original beverage recipes or seasonal specials.Experience with milk tea, fruit tea, matcha, specialty coffee, or Asian beverage concepts.Experience training junior baristas.Restaurant or cafe opening experience.Portfolio, photos, recipes, menus, or examples of drinks personally created.Ability to speak Bengali is a plus but is not required.What Success Looks LikePearl & Leaf has a beverage menu that is distinctive, balanced, repeatable, and operationally practical.Winning drink concepts are documented well enough that another trained employee can reproduce them consistently.Baristas understand both how to make the drinks and what quality should taste and look like.New ideas move quickly from concept to test to refinement to launch.The Lead Barista remains a strong hands-on operator during regular service, not only a menu-development resource.Compensation DetailsCompensation: Hourly ($25.00 - $29.00) plus tipsRequired SkillsCreativity in Beverage DevelopmentAnalytical ThinkingAttention to Quality ControlTeam LeadershipCustomer EngagementAdaptability in High Pressure SituationsMentorship SkillsProblem Solving