Cook position on Put-in-Bay + Housing! (Put-in-Bay)

Who are we?

At The Forge, we serve a stylish menu that includes gourmet crepes, exquisite craft cocktails and unique coffee concoctions on a trendy resort island in Lake Erie. We are a locally owned restaurant striving to provide a quality, memorabl

Who are we?

At The Forge, we serve a stylish menu that includes gourmet crepes, exquisite craft cocktails and unique coffee concoctions on a trendy resort island in Lake Erie. We are a locally owned restaurant striving to provide a quality, memorable experience to our customers. This concept was created by three friends over margaritas in 2011. After converting the island’s original blacksmith shop into a restaurant, the doors to The Forge opened in 2012. We are proud to have been rated as the TripAdvisor #1 restaurant on the island multiple years running! Last season we were also awarded the #1 restaurant in all of our county!

Where are we?

South Bass (Put-in-Bay to locals) is a small resort island with multiple restaurants, pool bars, shopping, golf carts, water activities, a national monument and Us! Easily the most well-known of the Bass Island chain, we are located in Lake Erie and surrounded by many more islands, including Middle Bass, Kelley’s and Pelee. The island is well known as being the seat of the key Battle of 1812, we love to fly flags with the now popular phrase, ‘Don’t give up the ship!’. The famous Cedar Point amusement park is only a 20-minute boat ride away. We are a one-hour drive from Cleveland or Toledo and about two hours from Columbus. To reach the island, there are two ferries that service us: the Miller Ferry or the Jet Express.

What do we do?

We are a full service establishment that goes from brunch to dinner. We have a full bar serving breakfast cocktails and coffee drinks in the morning, craft cocktails with lunch and a full wine menu through dinner. Our menu is separated into timed sections to allow us to serve a brunch menu in the morning and early afternoon, a lunch menu in the afternoon and a dinner menu in the evening. We are a small restaurant that allows our cooks to focus on food quality and plate presentation over volume of dishes churned out. We have two separate kitchens here, one is a traditional BOH setup which includes a fryer, a range and a flattop, the other includes our crepe stones, sandwich and salad station. This FOH kitchen is open for the customers to watch us make our crepe creations, separated from the dining room by our barista counter.

What do we want?

We are seeking responsible, respectful and capable cooks. We would like someone whose work is efficient and clean, can follow instructions as it pertains to recipes and station assignments and uphold high food safety standards, now more than ever. If you are interested in a position and have not worked as a cook, we can train on one of the cold stations. We would love to work with anyone who is positive, friendly, hard-working and reliable. If you have experience with breakfast cooking, please let us know!

What are the cook’s responsibilities?

Basic responsibilities that apply to every station: turning on equipment, gathering tools for service, getting sanitation products for station, restocking, prepping, working on recipes, executing menu items, following plate presentation, cleaning, turning off equipment, running a dish machine, sweeping, mopping, taking out garbage, following verbal directions, etc. The FOH cooks will learn how to use crepe stones, panini presses and steam wells. The BOH cooks should ideally know how to use a fryer, range, oven and flattop. Training will be done further to ensure the BOH cooks are comfortable using cast iron pans to cook steaks and cooking eggs to proper temperature. Throughout all of this, you will be required to maintain food safety and cleanliness standards.

What does our schedule look like?

Due to the way the kitchens are set up and the fact that we are open from breakfast to dinner, the schedule is set up differently than most places. There are two shifts, one morning (7/8am-3pm) and one evening (3pm-11pm), we do not subscribe to the 12 hours straight standing over the grill mentality. We want our employees to have free time to enjoy the island outside of work and not get burnt out! We will be open six days per week this year, each cook will work one of the above shifts per day. This will also ensure that you get the same day off each week.

What is it like to live and work here?

Living on the island and working for a quality establishment can lead to an incredibly fulfilling summer. Everyone here will become like your family, celebrating the same successes and working as a team will help to build concrete relationships that last far beyond one summer here. The atmosphere is very laid back, the term ‘island time’ reigns true here. A few of the activities you can get into include any and all water sports (renting jet skis, kayaking, sailing, boating and on), island hopping to our neighbors, multiple nature hikes throughout the island, two golf courses, golf cart rentals, parasailing, skydiving, helicopter rides, a wide variety of pools, bars, restaurants and shopping, day trips to Cedar Point, nature and history museums, a national monument and so much more! We have a grocery store, a post office, a hardware store and a gas station on the island. Expect that you will make some great friends and amazing memories in your time here.

What do I need to know about housing?

Housing is provided for our employees for a small fee, which comes out of your check weekly. Housing is complete with kitchens, bathrooms, beds, closets, dressers, etc. It is move in ready. There are two areas that we use for housing, a renovated apartment above our restaurant and a house directly across the street from us. The price of housing depends on which location you choose. There is no need for cars once on the island as work and housing are directly downtown, and we are next to the grocery store. There is a place to park your car at the ferry on the island if you do choose to bring it over.

What else should I know?

We have already started our 2020 season here. We are looking for a few more individuals to join us until the end of September or October, whichever you are available for. Be aware of where we are located and that you will be expected to live in housing on the island if you accept a position. We can not provide any sort of transportation while you are on the mainland.