Seasonal Barista & Cafe Associate - Dandelion Chocolate

About Us

Dandelion Chocolate is a bean-to-bar chocolate factory in San Francisco’s Mission District. We make chocolate from only two ingredients, cocoa beans and cane sugar, and travel to origins as often as we can to build good, trusting relationships with the producers who grow and ferment our beans. In addition to our San Francisco and Tokyo locations, we will be hosting a small holiday hot chocolate pop-up in Santana Row. We are looking for experienced baristas and enthusiastic retail staff who are passionate about small-batch chocolate to help us out with our pop-up hot chocolate stand in San Jose during the holidays!

About the Job

Our pop-up will see a flood of visitors from in and out of town each day, which means you’ll spend a lot of time talking to customers about our mission, story, and chocolate. You’ll be making chocolate and coffee drinks, restocking shelves, and responding to visitors’ questions in thoughtful detail. You don’t have to be a chocolate expert yet, we will prepare, train, and educate you in the world of chocolate. As a barista, you’ll train with Four Barrel Coffee and attend our Chocolate 101 and 201 classes during a to visit our San Francisco flagship factory and cafe location. After that, you’ll be ready to dive in and get your hands dirty. We're looking for both part-time and full-time team members with the flexibility to work weekend opening and closing shifts. Compensation is $14/hour plus tips and ample and obligatory chocolate tasting opportunities.

The pop-up will run from the last week in October through December 24. Ideally you’d be available for paid training in late October in San Francisco.

We have a variety of shifts available, mostly full-time (5 days a week, 8 hour shifts), including opening shifts from 9-5 and closing shifts from 2-10pm. We also have a short-term management position available, so if you have experience running a café or kiosk, please let us know in your application.

About You

You are outgoing, organized, and enjoy interacting with the diverse local and global customers that stop by the kiosk. Because this is a pop-up, the ideal candidate is extremely flexible and good at working in fluid, on-the fly situations. You take pride in perfecting your barista skills and noticing the slightest flavor change of recently pulled shots. Multitasking and prioritizing come easily, from making the most delicious House Mocha, explaining the history of bean-to-bar chocolate, tidying the kiosk space, and restocking the shelves. You get excited to share knowledge and brainstorm new ways to creatively engage guests and build outstanding relationships with the community. With your strategic approaches and outgoing personality you help us continue to develop Dandelion Chocolate’s presence in Santana Row. Previous third wave coffee, chocolate, craft food, or specialty retail experience is a huge plus.

Responsibilities

• Create espresso and hot chocolate drinks quickly and accurately, especially when the line is long

• Consistently identify ways to improve operating procedures and customer experience to help day-to-day operations be seamless

• Lead mini chocolate-making demos to share our story with excited chocolate enthusiasts

• Be timely, dress professionally, and be ready to work through your shift

• Inspire guests to know more about chocolate! You should be able to develop a quick rapport with customers by detailing our chocolate making process and why you relate to it.

• Complete our Chocolate 101 and Chocolate 201 classes, as well as other Dandelion Chocolate curriculum so you can inspire new chocolate enthusiasts and repeat visitors

• Anticipate the needs of your coworkers by coming to work ready to perform for peak business hours

• Other tasks as necessary

Requirements

• 1-2 years of retail or customer-facing work experience in a food setting. Experience preparing espresso drinks and pulling shots is a plus.

• Availability weekends, early morning, and some evenings.

• Available from the end of October until December 24

• Familiarity with a fast-paced work environment

• Proven ability to work well within a team environment to handle the day’s unexpected surprises and to work with people who are different than yourself

• California approved Food Handler’s Certification is required upon hire

• Available for (paid) training and onboarding in San Francisco at the Dandelion Chocolate flagship factory

How to Apply

Dandelion Chocolate is growing and we are invested in employees who take ownership over their role in order to contribute in a bigger way with us. If you are interested, we’d like to see your resume and a cover letter. In your cover letter, please write us a quick note about one of your favorite food experiences or influences. Keep in mind that we value passion, attitude, and hard work, so tell us what inspires you to join our team.