Cook

About the role

Department: Food and Nutrition Services
Reports to: Food and Nutrition Services Manager

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

• Performs simple calculations, reads, writes and communicates in Chinese and English at or equivalent to high school graduation level.
• Demonstrates the ability to use all necessary food service equipment, including dish machine, food processor and coffee urn.
• Demonstrates a working knowledge of food service sanitation. Uses acceptable techniques in handling and serving foods. Cleans the can opener after each use.
• Ensure food safety by observing the “Time & Temperature Food Safety” and that no potentially hazardous foods are kept at the dangerous temperature between 41 F to 135 F for a total of more than 2 hours.
• Responsible in maintaining a clean, organized department, including the cooking area, kitchen, cafeteria and storage area. Supervises staff in performing daily regular and special cleaning assignments
• Observes all safety policies and procedures. Practices safe and injury free work habits, including proper lifting procedure.
• Understands and observes the hospital’s operating policies & procedures.
• Assists in development and maintaining of the department’s performance improvement (PI) program.
• Responsible for the assigned daily PI data collection.
• Understands all modified diets and be able to cook and serve accordingly.
• Reviews menus, plans ahead, directs and monitors food preparation.
• Directs and prepares food according to the production tallies, patient menus, cafeteria menu, and catering orders.
• Supervises dietary aides in the preparation, serving, holding and storage of foods.
• Responsible for checking all refrigerators every day to ensure that all left over foods are used or disposed of before the expiration date.
• Uses “batch-cooking method” to prepare food to reduce over production and maintain food quality.
• Cooks and serves food to patients, cafeteria and catering customers. Works on tray-line to assemble trays for patients according to tray card information and diet orders.
• Ensures that hot foods are put onto the steamtable just prior to serving time.
• Tastes food and adjusts seasoning accordingly. Consistently utilizes creativity and culinary knowledge to produce high quality foods.
• Affords assistance in the writing and updating of standardized recipes.
• Maintains and monitors portion control on all food served, especially of food served to patients on modified therapeutic diets.
• Affords assistance in the development and monitoring of the weekly personnel schedule for optimal labor utilization.
• Affords assistance in the processing time cards if needed.
• Supervises patient tray-line, cafeteria and catering services to ensure overall efficiency.
• Responsible for food and supplies inventories and ordering.
• Receives deliveries and directs storage to ensure quality and quantity.
• Enforces all safety precautions and observes guidelines for hazardous material and waste disposal.
• Enforces personal hygiene, wears hair protection, cleaned shoes and uniform.
• Performs daily cafeteria sale consolidations with assigned dietary aide.
• Directs all miscellaneous petty cash purchases.
• Keeps receipts of all petty cash purchases. Records all expenditures and maintains an up-to-date petty cash accounts.
• Consults with FNS manager on matter of uncertainty.
• Affords assistance in the recruitment, orientation, and training of new employees. Recommends dietary staff for re-training and cross training.
• Conducts in-service education for dietary staff.
• Maintains Food Safety Sanitation Certification.
• Represents the hospital to attend job-related conference and workshops.
• Affords assistance in developing and updating all the FNS department’s job descriptions, daily activity schedules and cleaning assignment schedules.
• Affords assistance in employee counseling and developing performance evaluations.
• Displays a cost conscious attitude in the daily operation of the department i.e. avoids over-production of food, and minimizes energy waste.
• Affords assistance in processing and tabulating all dietary invoices at month end.
• Affords assistance in compiling patient, cafeteria and catering meal statistics to develop the monthly meal statistic report.

Qualifications

• Bilingual - speaks Cantonese (or Toisan) and English, reads and writes both Chinese and English
• Food Handler Certificate (within 30 days of hiring)
• Ability to successfully pass pre-employment health screening requirement
• Strong communication skills
• Ability to take initiative, adapt to changing priorities, and work independently
• Strong time management and prioritization skills
• Ability to multi-task with a high level of efficiency and attention to detail