Cook with Purpose. Provide Comfort. Make an Impact Daily.
Maitri provides compassionate residential care for people living with HIV/AIDS, many of whom navigate intersecting health challenges, substance use disorders, or mental health conditions. We are seeking a dedicated Lead Cook to serve as the heart of our kitchen—crafting nourishing, high-quality "comfort food" that restores dignity and brings a home-like warmth to our 15–30 residents, staff, volunteers, and guests (learn more about us at maitrisf.org).
If you are a skilled culinary professional looking to trade traditional restaurant burnout for a stable schedule and deeply rewarding community work, we want to meet you.
The Opportunity & Daily Impact:
• Kitchen Operations: Prepare and scale comforting, nutritionally balanced meals for 15–30 individuals daily.
• Shift Leadership: Provide shift direction, orientation, and tasks to kitchen cooks (up to 4) and community volunteers in the absence of the Food Services Director.
• Dietary Management: Adapt recipes to meet vital medical and therapeutic needs (including renal, diabetic, and soft/altered textures).
• Administrative Support: Assist with inventory, grocery lists, online procurement, and strict health department temperature logs to ensure 100% licensing compliance.
What We Are Looking For:
• Proven Culinary Experience: Demonstrated ability to plan, cook, and scale meals in a commercial, catering, or residential kitchen setting.
• Specialized Awareness: Genuine interest or experience in cooking for therapeutic diets, food safety, and sanitation protocols.
• Certifications: Valid CA Food Handler card required; Certified Food Protection Manager (CFPM/ServSafe) is highly preferred.
• Scheduling Flexibility: Open availability to work varied shifts, weekends, and holidays to ensure seamless kitchen coverage.
• Physical Ability: Able to stand for extended periods, work safely around commercial equipment, use stairs, and lift up to 50 lbs.
• Mission Alignment: Exceptional empathy, emotional intelligence, and professional boundaries when interacting with a diverse, vulnerable resident population.
• Compliance: Must be able to pass a criminal background check (Live Scan clearance), physical screening, and TB clearance prior to hiring.
• Basic computer skills for online trainings, email, online ordering
Why Join Maitri? (Our Benefits Package)
At Maitri, our work environment is rooted in our core values of unconditional love, dignity, and companionship. We offer a competitive wage alongside an outstanding, supportive package to keep you thriving:
• Full Health Coverage: Comprehensive Medical, Dental, and Vision insurance plans.
• Excellent Holiday Pay: Double-time pay for worked holidays.
• Work-Life Balance: Generous Paid Time Off (PTO) package to ensure you rest and recharge.
• Predictable Stability: Consistent full-time hours (40 hours/week) in a purposeful, collaborative environment where your culinary talents directly comfort others.
To Apply:
Please reply to this posting with your resume and a brief introduction explaining why you are drawn to cooking within a compassionate, medical residential care environment. No phone calls.
Maitri is an Equal Opportunity Employer.
Send resume and cover letter to:
Ann Kong, Food Services Director at:
akong@maitrisf.org.
Maitri Compassionate Care
Residential Care for People Living with AIDS
AMERICANS WITH DISABILITY SPECIFICATIONS
Physical Demands:
The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
Physical Demands: requires sitting, standing, walking, squatting, bending, waist twisting, kneeling, climbing stairs, reaching up to shoulder height, lifting/carrying/pushing/pulling up to 50 lbs., fine finger manipulation, gross manipulation, simple/power grasp, repetitive hand/arm use; exposure to latex; use of protective equipment, ability to walk one-quarter mile; ability to climb two flights of stairs, have adequate vision to describe contents of a room, client condition etc.
OSHA CATEGORY: This position performs tasks that involve exposure to blood, body fluids, or tissues. All employees must use Universal Precautions. Maitri will provide the appropriate Personal Protective Equipment. All employees are offered the opportunity to receive the Hepatitis B vaccination series.
