Program A · Adult Day Care
Kitchen Aide / Cook
$19–$23/hour
Supports meal and snack preparation, food service, and maintenance of a clean, organized, and sanitary kitchen environment.
- CPR · First Aid · AED required
- Dementia training required
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Schedule & reporting
- Shift:
- Monday–Friday, approx. 7:30 a.m.–3:30 p.m. (kitchen opens before participants arrive). No overnights, no weekends.
- Reports to:
- Program Coordinator
- Works with:
- Activity Assistants, Member Care Companions, Program Coordinator
A day in this role
7:30 – 9:00 a.m. · Kitchen opening
- •Unlock, sanitize, and set up all prep surfaces and service lines
- •Take and log refrigerator, freezer, and holding temperatures
- •Review the day's census and the posted dietary sheet — texture-modified, diabetic, low-sodium, allergy, and cultural preferences
- •Pull and portion morning snack; start hot breakfast items where scheduled
9:00 – 11:30 a.m. · Morning service and lunch prep
- •Serve morning coffee, hydration, and snack to the dining room
- •Prepare lunch entrées, sides, and modified-texture plates in parallel
- •Label and date every prepared item; rotate stock first-in-first-out
- •Flag any missing ingredient or supply shortage to the Coordinator before noon
11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. · Lunch service
- •Plate to the individual dietary sheet — never by memory, always by the posted list
- •Verify each modified plate against the participant's name before it leaves the kitchen
- •Hold, serve, and re-check hot/cold temperatures during service
- •Reset and sanitize dining tables with the floor team between seatings
1:30 – 3:30 p.m. · Break-down, sanitation, close
- •Break down the line, cool and store leftovers with date labels
- •Wash, sanitize, and dry all equipment, utensils, and surfaces
- •Complete temperature, cleaning, and sanitation logs for the day
- •Prep afternoon snack for the floor team; stage tomorrow's pulls
- •Report low inventory and equipment issues in writing before leaving
Core responsibilities
- •Food preparation
- •Meal and snack preparation
- •Food service
- •Kitchen cleaning
- •Sanitation
- •Food storage
- •Inventory assistance
- •Meal setup and cleanup
- •Following dietary instructions supplied by authorized personnel
- •Maintaining safe food-service practices
Qualifications — in order
- Non-negotiable: safe food-handling practice and the ability to follow the posted dietary sheet exactly
- Then: reliable, on-time attendance — the program day cannot start late
- Then: institutional or senior-care food-service experience
- Welcomed: food-safety certification and related training
Required · must be met
- Ability to follow dietary instructions issued by authorized personnel
- Safe food-handling practice
- Reliable attendance
Minimum qualifications to be considered for an interview
- Experience: Minimum 2 years of paid food-service or institutional kitchen experience, including therapeutic or modified-texture diets.
- Education: High school diploma or equivalent (GED) (minimum).
- Life-safety certification: CPR — required before hire · First Aid — required before hire.
- Adult day care experience: strongly preferred — prior experience working in a licensed adult day care center is preferred for every position, but it is not required and its absence never blocks an interview.
- Schedule & availability: Monday–Friday, approx. 7:30 a.m.–3:30 p.m. On site. No weekends, no overnights.
- Pay: the posted center-approved rate must be accepted as posted.
- Documents uploaded and verified: Résumé listing employers, roles, and dates · Government-issued photo identification · Employment-authorization documentation · Three references with contact information · High school diploma / GED or higher education verification · Food-handler / food-safety certificate.
We hire experienced candidates only. Submitting an application does not qualify anyone for an interview — every item above must be met, uploaded, and verified first.
Strongly preferred · not required
Food-service experience · Institutional kitchen experience · Senior-care food-service experience · Food-safety training · Relevant food-service certification · Experience accommodating dietary requirements
Additional qualifications · welcomed
Food safety · Infection control · CPR · First Aid · Emergency preparedness
Physical & environmental demands
- •Standing and walking for most of the shift
- •Lifting and carrying up to 40 lbs (cases, stock, sheet pans)
- •Repeated bending, reaching, and pushing/pulling carts
- •Hot surfaces, steam, sharp equipment, and wet floors
- •Exposure to common food allergens in a shared kitchen
How performance is measured
- ✓Zero dietary-instruction errors on modified plates
- ✓Temperature and sanitation logs complete every single day
- ✓Meals served on schedule so programming is never delayed
- ✓Kitchen passes an unannounced inspection at any hour
Additional competencies for this position
Food handling · Florida — by duties
- •Food-safety / food-handler training appropriate to duties
- •Safe food temperature, storage and sanitation practices
- •Therapeutic and allergy-restricted diet handling
Screening · every position
Florida Level II background screening (AHCA fingerprint · FDLE + FBI) · Minimum three (3) references · Pre-employment drug screening · Pre-employment alcohol screening · Employment history verification · Applicable education verification · Applicable professional-license verification · Applicable certification verification · Identity and employment-authorization documentation
Plus the Core Employment Clearance required of every employee before independent work.
