Kitchen Prep Cook - Haven

HELP BUILD SOMETHING SPECIAL IN THE HIGH COUNTRY

Haven is a chef-driven restaurant coming to Blowing Rock, North Carolina, and we're assembling our founding kitchen team.

Built with its own distinct culinary identity and backed by the support and resources of Chetola Resort, Haven combines the excitement of a restaurant opening with the stability and opportunities of an established hospitality destination.

We believe exceptional hospitality begins with exceptional people. We're building a kitchen where craftsmanship, professionalism, curiosity, and continuous learning come together to create remarkable experiences for our guests—and an outstanding place to build a career.

This is more than a typical prep cook position. It’s an opportunity to join before opening day and help shape the standards, systems, culture, and identity of a new restaurant from the ground up. Founding team members will play an important role in bringing the concept to life and setting the tone for the team members who follow.

At Haven, our menu is rooted in Appalachian cuisine and the incredible farms, foragers, and producers of the region. Through a small plates and tasting menu experience, we showcase hyper-seasonal ingredients while drawing inspiration from global culinary traditions and modern techniques. The result is thoughtful, ingredient-driven food that feels both familiar and unexpected.

In a kitchen like this, great food begins long before service. It begins with careful knife work. Properly built stocks and sauces. Thoughtful handling of produce. Accurate recipes. Respect for ingredients. Attention to yield, seasonality, and waste. The discipline to do the small things correctly, every time.

We’re looking for prep cooks who take pride in that work—people who understand that exceptional mise en place is the foundation of an exceptional restaurant.

You don’t need to know everything on day one—but you do need curiosity, discipline, humility, attention to detail, and a genuine desire to get better.

WHAT YOU'LL DO

• Prepare ingredients and components with consistency, precision, and care
• Execute daily prep lists efficiently while maintaining high standards of quality
• Wash, trim, peel, cut, portion, and process produce, proteins, and other ingredients according to established specifications
• Prepare sauces, stocks, dressings, marinades, purees, garnishes, and other foundational components
• Follow recipes accurately while developing a deeper understanding of technique, flavor, and ingredient function
• Support whole-product utilization and thoughtful approaches to minimizing food waste
• Properly label, date, store, rotate, and organize ingredients and prepared items
• Maintain accurate portioning and consistency across batches
• Work collaboratively with chefs, line cooks, and fellow prep team members to ensure the kitchen is ready for service
• Communicate proactively about prep levels, product quality, shortages, and production needs
• Maintain a clean, organized, efficient, and professional workstation
• Care for ingredients, tools, and equipment with attention and respect
• Participate in pre-opening training, menu tastings, and ongoing culinary education opportunities
• Help test and refine recipes, prep systems, storage standards, and kitchen workflows
• Uphold the highest standards of food quality, sanitation, safety, and organization