Fast Food Associate Jobs in Kent, OH (NOW HIRING)

About the Opportunity 

The Food Service Associate is responsible for the daily operation and ownership of the cafe grill station, supporting breakfast and lunch service in a fast-paced, high-volume environment. This position performs food preparation, short-order cooking, menu execution, inventory management, and sanitation functions while ensuring compliance with food safety regulations and company standards. The Food Service Associate delivers high-quality food and exceptional customer service, maintains an organized and efficient workspace, and contributes to the overall success of cafe operations through teamwork, initiative, and sound decision-making. The successful candidate will demonstrate a commitment to safety, operational excellence, continuous learning, and FirstEnergy's Core Values and Behaviors.

Responsibilities

1. Take ownership of daily grill station operations, including:
   • Breakfast and lunch grill setup, preparation, and backup production.
   • Preparing and serving made-to-order breakfast and lunch items with a focus on safety, quality, consistency, and efficiency.
   • Planning, ordering, and executing daily breakfast and lunch specials.
   • Monitoring inventory levels and communicating product needs to leadership.
   • Maintaining a clean, organized, and customer-focused work environment that complies with FDA Food Code regulations and company standards.
   • Properly storing, rotating, labeling, and dating food products.
   • Performing end-of-shift shutdown procedures and thoroughly cleaning all grill equipment and work surfaces.
2. Proactively support leadership and coworkers by following established procedures and contributing to overall cafe operations and team success.
3. Demonstrate commitment to FirstEnergy's Core Values and Behaviors through daily work activities while fostering a safe, respectful, and inclusive workplace.
4. Consistently demonstrate a strong sense of urgency in meeting customer expectations, operational goals, and service timelines.
5. Manage multiple daily responsibilities and assignments while maintaining quality, accuracy, and efficiency.
6. Exercise sound judgment and problem-solving skills by developing recommendations, addressing customer needs, and identifying opportunities for process improvement.
7. Provide exceptional customer service by interacting professionally and courteously with customers, coworkers, and vendors.
8. Assist with receiving deliveries, inventory management, product rotation, procurement activities, and food production as needed.
9. Maintain adherence to all food safety, sanitation, and workplace safety requirements.

Qualifications

1. High school diploma or GED required.
2. Minimum of two (2) years of food service, culinary, hospitality, catering, or related experience required.
3. Experience preparing and serving breakfast and lunch items in a fast-paced, high-volume food service, restaurant, cafeteria, or catering environment preferred, with the ability to maintain quality, consistency, and customer service standards during peak service periods.
4. Intermediate knowledge and application of food service fundamentals, including:
   • Food safety and sanitation
   • Inventory management and product rotation
   • Procurement practices
   • Customer service
   • Knife skills and food preparation techniques
   • Personal hygiene standards
5. ServSafe Manager Certification required or must be obtained within six (6) months of hire.
6. Basic proficiency with Microsoft Office applications, including Outlook, Word, and Excel.
7. Ability to research recipes, contribute to menu development, and remain informed of culinary and food service trends.
8. Demonstrate a continuous learning mindset and commitment to personal and professional development.
9. Ability to work effectively both independently and as part of a team.
10. Strong organizational and time management skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities.
11. Effective written and verbal communication skills.
12. Demonstrated ability to address customer concerns professionally and provide appropriate solutions.
13. Ability to consistently produce high-quality, accurate work while meeting established deadlines and operational expectations.
14. Ability to perform physical job duties, including bending, stooping, lifting up to 50 pounds, and standing or walking for extended periods of time.

15. Demonstrated commitment to maintaining a safe work environment and supporting a workplace of respect, appreciation, and acceptance for everyone.

Benefits, Compensation & Workforce Diversity
At FirstEnergy, employees are key to our success. We depend on their talents to meet the challenges of our changing business environment. We are committed to rewarding individual and team efforts through our total rewards philosophy which includes competitive pay plus incentive compensation, a company-sponsored pension plan, 401(k) savings plan with matching employer contribution, a choice of medical, prescription drug, dental, vision, and life insurance programs, as well as skills development training with tuition reimbursement. Please visit our website at www.firstenergycorp.com to learn more about all our employee rewards programs. FirstEnergy proudly supports workforce diversity. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, status as a protected veteran, or status as a qualified individual with a disability. No recruiters or agencies without a previously signed contract. Unable to sponsor or transfer H-1B visas currently.
Safety
Safety is a core value for FirstEnergy and is essential to all our business activities. We ensure employees have the tools, information, and processes to perform their duties in a manner that assures safety for themselves, their co-workers, our customers and the public. Our goals are to provide a safe work environment, to maintain an accident-free, injury-free workplace, and to promote and maintain public safety. To meet these goals, we dedicate ourselves to achieving world-class safety standards.