Tasting Room Agent

New York Kitchen

Tasting Room Agent

Job Type: Part-time

Salary: $13.20 - $13.50 / Hour TIPS

ABOUT NEW YORK KITCHEN:

Since opening its doors on the north shore of Canandaigua Lake in 2006, New York Kitchen, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization (formerly known as the New York Wine and Culinary Center) has served as a gateway for residents and visitors alike to experience New York’s incredible agriculture, culinary, and craft beverage industries. New York Kitchen believes that a strong connection between people, place, and produce is essential to promote healthy lifestyles and thriving communities. Each day, New York Kitchen drives this mission forward through its educational hands-on cooking and craft beverage pairing classes (including a youth-focused Junior Chef Initiative in collaboration with community partners and after-school programs), industry certification courses, and 100% New York State Tasting Room. Through partnerships with area farmers, wineries, breweries, distilleries, producers and entrepreneurs, New York Kitchen offers an array of inviting experiences and serves as a major tourism destination for upwards of 70,000 visitors each year, proudly highlighting and promoting the quality, diversity, and economic impact of food and beverages that originate in New York State.

JOB SUMMARY:

The Tasting Room Agent oversees the daily operations, customer service, and retail sales of the Tasting Room. Responsibilities include serving beverages and educating customers about New York State products, inventory management, retail merchandising and keeping up to date with the craft beverage industry when it comes to what to bring into the Tasting Room to keep customers engaged. Must express an interest and familiarity with New York State wine, beer, and spirits. Must have night, weekend, and some holiday availability.

REPORTS TO: Beverage Education Manager

SUPERVISES: No one

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS:

Tasting Room & Customer Service:

· Makes an exceptional first impression with a warm & friendly greeting.

· Articulately promotes NYK, New York products, and mission of NYK to all visitors.

· Builds relationships with New York vendors and partners; be the “expert” on our offerings.

· Serve wine, beer, and spirits while educating our customers.

· Use winemakers’, brew masters’, and distillers’ notes to train and educate themselves.

· Assists the Tasting Room Manager in effectively creating new tasting flights on a seasonal basis, showcasing the different styles and regions of New York State wines, beers, spirits, and ciders.

· Increase profit by selling wine, beer, spirits, and retail products to increase each sale by upselling and offering additional relevant products.

· Meet sales goals and come up with ideas to promote NYK products, wine and beermaker, or distillery educational classes.

· Ensure sanitation in the bar area, maintain cleanliness, and hold staff accountable to maintenance standards.

· Trained on and able to troubleshoot the beer tap system and other equipment housed within tasting room, including dishwasher.

Operations:

· When necessary, assists the Tasting Room Manager in:

o selecting and ordering product

o accurately entering product receipts, running of reports, and entering of inventory information into the point-of-sale system accurately and efficiently.

o checking in all merchandise, attaching appropriate price stickers, and stocking merchandise in an effective way to maximize sales.

· Contributes to management team leadership, operational duties and responsibilities as required.

· Performs opening and closing procedures accurately on the POS system, including end of the day deposits.

EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE:

· Associates in hospitality or related field preferred.

· Two years of guest service experience preferred.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS & ABILITIES:

· Beverage Industry Certifications or relevant degree and/or related retail/beverage experience.

· Working knowledge of New York State beverages, POS, and inventory management systems.

· Ability to plan for and work under pressure while staying calm in difficult situations.

· Punctuality and professionalism while maintaining a welcoming presence.

· Excellent communication, time management, organization, and customer service skills.

· Desire to learn and have an interest in New York State beverage and agricultural products.

· Ability to work independently, as part of a team, and flexibility to perform shift work in addition to being able to multitask.

· Ability to work various shifts including evenings and weekends.

· TIPS training or equivalent.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS AND WORK ENVIRONMENT:

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.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is occasionally required to maintain a stationary position; stand for long periods of time. The employee must occasionally move up to 25 pounds.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is not exposed to weather conditions. The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate.

The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work required by you in this position and they are not intended to be an all-inclusive list of your required responsibilities, duties, or skills.

Job Type: Part-time

Pay: $13.20 - $13.50 per hour

Schedule:

• 4 hour shift
• 8 hour shift
• Day shift
• Holidays
• Monday to Friday
• Weekend availability