Kitchen Hand - Central Otago - Summer 2026/2027

Cloudy Bay Vineyards; Central Otago; On-site; NZD 26,000 - 32,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Stunning vineyard environment

Wine, food and merchandise discounts

Staff events and team experiences

Job summary

Cloudy Bay Vineyards is seeking a motivated Kitchen Hand to support our Chef and Sous Chef in a bustling kitchen. You will prep, help maintain quality, and uphold food hygiene standards in a scenic winery setting.

Weekend and public holiday availability from December 2026 to April 2027 is required. You’ll work five days (Wed–Sun) with a proactive, team-first approach and strong attention to detail.

Qualifications

• Eagerness to support and be part of a strong team.
• Awareness of manual handling techniques.
• Able to work autonomously and deliver quality work.
• Honest and deliberate approach to communication, with a team-first mindset.
• High energy and a proactive approach with attention to detail.
• Physical aptitudes: standing on feet all day, knife skills.
• Legal rights to work in New Zealand (no visa sponsorship available for these positions)

Responsibilities

• Assisting the Chef / Sous Chef with prepping food for each day.
• Ensuring all dishes are processed efficiently and to a high standard.
• Being aware of health and safety.
• Learning and understanding food hygiene practices.
• Ensuring food quality and excellent standards are maintained for all dishes created.
• Assisting with stock arrivals and putting away.

Skills

Team player

Manual handling

Attention to detail

Knife skills

Weekend availability

Job description

The summer season is coming!

We’re looking for an enthusiastic Kitchen Hand to support our Chef and Sous Chef in the kitchen. You will need to be a quick thinker, and efficient at taking direction and responding quickly to whatever support is required.

We open five days per week (Wed – Sun), so the successful applicant will need to be available to work weekends and public holidays from December 2026 to end of April 2027.

Your day-to-day will include:

• Assisting the Chef / Sous Chef with prepping food for each day
• Ensuring all dishes are processed efficiently and to a high standard
• Being aware of health and safety
• Learning and understanding food hygiene practices
• Ensuring food quality and excellent standards are maintained for all dishes created
• Assisting with stock arrivals and putting away

Requirements

Ideally, you will need:

• Eagerness to support and be part of a strong team
• Awareness of manual handling techniques
• Able to work autonomously and deliver quality work
• An honest and deliberate approach to communication, with a team-first mindset
• High energy and a positive, pro-active approach with attention to detail
• Physical aptitudes: standing on feet all day, knife skill
• Legal rights to work in New Zealand (no visa sponsorship available for these positions)

Benefits

• Reliable daytime hours (open five days a week, Wednesday to Sunday)
• A stunning work environment, surrounded by vineyards with breathtaking mountain views
• Generous discounts on wine, food, and merchandise at the cellar door and restaurant
• A positive and supportive team culture, with an emphasis on employee inclusion, wellbeing, and health & safety
• A forward-thinking, structured professional environment
• Staff events and team experiences