Kitchen Hand - Central Otago - Summer 2026/2027

Cloudy Bay Vineyards; Cromwell Community; On-site; NZD 28,000 - 36,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Wine discounts

Vineyard setting

Team culture

Job summary

Cloudy Bay Vineyards in Cromwell is seeking a motivated Kitchen Hand to support our Chef and Sous Chef during the busy summer period. You’ll need to think on your feet, take direction quickly, and help maintain high standards while covering weekends and public holidays from December 2026 to April 2027.

Your day-to-day includes food prep, ensuring timely dish processing, maintaining hygiene, and assisting with stock and receiving deliveries in a stunning vineyard setting.

Qualifications

• This role requires a collaborative approach with the kitchen team.
• Ability to handle manual tasks and maintain safety standards.
• Attention to detail in food preparation and plating.

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

Positive attitude

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