Constellation Cook

Constellation Institute; Berkeley (CA); On-site; USD 41,000 - 48,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Healthy lunches and dinners catered by

Snacks & drinks

Generous vacation policy

401(k) with employer match

Commuter benefits

Health insurance

Job summary

Constellation Institute in Berkeley, CA seeks a passionate cook or chef to join our culinary team. You will prepare lunches and dinners for a busy research office, collaborating on menu planning and ensuring meals reflect diverse cuisines and dietary needs.

The role emphasizes vegetables and ethically sourced proteins, with meals served to 250-400 daily. Candidates should enjoy teamwork, food safety, and maintaining high hygiene standards in a fast-paced environment.

Qualifications

• Solid to excellent knife skills and knowledge of cooking fundamentals.
• Ability to work confidently with or without recipes.
• Depth in one or more areas: regional cuisines, baking, butchery, pickling/ferment work, etc.
• Clear verbal and written communication in English.

Responsibilities

• Prepare ingredients and cook dishes, drawing from recipes and personal knowledge.
• Deliver, arrange and label meals.
• Clean equipment and facilities as needed.

Skills

Knife skills

Recipe interpretation

Cuisines variety

English comms

Urgency

Hygiene standards

Food safety

Education

Food handler's card

ServSafe certification

Job description

About Constellation

Constellation is an independent research center that brings together people throughout the AI safety ecosystem to accelerate insight, research, and talent through better cooperation. Unlike a conference or summit, Constellation operates continuously, in the form of a physical workspace as well as conference-style talks, workshops, and training bootcamps. Continuous operation allows for relationships and conversations to develop over time, meaningfully fostering trust, collaboration, and shared insight. It also makes Constellation a natural field-building hub by rapidly inspiring, orienting, and connecting people who are newer to the field.

About Constellation

Constellation is an independent research center that brings together people throughout the AI safety ecosystem to accelerate insight, research, and talent through better cooperation. Unlike a conference or summit, Constellation operates continuously, in the form of a physical workspace as well as conference-style talks, workshops, and training bootcamps. Continuous operation allows for relationships and conversations to develop over time, meaningfully fostering trust, collaboration, and shared insight. It also makes Constellation a natural field-building hub by rapidly inspiring, orienting, and connecting people who are newer to the field.

Based in Berkeley, CA, our shared workspace hosts over 300 people per week across dozens of AI safety organizations in nonprofits, academia, industry, and government. Hundreds of other researchers spend time at Constellation for shorter visits each year. We believe this is the strongest and highest-output network of AI safety researchers in the world; dozens of participants in past Constellation programs have gone on to safety-focused roles at companies such as METR, Redwood Research, Anthropic, Google DeepMind, OpenAI, and the US and UK Safety Institutes.

About The Role

We are looking for a passionate and reliable cook or chef to join our team. Our culinary program provides lunch and dinners to a busy research office, with meals designed and prepared collaboratively each week by the team. We aim to deliver high-quality, diverse dishes across a range of cuisines. Our meals prioritize delicious vegetables and ethically sourced proteins, and accommodate a wide variety of dietary needs – from vegan to omnivorous. Ideal candidates are excited to explore foods and cuisines, take responsibility for specific dishes, as well as routine tasks like vegetable prep and cleaning.

We serve meals primarily for Constellation Institute ("Constellation"), a research hub hosting 250-400 people daily, along with a few organizations in the AI safety ecosystem. The kitchen is on the Oakland/Emeryville border, and the research hub is in Downtown Berkeley.

Key Responsibilities

• Prepare ingredients and cook dishes, drawing from recipes as well as personal culinary knowledge
• Deliver, arrange and label meals
• Clean equipment and facilities as needed

Skills & Experience

• Solid to excellent knife skills and command of cooking fundamentals
• Ability to work confidently with or without recipes
• Depth in one or more areas: regional cuisines, baking, butchery, pickling/charcuterie/ferment work, etc.
• Clear verbal and written communication skills in English
• Sense of urgency when the situation calls for it
• Strong sense of responsibility; high personal standards, with or without supervision
• Takes food safety seriously, follows requirements, and maintains professional hygiene standards

Education And Experience

• At least one year related professional experience required, 2-5+ years preferred (we care about passion and skills; experience matters more than credentials)
• Food handler's card required; ServSafe or equivalent preferred

Physical Requirements

• The job requires standing and walking for a full day, safely lifting 50+ pounds at a time, dealing with hot, sharp, or heavy objects.

Compensation & Benefits

The base pay range for this role is $30 - $35 per hour.

Our benefits are hard to beat! They include:

• Healthy lunches and dinners catered by our amazing kitchen team
• Unlimited snacks & drinks
• Generous vacation policy
• 401(k) with employer match
• Employer-paid commuter benefits
• High-quality health, dental, and vision insurance
• Friendly and supportive team
• Regular interaction with AI safety researchers and thought leaders

Additional Information

This is a full time, on-site role. Our Berkeley office is a few steps from the nearest BART (metro) and bus stop. On-site parking is also available.

The ideal candidate for this role will have some combination of the skills and experiences described above. If you are not sure if you are qualified, we strongly encourage you to apply anyway. Beyond the qualifications outlined, our priority is building a team that will help humanity safely navigate the development of transformative AI. If you would be excited to do this work, we’d love to consider you.

We value diversity in all respects and base our hiring decisions on the needs of the organization and individual qualifications. We welcome applicants from all backgrounds, regardless of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age or disability.