Pastry Cook

Paylocity; San Diego, Northern (CA, KY); Hybrid; USD 42,000 - 54,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Hotel & restaurant discounts

On-Demand Pay

Paid time off (PTO)

Complementary Parking

Meals

Job summary

Estancia La Jolla Hotel & Spa is seeking a Pastry Cook to handle the preparation, production, and presentation of desserts for banquet events, restaurant outlets, and special functions. You will work closely with the Executive Chef to execute seasonal menus, ensure quality, and enhance the guest experience.

The ideal candidate has hotel pastry experience, strong organization, and a passion for creative, high-quality desserts.

Qualifications

• Completion of an approved Culinary Program or Apprenticeship.
• One to two years of pastry experience in a hotel environment.
• Minimum 1–2 years of pastry, baking, or dessert production experience.
• Knowledge of basic baking and pastry techniques.
• Ability to follow recipes accurately and consistently.
• Prepare and produce desserts, pastries and related items per recipes and standards.
• Assist in developing seasonal dessert offerings for venues and events.
• Maintain consistency in presentation and portioning for large functions.

Responsibilities

• Produce desserts and pastry components for daily operations, banquets, and catering.
• Plate banquet desserts for meetings, weddings, and conferences.
• Coordinate with culinary teams to ensure timely event execution.
• Maintain inventory levels and pars to support daily demand.
• Assist in creating and refining seasonal dessert menus.
• Communicate production needs and event requirements with leadership.
• Stand/walk for extended periods and work AM/PM shifts as required.

Skills

Pastry experience

Attention to detail

Creativity

Communication

Education

Culinary program or apprenticeship

Job description

ABOUT US:

From the hacienda-style architecture to the lush gardens and scattered artwork, Estancia La Jolla is a true Southern California escape. This former ranch dates back to the late 1800s, a history the property celebrates and honors. In Estancia's 210 casually elegant rooms and suites, this AAA Four Diamond boutique hotel feels like home.

THE JOB:

The Pastry Cook is responsible for the preparation, production, and presentation of desserts, baked goods, and pastry items for banquet events, restaurant outlets, retail operations, and special functions. This position works closely with the Executive Chef and culinary leadership team to execute seasonal dessert menus, maintain quality standards, and contribute to the overall guest experience.

YOU:

To be successful in this position, we're looking for an amazing people connector, who thrives on creating experiences and problem solving. This role as the Pastry Cook requires skills such as patience, empathy, and a desire to provide excellent service for our guests. A hands-on culinary professional who combines creativity, attention to detail, and strong organizational skills to ensure all pastry products meet the property's standards for quality, consistency, and presentation.

OUR CULTURE:

Be part of our award-winning team named TOP Workplace in San Diego 2022-2025 and TOP Workplace USA 2023-2026 by our Team Members. Estancia La Jolla is a part of Noble House Hotels and Resorts offering a collection of luxury hotels and resorts in the Americas. To provide our guests with exceptional service and the most memorable experiences, we look for team members who share our core values. The people who best fit Estancia La Jolla are sharp, hardworking team players. We are looking for candidates with experience in having fun!

THE OFFER:

In return, we offer competitive pay, health insurance benefits, Team Member and Family & Friends hotel and restaurant discounts within the Nobel House Hotel & Resorts family, Matching 401k (After 1 year), On-Demand Pay (Earned wage access before payday!) PTO, Complementary Parking, and Meals.

Requirements

• Completion of an approved Culinary Program or Apprenticeship.
• One to two years of increasingly responsible pastry experience in a hotel environment are required.
• Minimum 1–2 years of pastry, baking, or dessert production experience.
• Knowledge of basic baking and pastry techniques.
• Ability to follow recipes accurately and consistently.
• Prepares and produces desserts, pastries, breads, cookies, cakes, mousses, custards, and other baked goods according to established recipes and standards.
• Assist the Executive Chef in developing, testing, and executing seasonal dessert offerings for restaurant outlets and special events.
• Produce desserts and pastry components for daily outlet operations, banquet functions, and catering events.
• Ensure all products are prepared consistently and meet quality expectations.
• Plate banquet desserts for meetings, weddings, conferences, and special events.
• Assist with banquet dessert production planning based on event orders and guest counts.
• Maintain consistency in presentation, portioning, and execution for large-volume functions.
• Coordinate with banquet culinary and service teams to ensure timely and successful event execution.
• Produce desserts and pastry items for all culinary outlets.
• Maintain pars and inventory levels to support daily business demands.
• Assist in the creation and refinement of dessert specials and seasonal menu offerings.
• Communicate production needs, inventory concerns, and event requirements with culinary leadership.
• Work collaboratively with banquet, outlet, stewarding, and culinary teams.
• Strong attention to detail and presentation.
• Ability to multitask and prioritize production schedules.
• Participate in daily culinary meetings and production discussions.
• Requires the ability to serve the needs of guests through verbal face-to-face interactions; contacts sometimes contain confidential/sensitive information, so requires the ability to use discretion.
• Must demonstrate a positive attitude and professional demeanor.
• Requires strong communication and interpersonal skills and commitment to a high level of guest satisfaction.
• Completes required training as scheduled.
• Ability to stand/walk for extended periods
• Ability to work on AM, PM, weekend, and holiday shifts as required by operational needs.

The ideal candidate will have:

Experience within a hotel/resort environment

At Estancia La Jolla Hotel & Spa, we take pride in supporting our initiatives towards Diversity, Equity Inclusion, and Accessibility. We have established a hotel committee to bring together a variety of thoughts, perspectives, and expressions – and we would love for you to share yours with the team!

Estancia La Jolla Hotel & Spa is an equal opportunity employer M/F/V/D

EEO Statement

Noble House Hotels & Resorts are proud to encourage and support an environment where everyone can be a successful team member (come as they are) as their true authentic self. We are an equal-opportunity workplace and employer that does not discriminate based on race, color, disability, gender/sex, sexual orientation, religion, national origin, age, veteran status, or any other protected status. We are committed to building a team (rooted in family) and a workplace where we are all able to be successful based solely on our individual qualifications, experience, abilities, and job performance.