Location: socialbar, Saxmundham High Street, IP17 1DF
Start: Immediate
Hours: approx. 22-40 hours per week
Pay: £12.71–£15.00 per hour, depending on experience, with pay reviewed as the business grows and the role develops
We are open to this being either an employed role or a freelance arrangement where you invoice us, depending on experience, availability and how the working relationship is structured.
Typical shifts
This role combines evening pizza service for Back Yard Pizza with two daytime kitchen cover shifts at socialbar.
Current shifts are:
Friday: 8:30 am–3:30 pm
Saturday: 9:30 am–3:30 pm
Thursday evening: 4:30 pm–9:00 pm
Saturday evening: 4:30 pm–9:00 pm
Total: approx. 22 hours per week.
There may also be scope for an additional evening pizza shift as trade grows.
If you prefer more hours, there may also be opportunities to pick up shifts at our sister site: a countryside pub in Laxfield, around a 20-minute drive from Saxmundham.
About us
Back Yard Pizza currently operates from socialbar, an independent café-wine-bar on Saxmundham High Street.
socialbar serves speciality coffee, minimal-intervention wines, craft beer and a fresh, quality-led daytime food offer. We’re here to create genuine in-person connection and a warm, beautiful communal space, with lively evening events alongside a strong café and bar offer.
Back Yard Pizza runs in the evenings, serving wood-fired pizzas made with Harvey & Co sourdough. We cook with a top-level Gozney oven capable of reaching around 500°C, so service is fast, hot and hands-on.
We’re a small, close-knit team and the atmosphere here depends on everyone pulling together. If you enjoy being part of a workplace where people communicate well, take responsibility and pitch in to make the place run smoothly, you’ll fit right in.
The role
The main part of the role is evening pizza service: stretching, topping and cooking wood-fired sourdough pizzas, keeping the service organised and communicating well with front of house.
You’ll also cover two daytime café kitchen shifts, helping prepare and plate our quality-led breakfast and lunch offer. This is not a traditional café breakfast role. We’re interested in thoughtful, well-presented food: dishes such as smoothie bowls, breakfast tacos and ricotta pancakes along with toasties, sandwiches and simple plates that feel considered, modern and tasty.
We are looking for someone who has worked with food, understands kitchen standards and can see the difference between basic café food and a more considered, quality-led offer.
In this role, you’ll be...
During evening pizza shifts
- Stretching, topping and cooking wood-fired sourdough pizzas
- Working with our Gozney pizza oven
- Keeping pizza service organised, clean and well-paced
- Managing dough, toppings, prep, oven timing and close-down
- Communicating clearly with front of house when orders are coming in or running behind
- Pitching in with the wider team where needed
During daytime kitchen cover shifts
- Preparing, cooking and plating our breakfast and lunch offer
- Following recipes, prep lists and kitchen systems
- Using a good palate and food judgement: tasting dishes, noticing balance and knowing when something needs more acidity, seasoning, texture or restraint
- Keeping the kitchen organised, clean and running smoothly
- Managing prep, stock rotation and basic kitchen needs
- Clearing and washing dishes as part of a small team
- Opening and closing the kitchen in a clean, orderly way
- Helping maintain strong food hygiene practice and Environmental Health standards
What we’re looking for
- Pizza experience would be ideal, but we will consider solid cooking experience if you are practical, quick to learn and confident working under pressure
- Previous kitchen experience in a café, restaurant, deli, bakery, pub kitchen, hotel, pizza kitchen or similar food setting
- A good eye and palate for fresh, quality-led food, including presentation, balance and consistency
- Able to follow recipes and kitchen systems without needing constant direction
- Reliable, punctual and comfortable in a small, hands-on independent business
- Warm, steady and friendly with guests and colleagues, with the kind of temperament that suits a small, close-knit team
- Communicative and responsive with the team; we coordinate through WhatsApp
- Willing to take part in occasional staff meetings and training
- Ideally based in or near Saxmundham for an easy commute
This role is for applicants aged 18 or over, as shifts may include keyholding responsibilities.
What we offer
- £12.71–£15.00 per hour, depending on experience
- Pay reviewed as the business grows and the role develops
- Share of tips
- 28 days’ holiday pro rata, if employed
- Pension with employer contribution, subject to eligibility, if employed
- Employee Assistance Programme with wellbeing support and discounts
- Free and discounted food and drink
- Relevant training, including pizza service and kitchen systems
- Free company events
- Opportunities to grow with the business as daytime and evening trade expands
- Potential additional shifts at our sister site in Laxfield
- A comfortable working environment with heating and air-con
Next steps
We usually start with a short video call, then meet in person if it feels like a good fit.
For the right person, there may be room to shape the role around existing strengths.
Pay: £12.71-£15.00 per hour
Benefits:
- Company events
- Company pension
- Discounted or free food
- Employee discount
- Store discount
Application question(s):
- Pizza service can be fast, hot and unforgiving: dough, toppings, timing, oven temperature and communication all matter. What do you think makes someone good at this kind of service?
- You would be covering shifts around another daytime chef who is in most of the week. What would your end-of-shift handover look like so they can come back into a kitchen that is properly labelled, organised, clean and ready to use? Include the specific checks you would do before leaving.
Experience:
- Cooking: 1 year (required)
Work Location: In person
