line cook

pastry cook

host/hostess

sushi chef

barback

Nobu

Working at Nobu Scottsdale as a Server Assistant was one of the most mentally draining experiences I’ve had in hospitality.

I fully understand the need for high standards in a fine dining environment but the culture here goes far beyond “rigorous.” It’s toxic. Management is relentlessly harsh, and even after what felt like a flawless shift, I was consistently torn down by supervisors and peers for microscopic “mistakes.” Constructive feedback is rare; criticism is constant.

Server assistants are expected to memorize a menu that’s borderline impossible in its complexity, yet you’re given minimal support to do so. I was once reprimanded for briefly speaking to a teammate during a lull in service… standing still, even for a second, is treated like a punishable offense. You’re expected to move at full speed and operate under pressure with zero room for error.

What makes it worse is the team dynamic. I’ve never worked in a restaurant where the environment felt so cold and hostile. Backstabbing, gossip, and outright insults are the norm. It honestly feels like the hiring process seeks psychopaths… only selecting for people lacking empathy and emotional intelligence. The result is a staff culture that thrives on negativity and intimidation.

If you’re seeking growth, mentorship, or even basic respect in a workplace look elsewhere. Nobu Scottsdale might have the brand name, but behind the scenes, it’s a deeply dysfunctional place to work.

Should've known something was wrong when the hiring manager tossed aside my resume and didn't even bother looking at it before asking "have you ever even worked at a restaurant before?" I had 3 years of line cook experience before hand and he hired me as a dishwasher under the false hope of being promoted to line cook one day. I expressed interest to the chefs, other line cook, and they were interested in having me come on board but it boiled down to an unprofessional manager who took Vegas vacations at least twice a month and was hardly ever around unless he was getting a free meal or belittling the staff. Bent over backwards for them for 7-8months just to have people hired after me get promoted ahead of me with no prior restaurant experience. Every time I asked about a promotion they pretty much said calling out sick 3 times in 7-8 months was too frequent and they needed someone they could trust. The chefs are underappreciated masters of the craft itself but upper management are a bunch of racist snakes. If you're an aspiring cook, trust and believe you can do better. Highly advise you take your time and talent elsewhere where you'll be compensated and appreciated.

Warning ⚠️ you have to have VERY thick skin to work here. Not only does management yell at you about your mistakes expect almost every other call to be a customer yelling at you. At times it could feel like an actual warzone with no hopes of progression. This is the definition of a dead end job. There is 0 room for professional growth or forward movement. The company gives the managing position to whoever is left standing, no management experience or proper training needed. A lot of favorism going on they pick and choose who they want to be strict on and enforce the rules on. “Rules” and “procedures” change very often so it’s hard to actually know what’s required of you, theres no employee handbook everything is left up to however the managers are feeling that day. You have to ask to go to the bathroom or leave the room like you are in preschool. Manager yells and embarrass you if you make a mistake unless you are their friend or pretend to be their friend. Lots of work drama and passive aggressive talk amongst the entire staff. Employee discount is totally not worth and they pick and choose when you can use it. Aftee answering phones all day and dealing with all the stress you still have to beg management for a reservation for yourself and pray you are approved. Extremely unstructured, emotionally and physically draining, toxic and chaotic place to work. 

nobu has a huge prestige around the name and the food and the hotels, but it's no better than any other restaurant... it might actually be worse. The tip-pool system is deeply flawed. the captains make so much money and do less work on the floor than the servers. the point of a tip pool is to keep everyone accountable and make sure everyone is pulling their equal weight. but at nobu, once servers reach the maximum percentage in the tip pool, they very clearly are slacking off. the hosts don't rotate sections properly, so some shifts you end up selling hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars more than other servers and you end up making a fraction of the tips that reflect your hard work. they don't pay out sick time, the turnover is insanely high, there is no teamwork, the tips aren't distributed in a logical way, and it's just a gross company to work for. 

A typical day at work was walking into Nobu, asking the hostess how many reservations we had. Then depending on whether we had a lot on the books I would prepare the necessary so our restaurant doesn't Yama anything. 
I've learned through my experience at Nobu Hardrock how to fabricate fish such as : Black Cod, Red Snapper, Seabass, Steelhead, Salmon, etc. 
I've learned how to portion and correctly clean a Tenderloin, Chicken, and Wagyu.
Throughly wash our produce such as : Baby Red Romane, Green Oak, Mizuna, Frizee, etc.
I managed the sauces and all the recipes for the kitchen and the sushi bar. 
Had to make fresh rice 30 minutes before service and made sure we had a back up.
Theirs no hard part about the job, if you have the passion for the job, You'll do the best you can to be the best,

Extreme cut-throat environment that has you on your toes your entire shift if you aren't on break. As it was only dinner service at this particular location, we provided some of the best quality food and service you could find and get. Meals are mostly free, unless you wanted something in particular (which rarely occurred considering as a server and busser, you are required to learn items from the menu so we are constantly trying new things and reading menu items daily) for break considering we had a family meal everyday for lunch/dinner for the restaurants employees. The job is very demanding and requires a lot of energy, so come to work well rested and ready for anything.

- A typical day at work is from 8am-5pm going over multiple accounts and setting up payments for multiple restaurant location invoices (Produce, liquor, operational)

- I learned the accounting bible aka General Ledger (accounting verbiage) along with learning where to place specific items on invoice whom aren't part of inventory or just used once.

- Management for the most part was good.

-There are certain people who became my workplace family.

- Hardest part of my job was that as the accounts grow, the more work you accumulate but its great practice.

- The most enjoyable part is the many different people you come across and become close with or build a strong professional relationship, whether via email only or in person.

I only worked there for a week and they let me go. They give you zero time to grow. The trainer who is a fellow server assistant was very belittling and would talk down to you and only speak negatively to you and tell management how bad you were when it was very exaggerated. I guess your suppose to just bite your lip and just take it. Some trainers were fair and constructive. Place is very cut throat and toxic. They expect you to be this perfect robot within only a week of working there which isn't feasible. Management half the time looked miserable or stressed probably because they feel pressure all the time from the higher ups. You can make great money here but for some people it wouldn't be worth the stress.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Company Culture. Training structure provides standards and brings the team together. 

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Union and the way it works with Nobu’s service standards. Everyone should help out and are expected to have a strong base knowledge but the union doesn’t allow for ongoing training and cross department training 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Strong company culture that is consistent across other locations 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Hands on during service and aware of service standards at all times. Monitoring quality of food and service and supporting the team in all departments. Labor control and financial reporting daily

I am beyond grateful for my time in Nobu. I was able to pick up a great worth ethic that I never thought I would never gain. 
I started as a porter where I polished all sorts of glasses and sent them out the bar. Then I was moved to being a bar assistant where i made juices and garnish for the bar. Finally, I became a barista where i served coffees, wines, sake, and beers.

My typical day was stocking up the fridges with waters, wines, beers, and sake. Then helped the other baristas with garnishes or tickets by the window. By the end of the night we made sure we clean our station, restocked, and had a captain check us out.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Line cook 3 salaries reported	$16.67 per hour
Pastry cook 6 salaries reported	$19.13 per hour
Host/hostess 18 salaries reported	$19.85 per hour
Sushi chef 4 salaries reported	$16.72 per hour
Barback 7 salaries reported	$17.89 per hour

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