cafeteria worker

cook

food service worker

lead cook

kitchen leader

Whitsons Culinary Group

I worked for whitsons culinary group starting as a dishwasher and stocking cleaning and became a server soon after.. ooh man did i love my job i made sure everything was cleaned organized and helped with even the freezer and even cleaned our dock, went to other schools to help always willing to give my all for them because i know even with many people theres always more to help. man ooh man i won the first in years apple award and always was told what a great job.my biggest problem is that im alil loud and that was the most i had ever got told .i got sick and had to have surgery . all documentation was given and managers couldnt wait to i returned back .then soon after i had to reapply (unsure why) in  which it took more time then my first initial application. so i applied my pay went down and all of a sudden my boss stated that my attitude is going to watched and he was tired ...mind u not once was my attitude a problem i came to work always happy making my coworkers day as easy my managers who sit in the offices never stated an issue neither the chef or students teachers just him the same person who patted me on my back everyday on how great i have the kitchen since i worked . all of a sudden my second day( as a new hire) i go to work and get sent home because supposedly i had said something wrong to another employee .well lets just say she lied,i was at new school and i felt like the new kid didnt speak to noone for 2 days but i got sent home and they stated ill call you with information   never got a call but whitsons felt the need to let me go . the new school people was stealing eating food off the line was talking about religion inviting me to church and was filled with nothing but family. i spoke to a manager at whitsons little while later and they stated they was shocked when they heard because how great i was with the students, and all staff  he never heard a complaint and how my service line went higher up then normal they also stated that it had something to do with not having a permanent position in the company for me . so why rehire me. then fire me for something else . i never had an issue in none of my jobs because im always a happy person always willing to help always with a smile. i think it had to do with my surgery so to anyone please be careful.  p.s. whitsons culinary group i was one who really went in and loved what i do. thank u for an opportunity but i will say it is your loss.

Absolutely terrible company. The only thing it had going for it at one point was the OT but even that they cut off. It’s minimum wage for every single position. They will try to pay you the least amount possible. We’re all just numbers to them. They cut everyone’s hours during holiday time, ridiculous. I would NOT recommend this job to anyone. A pretty depressing environment. Cliques everywhere. Toxic environment, you feel left out. Management treats you fairly but is highly incompetent. Constantly messing up orders, deliveries never come fully so you find yourself running around trying to complete the tasks with less items than you’re meant to work with. Despite that management still expects you to finish at the same pace every day. They don’t care how much or how hard you have to work, but you must get everything done. Warehouse workers have it the worse, I wouldn’t recommend that at all. Heavy favoritism here, if you get on the managers’ “bad side” you will not have a good time here. The union (1102) that backs the workers are just a bunch of thieves, they don’t actually help the workers with anything. They just collect their pay but are never helpful. The countless raises they’ve promised have not once been fruitful. Overall terrible company, terribly ran. If I could give it 0 stars I would. The worst branch is between Islandia and Long Island City Branch. I’d recommend the New Jersey Branch if you’re still interested in this mess of a job.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Whitson's  Culinary is a good company to work for. I was part of a great team,
and enjoyed my job very much.Management gave us the tools we needed to make  nutritious breakfast and lunches.Food Safety  was the most important aspect of the job We were taught through Safe Serve classes,and tool box  training.I recommended  this company if you are looking for a job in food service. They are respectful and fair to their employees 





What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Time Crunch, Fast paced work..Working as a team,we always got things done in a timely fashion 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
The work environment is good, Serving a wide variety of foods, Respecting different cultures,and providing   substitues as needed

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Prepping, making alternate lunches,with all components, Catering to another school,Helping on the line,to keep it stocked and sanitized. Dishes,cleaning in between.Hep others as needed.We put away and date orders and Production sheets

Whitsons took over the school contract for my place of employment. They made many promises that were not kept. ex- promise, 5 uniform shirts, two pairs of pants, two aprons vs,  reality- 3 shirts, no pants, one apron. Personal information that was given to them during the transition was "lost" and resulted in having to complete these forms again. We were not paid for our first week of work because the GM did not submit the pay sheets. We were eventually paid, later. We had four GMs in the period of 8 months. We were told to complete tasks one way, and a few weeks later we were asked to change, then a few weeks later we were asked to change again. In the eyes of the teachers and students this left us looking like we were stupid and did not know what we were doing. The quality of paper products used was sub par and the menu options were not set to cater to the tastes of a rural South Central PA community. Current GM has favorites and caters to them, while ignoring or punishing the other employees.

I COME IN AND SET UP THE CAFETERIA FOR THE DAY. DO ALL OF MY PREP WORK AND MAKE SURE THE STAFF IS FULLY PREPARED TO DO THEIR JOBSTO THE BEST OF THEIR ABILITIES. I PREPARE THE FOODS THAT ARE ON THE MENU FOR THE DAY , WHICH I HAVE PREPARED. I DO ALL OF THE PAPERWORK PERTAINING TO THE JOB AS DETERMINE BY THE COMPANY. I CLEAN UP AND CLOSE OUT AS NECESSARY TO COMPLETE MY TASK FOR THE DAY. I HAVE LEARNED MANY MANAGERIAL SKILLS WHILE CONDUCTING THESE TASKS. I ORDER ALL NECESSARY PRODUCTS AND PREPARE THE MENU AS WELL AS PREPARE SPECIAL ORDERS FOR OTHER FUNCTIONS AT THE SCHOOL WHEN NEEDED.THE MOST ENJOYABLE PART IS SEEING THE ENJOYMENT ON THE FACES OF THE STUDENTS AND STAFF WHEN THEY CONSUME THE MEALS THAT I HAVE PREPARED AS WELL AS THE COMPLIMENTS RECEIVED FOR A JOB WELL DONE. THE CO-WORKERS CONSTANTLY CHANGE, SO FOR THE MOST PART IT IS A FUNCTIONAL RELATIONSHIP. THE HARDEST PART OF THE JOB IS WHEN WORKERS DON'T SHOW UP AND YOU STILL HAVE TO PRODUCE QUALITY WORK.

The job itself is pretty easy once you've finished training and use some common sense. The pay is below what you would expect if you're applying as a driver with a CDL, but it's a couple dollars more than the regular van drivers (which is very low considering you're out in the elements with poorly conditioned vehicles). The vehicles are re-treads and are taken to the mechanic on the bare minimum. Management barely know what the other is doing and communication between the main warehouse in NY and ours were horrible - missing pallets of product, extremely late trailer deliveries, and incorrect product sent on a semi-regular basis. The co-workers and even the manager were fun to be around and since you're in a union you've got pretty good job security. Overall I'd say if you need a job then this is a job, but if you're looking for a career or to make good money then I'd keep looking.

With the acquisition of Fresh Picks, Whitsons has a monopoly on camps, education, and senior living through out New England.
Choices to work for a different company are now very limited unless you move into restaurants.
Management seemed to be a bit aloof and unscrupulous.
I happened to notice that no one ever had a smile on their face and moral was subpar.
There also seems to be a higher than average amount of turnover and speaking with former high ranking employees I can confidently say that politics dictate more than merit at this company unfortunately.
Better decision making from the decision makers would go leaps and bounds in making a difference but sadly at the “good old boys club” the most important thing is keeping your nose in the air and sniffing each others fumes.


Great company to work within a school district

Daily use of accounting software to record, store, and analyze information.
•	         Prepared invoices for data entry using appropriate codes.
•	         Processed payroll and overtime. Verified accuracy of billing data and corrected any errors.
•	         Compiled and maintained financial records.
•	         Debited, credited, and totaled accounts on computer spreadsheets and databases.
•	         Complied with federal, state, and company policies, procedures, and regulations.
•	         Supervised cashiers and reported and reconciled discrepancies found in records.
•	         Prepared journal entries for monthly bank activity.
•	         Matched vendor invoices with receiving data.
•	         Maintained regular contact with clients.
•	         Hired, trained, monitor and evaluate new hires and cashiers.

The work environment here is sad.  The manager is the absolute biggest liar I have ever met.  The atmosphere cultivated is that of backstabbing snakes!  Even showing up to work and giving 110% every single day is not good enough.  A lot of the time, the food is not prepared in time.  The manager likes to pit people against one another and talk behind other people's back.  Her favorites are not held accountable for doing their work responsibilities which fall on the backs of the people who actually work.  This place is depressing. No raises or increase of work time is available unless you are in the clique.  If you are lucky enough to be in the clique, you are allowed to sit in the manager's office and discuss forthcoming menues or the manager's daughter's May wedding.  Sadly there are deaf ears to share any grievances to.

What is the best part of working at the company?
The only good thing about this job is the hours especially if you have children in school because you get the same days off. As far as the job is concerned, there’s no advancement, pay is horrible, they push you and get no brakes. The company comes off as a family company which they are for themselves. Management could be much better at communication and respect.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Getting everything done and making sure you don’t go over your hours.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Unless your management they don’t care about you.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
I am no longer with the company and that is the only reason why I am writing this. Fast paced and stressful.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Cafeteria worker 4 salaries reported	$15.50 per hour
Cook 3 salaries reported	$18.83 per hour
Food service worker 3 salaries reported	$23.67 per hour
Lead cook 1 salary reported	$18.75 per hour
Kitchen leader 1 salary reported	$17.00 per hour

Working at Whitsons Culinary Group: Company Overview and Reviews

Whitsons Culinary Group

Whitsons Culinary Group Ratings

Popular jobs at Whitsons Culinary Group

Salary Satisfaction

Job Seeker Tools

Employer Tools

Browse

Stay Connected