About the Role
We're hiring a Live Pani Puri Server to run our chaat counter in front of guests. This is a performance role as much as a service role — you're assembling and serving puris one at a time, at speed, directly to guests standing at the counter. Every puri has to be crisp when it reaches their hand, and the line has to keep moving.
If you've worked a live chaat stall, a dosa counter, a teppanyaki line, or any open-kitchen station, you'll recognize the rhythm.
What You'll Do
- Assemble and serve pani puri to order — crack the puri, fill with masala potato/chana, dip in pani, hand off immediately
- Serve at pace during rush: maintain a consistent, unbroken flow for guests waiting at the counter
- Read each guest's spice preference and adjust (mild/medium/hot pani, extra meetha, extra chutney)
- Prep and hold station components: boiled and spiced potato masala, soaked chana, sprouts, tamarind (meetha) water, mint-coriander (teekha) water, chutneys, sev, onion, cilantro
- Manage puri stock so shells stay crisp — rotate containers, keep them sealed and away from steam
- Batch and taste-check pani throughout service; keep both waters cold and correctly seasoned
- Keep the counter visually clean at all times — this station is on display
- Maintain temperature logs, cold-holding, and end-of-shift breakdown and sanitation
- Answer guest questions about ingredients, allergens, and spice level
What We're Looking For
Required
- Comfortable working directly in front of guests for an entire shift
- Fast, steady hands and the ability to keep a line moving without rushing quality
- Working knowledge of Indian chaat — you know what correctly balanced pani tastes like and can fix it when it's off
- Food Handler / ServSafe certification (or willingness to obtain before first shift)
- Strict glove discipline — no bare-hand contact with ready-to-eat food, per Massachusetts food code
- Able to stand for full shifts and lift up to 30 lbs
- Available evenings and weekends
Preferred
- Prior experience at a chaat counter, street-food stall, or live-cooking station
- Conversational Hindi or Gujarati (helpful with a portion of our guests)
- Catering or high-volume event experience (we serve events of 600+ guests)
What Success Looks Like
- Guests get a crisp puri, every time, with no wait longer than a minute at the counter
- Pani tastes the same at 9 PM as it did at 6 PM
- Zero cross-contact incidents on allergen requests
- Guests come back and ask for you by name
Pay: $15.00 - $19.00 per hour
Benefits:
Work Location: In person
