Job Overview
Eme Coffee & Tea is looking for a Barista who is excited about great coffee, genuine connection, and being part of a community-centered café in Saint Paul.
At Eme, we believe a coffee shop should be more than a place to grab a drink. It should be a space for good coffee, good tea, good conversation, creativity, and community. As a worker-owned cooperative, we value collaboration, shared responsibility, and people who take pride in contributing to the space as a whole.
As a Barista, you will prepare high-quality coffee, tea, and specialty beverages while creating a welcoming experience for every person who walks through our doors. We're looking for someone who is dependable, personable, willing to learn, and comfortable working in a creative, fast-paced environment.
Duties & Responsibilities
- Prepare espresso-based drinks, teas, refreshers, and Eme specialty beverages according to our recipes and quality standards
- Provide warm, attentive, and knowledgeable customer service
- Create genuine connections with customers while helping maintain the welcoming and community-focused atmosphere of Eme
- Take customer orders and accurately process cash and card transactions through our POS system
- Maintain consistency in drink quality, presentation, portioning, and preparation
- Keep the bar, equipment, counters, café, and customer areas clean, organized, and stocked throughout each shift
- Follow proper food safety, sanitation, and beverage-handling procedures
- Assist with light food and pastry service as needed
- Restock ingredients, cups, supplies, and other café essentials
- Work efficiently during busy periods while maintaining quality and hospitality
- Communicate and collaborate with fellow team members to keep café operations running smoothly
- Learn Eme's menu and confidently answer customer questions about drinks, ingredients, and offerings
- Support events, programming, and other café operations when needed
- Contribute to a respectful, collaborative workplace where everyone takes ownership of the customer and team experience
Qualifications
- Previous barista, coffee shop, restaurant, retail, or customer service experience is required
- Interest in coffee, tea, hospitality, and learning beverage preparation
- Friendly and confident communication skills
- Ability to connect respectfully with people from different backgrounds and experiences
- Dependable, punctual, and able to work well as part of a team
- Strong attention to detail and willingness to follow recipes and quality standards
- Ability to stay organized and manage multiple tasks during busy periods
- Basic math and cash-handling skills
- Understanding of food safety and sanitation practices, or willingness to learn
- Ability to stand for extended periods and perform routine café tasks including cleaning, stocking, and lifting supplies
- Willingness to receive feedback, continue learning, and grow with the team
Who We're Looking For
We're looking for people who understand that hospitality is about more than making a good latte. Eme is being built as a space where coffee, culture, creativity, and community meet.
You don't have to know everything on day one. We can teach technique. We're looking for people who bring care, consistency, curiosity, accountability, and personality to the space.
If you're excited about helping build a new kind of coffee shop in Saint Paul and want to be part of a collaborative team from the beginning, we'd love to hear from you.
Come help us create good coffee, good tea, and good conversation.
Pay: $16.00 - $18.00 per hour
Work Location: In person
