Job Description

Hand Roll Bar Server

Location: Chicago, IL (River North)

Employment Type: Part-Time (20-29 hours) or Full-Time (30+ hours)

About OMAKAI Hand Roll Bar

OMAKAI Hand Roll Bar is a counter concept restaurant with one aim: to be known for blowing people's minds. Everything we do rests on three guarantees: warm rice for contrast, crispy nori for texture, and kind service. Every guest, every visit.

We serve high-quality hand rolls at an accessible price, and we are growing across South Florida and expanding to other cities nationally with our full-service restaurant and hand roll bar concepts. Every seat is at the counter, where guests watch our chefs and servers work together. We hold ourselves to a five-star hotel standard in a casual counter setting, which means the details matter more here than in most restaurants.

We treat every guest with genuine kindness and focus heavily on execution. Our team runs on accountability, reliability, and doing what we say we will do.

Position Overview

We are seeking friendly Hand Roll Bar Servers for our hand roll counter. Every seat is at the counter and owns the full guest experience in the dining area. We require at least two years of serving experience, and Japanese restaurant experience is welcome but not required. Genuine hospitality matters here as much as order accuracy and pace do.

This seat owns the full arc of the table. You take and manage orders, entering every one accurately with modifications, allergies, and restrictions handled correctly, and you keep tables informed on timing and availability. You hold a proactive presence at your tables and handle questions, concerns, and complaints in the moment with professionalism. You also own table turnover and bussing, food running sashimi and desserts, guest support, and beverage service, so tables are cleared and reset to standard, food reaches the right guest on time with a dish explanation, empty items are gone before the guest notices, and drinks and water stay full.

We weigh experience, customer service level, accuracy, and pace. We are looking for servers who genuinely enjoy hospitality, who read each table and anticipate needs, who want to turn a complaint into a win, who are willing to clear, reset, and run food to keep the room moving, and who carry a full section while staying warm under pressure through a full turn.

Responsibilities

Take & Manage Orders

• Take every guest order accurately, including modifications, and own accuracy from entry through delivery
• Handle allergy and dietary restriction requests in line with our food allergy policies
• Enter orders on our point-of-sale system correctly and process payments
• Keep tables informed on timing and availability throughout the meal
• Know what is unavailable before service starts and communicate substitutions clearly
• Guide guests through our set menus and a la carte hand rolls, including how we recommend each item be eaten

Table Presence & Hospitality

• Greet arriving guests warmly and thank every departing guest
• Maintain a proactive presence at your assigned tables rather than waiting to be flagged down
• Read the room and adjust pace, tone, and timing to what each table needs
• Build rapport and explain dishes so every guest feels cared for throughout the visit
• Recommend hand rolls, appetizers, and beverage pairings with confidence and honesty rather than pressure
• Explain our three guarantees and what makes our hand rolls different, in your own words

Guest Engagement & Resolution

• Handle guest questions, concerns, and complaints in the moment with professionalism
• Own the recovery when something goes wrong rather than passing it along
• Resolve issues at the table where you can, and escalate to the manager on duty when you cannot
• Check in through the meal so you catch a problem before the guest has to raise it
• Keep a calm, warm tone with the guest no matter how the room is running

Table Turnover & Bussing

• Clear dishes, glassware, and used items promptly after guests leave and throughout the meal
• Reset tables to standard so the next party can be seated quickly
• Pre-bus through the meal so tables never sit crowded with finished plates
• Keep the room right: aligned seats, clean and stable surfaces, correct lighting and volume
• Communicate table status to the host stand so seating and service flow keep moving

Food Running

• Run items to the correct guests during service, including appetizers, sashimi, and desserts
• Check every plate against the ticket before it leaves for the table
• Deliver on time so a hand roll never sits waiting to be run
• Explain dishes as needed when you set them down

Guest Support

• Remove empty glassware, plates, and used items so tables stay fully maintained
• Respond to guest needs anywhere in the room, regardless of whose section it is
• Support teammates during a rush before being asked
• Keep an eye on the whole dining area, not just your own tables

Beverage Service

• Deliver beverages promptly and refill drinks and water before a guest has to ask
• Serve alcoholic beverages responsibly and in accordance with local, state, and national laws and regulations
• Know the beer, wine, and sake list well enough to recommend a pairing
• Open sake, beer, and wine bottles correctly at the table or counter

All Shifts

• Follow our standard operating procedures exactly, on every table, every shift
• Complete opening, running, and closing side work, including restocking your station and resetting the room for the next service
• Learn the entire menu in detail, including ingredients, preparation, and pairings, and keep current on changes, specials, and seasonal items
• Conduct bathroom checks throughout the shift and assist in maintaining cleanliness
• Minimize waste of food, beverages, and supplies, and support inventory and ordering accuracy by flagging what is running low
• Coordinate with the counter, the host stand, and the rest of the floor to keep service moving
• Contribute to training newer servers when needed

Qualifications

• Two years of serving experience required
• Must be available for at least 2 lunches per week and willing to work at least 1 double per week
• SafeServe, alcohol serving, allergy compliance, and sexual harassment prevention certifications required, and all can be obtained during training. We cover the cost of the sexual harassment prevention certificate
• Japanese cuisine knowledge is a plus but not required
• Able to learn and memorize our entire menu in detail, including hand rolls, set menus, appetizers, sashimi, and beverage pairings
• Comfortable handling money and operating a point-of-sale system, including basic math under pressure
• Comfortable working in a counter setting where guests see and hear service from a few feet away
• Able to carry a full section while clearing, resetting, and running food through a full turn
• Communicates well with guests, teammates, and management, even during a rush
• High school diploma or equivalent preferred but not required
• Reliable transportation to and from the restaurant
• Must be legally authorized to work in the United States

Working Conditions

• Indoor counter environment in a restaurant that handles fish, seafood, vegetables, fruits, wheat products, rice, dry seaweed, sauces, and many other food and beverage products
• Candidates with food allergies must inform management during the application process
• Noise levels vary depending on how busy the restaurant is
• Every seat is at the counter, so you work in full view and earshot of guests throughout service
• Standing for long periods, with some bending and kneeling to reach items such as plates, spoons, sauces, and beverages
• Moderate tray handling and lifting, up to 25 pounds
• Opening sake, beer, and wine bottles, and handling a soft drink hose to dispense beverages
• Pre-bussing and bussing tables, including thorough cleaning and occasional sweeping
• Maneuvering between the counter, tables, and corners in a full room

Characteristics We Value

• Genuinely kind, with hospitality that comes from the heart
• Reliable without exception, early and prepared for every shift
• Detail-oriented, you catch the empty water and the wobbly table before the guest notices
• Accurate, you hold order detail and allergy checks even when every seat is full
• Warm and composed under pressure, through a full turn rather than just a rush
• Resourceful, you arrive with options rather than problems
• Honest and trustworthy, including when it is inconvenient
• Team first, you clear, reset, and run food for any table without being asked

Core Values

• Hospitality from the heart: you serve every guest as if they were a family member or friend you had not seen in years. You read the table and adjust pace for a couple on an anniversary versus a quick lunch, connecting warmly rather than reciting specials.
• Be Reliable.You clock in early, in full uniform, with your station stocked before the first guest is seated. When an order is misfired, you own it to the guest and to the counter.
• Blowing Minds.A five-star hotel mentality in a casual counter room, where mediocrity bothers you. You catch a smudged glass, a wobbly table, or an empty water before the guest notices, and you never let a hand roll sit at the counter.
• Make It Happen.Three layers of solutions before you escalate. When an item is unavailable mid service, you check with the chef on substitutions and come back with two comparable alternatives rather than just telling the guest we are out.
• No Drama.You keep a calm, positive tone when a table sends a dish back and resolve it without visible frustration, and you do not vent at the server station. Gossip has no place at OMAKAI, and the best idea wins no matter who it comes from.
• Build Trust.You tell the manager on duty right away about a spill or a comp, and you ring in every item honestly. You never cut corners on an allergy check, no matter how busy the counter is.

This May Not Be the Right Fit If

• You pick and choose which parts of the job you are willing to do
• You take orders but leave tables uncleared and drinks empty
• You bus and run food without ever engaging, explaining, or recovering a guest issue
• You want the tips with the least effort possible, and see bussing, resets, and food running as beneath the seat
• You treat check-ins, service recovery, and side work as chores
• You get overwhelmed once you are past a couple of tables, and order details or allergy checks start to slip
• You bring negativity, gossip, or dark energy onto the floor, where guests can see and hear it

Compensation & Benefits

• Commission model: servers keep a fixed percentage of the service charge (the percentage varies by location), plus a small hourly base, plus a split of additional tips between counter chefs, servers, and host/hostesses
• 50% meal discount while working
• 25% meal discount when dining with us as a guest on your own time
• Medical insurance reimbursement
• Free parking
• Flexible scheduling
• A dedicated onboarding and training program

Equal Opportunity Employer

OMAKAI is an equal opportunity employer. This employer must notify all applicants of their rights under federal employment laws. For further information, please review the Know Your Rights notice from the Department of Labor.