Kids Cooking Instructor / Youth Program Lead

Whisk & Flame is looking for a Kids Cooking Instructor / Youth Program Lead to lead our growing youth culinary programs in Frankfort, Illinois.

This role includes kids birthday parties, school-break camps, youth group events, family classes, and helping us develop new programs for kids and tweens.

We're looking for someone who is equally comfortable in a kitchen and in front of a room full of kids.

Pay: $24 to $28 per hour, depending on experience, plus tips

Job type: Part-time, approximately 15 to 25 hours per week with opportunity to grow

Location: On-site in Frankfort, Illinois

This is a tipped position. Many families and private groups choose to tip their instructor, so actual earnings can be higher than the posted hourly rate.

What you'll do:

Lead hands-on kids cooking classes, birthday parties, camps, and youth events

Create a fun, organized, age-appropriate experience

Manage class flow, pacing, safety, and behavior

Prepare ingredients and teaching stations

Direct assistants during programs

Communicate professionally with parents and group leaders

Help develop new kids, tween, and school-break programs

Maintain recipes, prep sheets, supply lists, and program standards

Coordinate dietary and allergy needs with management

Help evaluate and improve youth programming

Maintain a clean and organized teaching kitchen

What we're looking for:

Experience working directly with children

Strong cooking or baking skills

Comfortable leading groups of approximately 10 to 20 kids

Reliable and organized

Strong communication skills

Available for weekends, school breaks, summer weekdays, and some Friday evenings

Food Handler certification or willingness to obtain it

Great backgrounds for this role include:

Kids cooking or baking instructor

Culinary instructor

FACS / Family and Consumer Sciences teacher

Camp instructor or director

Teacher or paraprofessional with strong culinary skills

Baker or culinary professional with youth-program experience

Youth program or party leader with strong cooking skills

Culinary school is not required. We care more about the person's ability to cook, teach, organize a room, connect with kids, and create a great experience.

Schedule:

This role does not have a fixed weekly schedule. Availability is needed for Saturdays, Sundays, some Friday afternoons and evenings, school-break weekdays, summer weekdays, and occasional weekday prep and programming hours.

About us:

Whisk & Flame is a hands-on cooking studio and lounge in Frankfort, Illinois, offering adult cooking classes, date nights, kids programs, camps, birthday parties, private events, and corporate team-building experiences. We're looking for someone who can take ownership of our youth programs and help us grow them.

Pay: $24.00 - $28.00 per hour

Expected hours: 15.0 – 25.0 per week

People with a criminal record are encouraged to apply

Application Question(s):

• How many years of experience do you have working directly with children? (Less than 1 year / 1-2 years / 3-5 years / 5+ years)
• How many years of cooking, baking, culinary instruction, or professional kitchen experience do you have? (None / Less than 1 year / 1-2 years / 3+ years)
• Are you comfortable independently leading a group of 10-20 children in a hands-on activity? (Yes / No)
• Are you available to work Saturdays, school-break weekdays, and some Friday and Sunday shifts? (Yes / No)
• Tell us briefly about your experience working with kids and food.
• Why does this role interest you?

Ability to Commute:

• Frankfort, IL 60423 (Required)

Work Location: In person