Line Cook

About Soup Zen Hot Pot

Soup Zen Hot Pot is a new-style Hot Pot restaurant opening at Burlington Mall (75 Middlesex Turnpike, Burlington, MA 01803) in late 2026. This is our first U.S. location.

Because we are opening from scratch, everyone hired now is a founding team member. You will be paid for pre-opening training, you will help us set the standards rather than inherit them, and the people who show up and lead early are the people we promote first.

The Role

Our Cooks run the cook station and own the recipes that define the restaurant: the broths, the chili oil and spice blends, the house sauces, and the appetizers. Every guest builds a different bowl, so no two orders are the same — your job is cooking each one correctly, matching it to the right broth and spice level, and sending it out fast enough that the dining room keeps turning.

Pay depends on which stations you can run including BOH crew pre work. Cooks who can produce broth independently and hold ticket times during a full rush sit at the top of the range.

What You'll Do

• Run the cook station: take each guest's weighed basket with its ticket, cook every item to its correct time so nothing comes out mushy or raw, and build the finished bowl
• Match every bowl to its ticket exactly — broth, spice level, add-ons, allergy notes.
• Produce broths and soup bases daily to exact recipe: stock kettle operation, skimming, seasoning, straining, cooling, and labeling
• Make chili oil, spice blends, and house dipping sauces to spec, and taste and adjust for consistency
• Hold spice levels consistent so a guest's "medium" tastes the same on their fifth visit as their first
• Run the wok and fry stations for appetizers and sides during service
• Set up your station for service, manage par levels, and call out shortages before they become 86s
• Hold ticket times through the rush when baskets are stacked up, and coordinate with expo so tables are served together
• Hold food safety standards without exception: cooking and holding temperatures, cooling procedures, cross-contamination control, allergen handling, and temperature logs
• Manage waste, yield, and portioning
• Train and check the work of BOH crew members on prep specs, line presentation, and technique
• Keep equipment: kettles, woks, fryers, ranges, hood filters clean
• Help the Head Chef with recipe testing, menu rollouts, and pre-opening line setup

What We're Looking For

• Must be 18 years of age or older
• 1–3+ years of line cook experience in a high-volume kitchen preferred
• Chinese, malatang, hot pot, or other Asian cuisine experience is a significant plus; wok experience strongly preferred
• Able to hold recipe consistency and portion discipline under pressure, and to keep many different orders straight at once
• Strong food-safety habits and a genuinely clean station
• Must obtain a ServSafe Food Handler certificate within 30 days of hire (we reimburse the fee); ServSafe Manager certification is a plus
• Evening, weekend, and holiday availability
• Chinese or Spanish is a plus, but it is not required

Physical Requirements

• Stand for the length of a shift, typically 8–10 hours
• Lift and carry up to 50 lbs, including stock pots and cases
• Work in hot kitchen conditions near open flame, boiling broth, fryers, and steam
• Use knives, woks, slicers, and commercial kitchen equipment safely

What We Offer

• Competitive hourly pay, reviewed after your first 90 days
• Free shift meal every shift you work, plus an employee discount when you dine with us when you are off
• Paid pre-opening training — you are on the clock from day one of training
• Sick Paid
• Free employee parking at Burlington Mall
• Promotion track: Line Cook → Shift Lead → Assistant Kitchen Manager and up
• Referral bonus

Pay: From $20.00 per hour

Expected hours: 30.0 – 40.0 per week

Benefits:

• Paid training
• Referral program

Application Question(s):

• Able to work weekends and holidays?

Experience:

• Cooking: 1 year (Preferred)

Shift availability:

• Day Shift (Required)
• Night Shift (Required)

Ability to Commute:

• Burlington, MA 01803 (Required)

Work Location: In person