Pechanga Launched Lunch Lady To Kelsey's Cook: Pechanga Culinary Jobs

TEMECULA, CA — Pechanga Resort Casino is hiring culinary staff this month, and launching careers. The Culinary Job Fair will run from 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. on Wednesday, May 24 at Pechanga Resort Casino.

Applicants will get to meet one on one with hiring managers, receive on-the-spot interviews, and may even be offered a job right away. Culinary job seekers can stop into the Manzanita Room on the second floor above the Pechanga Summit Events Center at any time during the job fair.

Rachel Hillig, an eight-year veteran cook at Kelsey's gastropub inside Pechanga Resort, shared her journey from lunch lady to cook on the resort's culinary team.

“I was a lunch lady at a Lake Elsinore school before I came to work at Pechanga as a prep cook,” Hillig said. It doesn't matter how old you are when you apply, according to Hillig, now on staff for eight years. "This is a great place to start your career and work your way up, but you don’t have to be a young person just starting out either.”

Experience is a bonus but not necessary for those wanting to start working in the culinary industry.

"Pechanga Resort Casino calls on all who have ever thought about a career in culinary," said Ciara Green, spokesperson for the resort. "Cooks, bartenders, bakers, even head chef and restaurant management positions are all available for the right candidates at Pechanga."

Bonuses for certain positions

Cooks hired at Pechanga Resort Casino take home an extra $2,500 as a sign-on incentive. Cook positions start at $17.50 per hour and go up to $22. Ask any of the current Pechanga culinary staff and they attest to the availability of upward career mobility at Pechanga.

The resort’s executive chef started as a kitchen supervisor in Kelsey’s restaurant. The current executive sous chef started his culinary journey as a busser in the Pechanga employee cafeteria.

“For someone who’s watched the cooking shows and thought, ‘I could do that,’ you probably can if you have the passion. And there’s so much room for growth in our culinary department,” said Pechanga Resort Casino Executive Chef, Andre Pinto. “We would love to meet with you on May 24.”

“And I tell all the younger people who come to work here, ‘you need to get yourself into that six-percent matching 401k,’ Hillig said. "This is a great place to start your career and work your way up, but you don’t have to be a young person just starting out either.”

Great Oak Steakhouse Reopening Scheduled For Summer, 2023

One of the biggest needs necessitating the new culinary staff is Pechanga’s signature Great Oak Steakhouse currently under renovation.

With an estimated reopening this summer, a larger kitchen and expanded seating, the sleek, modern and inviting fine dining restaurant requires staff ready to deliver exemplary Four Diamond service.

Pechanga Team Members enjoy dozens of generous employee benefits including free meals during a shift, medical, dental and vision insurance, 401(K)-retirement programs with employer match, longevity bonus, tuition reimbursements, Team Member celebrations, incentive gift cards, on-site gym, team member discounts on food and gas, and more. Applicants 18 or older are eligible to be hired as cooks, as well as in many other positions within the food and beverage division at Pechanga.

"The benefits we get are some of the best around," Hillig said. "And I tell all the younger people who come to work here, ‘you need to get yourself into that six-percent matching 401k.’"

Prospective candidates attending the career fair can upload their resumes ahead of time at the Pechanga Careers webpage – www.pechanga.com - and also bring a few copies with them. Walk-ins are welcome. Chef Andre Pinto recommends dressing for success and wearing a winning smile. All available job positions at Pechanga Resort Casino can be found at the Pechanga Careers website.