Join the Crew

Work Where theNeighborhood Gathers

The Black Oak runs on the people behind the bar, on the line, and on the floor. If you take pride in an honest plate, a proper pour, and treating a room full of regulars like family, we'd like to meet you.

See Open Positions (330) 804-0070

Why The Black Oak

A Kitchen and a BarWorth Showing Up For

We're a new room on Portage Road with a small, tight crew and a lot of pride in what leaves the pass. We schedule around real life, we train people up rather than burn them out, and we split the room's success with the people who built it.

The dining room and bar at The Black Oak.

Fair Pay & Tips

Hourly wage set on experience, with tips pooled fairly across the crew that earned them.

Shift Meal Every Shift

Eat off the same menu we send to the dining room — on the house, every shift you work.

Schedules That Flex

Full time, part time, or weekends only. Tell us what your week looks like and we'll build around it.

Room to Move Up

Prep to line, barback to bar, server to lead. We promote from inside the room first.

Open Positions

4 roles · 1931 Portage Road, Wooster

Prep Cook

Now Hiring

Type: Full time or part time
Schedule: Daytime shifts · Tue – Sat
Pay: Hourly, based on experience

The day starts with you. Prep cooks build the mise en place the whole kitchen leans on — sauces, dressings, cut vegetables, portioned proteins — so the line can fire cleanly through a full house.

What You'll Do

Work the daily prep list: butchering, portioning, chopping, and batching house sauces.
Follow recipes and spec sheets exactly so every plate tastes the same on a Tuesday as on a Saturday.
Rotate and date product, run FIFO, and keep the walk-in organized and labeled.
Receive and put away deliveries, flagging anything that doesn't meet spec.
Hold the station and the kitchen to health-department standards, open to close.

What We're Looking For

Comfortable with knives and confident on basic cuts.
Reliable on start times — the line can't open without prep.
Able to lift 50 lbs and stay on your feet for a full shift.
Kitchen experience is a plus; a willingness to be trained is required.

Apply for Prep Cook

Line Cook

Now Hiring

Type: Full time or part time
Schedule: Nights & weekends · Tue – Sat
Pay: Hourly, based on experience

Smashburgers, hand-stretched pinsa flatbreads, and wings — fired hot, fast, and to spec. Line cooks own a station through the rush and send out food we're proud to put the oak on.

What You'll Do

Set up, run, and break down a station — grill, flat top, fry, or pizza oven.
Cook to spec and to ticket times without letting quality slide during a rush.
Call and answer the expo, and keep the line talking so tables go out together.
Keep the station clean and stocked through service, not just at close.
Cross-train onto the other stations so the schedule has depth.

What We're Looking For

Previous line experience in a scratch or high-volume kitchen preferred.
Steady under pressure on a full Friday night.
Available nights and weekends — that's when the room is loudest.
Able to lift 50 lbs and work near heat for a full shift.

Apply for Line Cook

Server

Now Hiring

Type: Full time or part time
Schedule: Nights & weekends · Tue – Sun
Pay: Hourly + tips

You are the room. Servers set the pace of a table, know the menu cold, and make a first-time guest feel like a regular before the appetizers land.

What You'll Do

Greet, guide, and take care of tables from the first hello through the check.
Know the food and drink menus well enough to recommend, pair, and answer allergen questions.
Fire and time courses with the kitchen so nothing sits under the heat lamp.
Run food and drinks for the whole floor, not just your own section.
Reset, polish, and roll silver — leave the room ready for the next shift.

What We're Looking For

Restaurant service experience preferred; strong hospitality instincts required.
Comfortable carrying trays and staying on your feet through a long shift.
Available nights and weekends, including live-music nights.
Must be 18 or older to serve alcohol in Ohio.

Apply for Server

Bartender

Now Hiring

Type: Full time or part time
Schedule: Nights & weekends · Tue – Sun
Pay: Hourly + tips

Our bar is built on a serious pour — a brown-sugar old fashioned, a copper-mug mule, a deep bench of whiskey. Bartenders run the well, run the rail, and run the mood of the whole room.

What You'll Do

Build cocktails to spec and pour beer, wine, and spirits at speed and consistently.
Serve and take care of the bar top like it's your own dining section.
Open, close, and stock the bar: ice, garnish, glassware, kegs, and prepped mixers.
Card every guest who looks under 40 and cut off service when it's the right call.
Keep the bar clean and the well organized through a full rail of tickets.

What We're Looking For

Bartending experience with classic cocktails and a full well.
Working knowledge of whiskey, bourbon, and the standards behind the bar.
Available nights and weekends, including live-music nights.
Must be 21 or older to tend bar in Ohio.

Apply for Bartender

Don't see your role? Apply anyway and choose “Not sure — I'm open.” We keep good applications on file and call first when a spot opens.

Apply

Tell Us WhoYou Are

Fill this out and it lands straight in the manager's inbox. A resume helps but isn't required — if you've got the hustle, we'll teach the rest.

Prefer to Stop In?

1931 Portage Road
Wooster, OH 44691
(330) 804-0070

Tue – Sat: 11am – 8pm
Sun – Mon: Closed

Equal Opportunity

The Black Oak is an equal opportunity employer. We hire on character and craft, and we do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or any other protected class.