Farm Hand & Cafe All-Rounder at Black Cat Truffles

The Black Cat Truffle team is looking for a new member to join us this winter! Your role would be to help us in our truffiere (the 1,000 French and English oak tree plantation, under the roots of which our truffles grow during the winter months of June, July & August) and in our licensed Farmgate Café which is open on Saturdays and Sundays during the truffle season (June, July & August). We are also very keen to teach you about the world of truffles and truffle farming so you acquire knowledge about this unique and fascinating agribusiness and its many interesting aspects.

Every Saturday and Sunday, we run ‘Truffle Hunts & Taste of Truffles Experiences’, where up to 20 people come on a hunt led by Black Cat’s owners Tom and Kristen as well as our truffle dogs, Lottie and Winston. The hunt is a fun and educational experience where guests learn about truffles and help to identify and dig them up before returning to the licensed café for a glass of bubbles and five truffle-infused tasting dishes. We’d love you to help us with these hunts .. even if it’s mainly looking after Lottie or Winston while Tom digs up a truffle or two (or more) with our guests.

Our cafe is a cosy space which can accommodate 28 people. If you have hospitality experience, we’d appreciate your help here too. There are usually two of us pouring wine, serving up the tasting dishes for the hunt guests and then once they’re gone, serving our wood-fired truffle pizzas to people who book previously, or drop in for lunch. Barista experience for our coffee offering would be desirable too, but an RSA is essential please.

Your Role
• Support Tom in a myriad of farm-hand/farm maintenance tasks around the property (mainly in relation to truffle harvesting which is about to get in to full swing).
• Assist when needed on the truffle hunts – Saturday and Sundays, June - August
• Help with our gorgeous (but currently somewhat neglected) veggie garden, so we can use as much of our own produce in the café as possible.
• Assist when needed with selling truffles and making our range of home-made truffle products (Truffle Oil, Butter, Aioli, Dressing, Salt & Honey) and perhaps attending a few Farmers’ Markets in Melbourne, Daylesford, Kyneton and Ballarat (if interested).

Remuneration
• $30 an hour or the Award Wage (whichever is greater)

Commitment
As the truffle season only lasts for a short 3 months and we are only open to the public on Saturdays and Sundays, we hope to have a consistent small, tight knit team for the duration of the season. You would be very welcome to stay on the Saturday night in our semi self-contained ‘Bed Shed’ to save you having to drive the 1.5 hours back to Melbourne; however that would be totally up to you.

Email enquiries and expression of interest with CV attached to enquiries@blackcattruffles.com.au