Social OTR, which opened February 7 in Over-the-Rhine, is a high-end dining laboratory – a collaboration between Findlay Market and CityLink Center that is preparing would-be chefs for a career as it prepares food for customers.
The restaurant’s mission is to address the shortage of food-service workers while providing a career path for individuals who face employment barriers. Those individuals participate in a 16-week training program, including four weeks at CityLink Center where they learn basic employment skills and 12 weeks in the kitchen at Social OTR.
During the four-week session at CityLink Center, Cincinnati Works staff lead a modified version of our JumpStart job-search-readiness training, covering topics such as interviewing and understanding workplace expectations. Participants split their time during that four-week session between classroom instruction and hands-on training in the CityLink kitchen.
The third cohort of 12 participants is currently in session at CLC. Members of the first two cohorts are working in the kitchen at Social OTR.