WHAT WE DO
We are proud to offer benefits exceeding the standards for the restaurant industry—a robust paid time off package, covering the majority of employee healthcare premiums, closure on all major holidays, 401K plan, third party employee assistance program, and more. Thanks to your continued support of the optional Employee Benefits Contribution, this has been possible to achieve.
A 20% service charge will be applied to each bill, which will be paid out to our hourly team members in order to ensure equitable pay for all, including our kitchen team. Any additional gratuity left will go to the front-of-house team who serve you.
Our goal is to not only provide for our incredible team, but to bring awareness to our community that most people in the hospitality industry have never had health insurance they can afford. Cafe Yaya subsidizes 85% of health insurance for all staff, including 100% subsidized for the back of house team and managers. We strive to lead our industry and create standards that are not yet the norm —and we hope other restaurants follow in our footsteps to provide a safe and equitable environment for employees.
Your Employee Benefits Contribution helps ensure we have access to fair and equitable coverage for the entire team. We love taking care of people for a living. Taking care of people also includes taking care of ourselves. We believe that hospitality extends well beyond the four walls of our restaurants. We want what is best for everyone—ourselves, our communities, and our guests.
Ultimately, we know that many of our team members will go on to run other businesses. Our hope is that they will have learned what is possible in this industry and raise the bar somewhere else, in order to make our industry just a little bit better for all.
Why Service Charges? More on the law changes affecting the hospitality industry
Chicago Sun Times: 5-year plan that'll raise wages for Chicago…
Illinois Restaurant Association: Protect Illinois Hospitality
Tips vs Service Charge is a complex issue. They are not the same. Tips are not allocable to all while service charges are. Tipping is based on an archaic wage model. We pay our entire team equitable wages and benefits to allow them a career. Forcing an increase in tipped minimum wage pay so abruptly without sharing the reason behind it is unfair to you as a guest. Transparency and separating service charges accordingly keeps all costs down - yours and our team’s.
Thank you for your support of independent restaurants + Team Cafe Yaya!
New Wave Hospitality Core Values
We opened Galit and Cafe Yaya with a focus as much on company culture as on food and hospitality by championing these core values:
Community: We are defined by the groups and people that surround us. These stakeholders may change and fluctuate over time and, in turn, so will our identity. The strength of our community lies in how we proudly protect its integrity and promote it to others.
Creativity: Our community promotes progressive critical thinking that centers around our vision statement. We support each other with open-mindedness to ensure we are always improving the futures of every stakeholder.
Education: A concentration on a lifetime of learning will allow our team members to grow mentally, emotionally and professionally. Education will be a focal point of our everyday business, focusing on the betterment of our craft and ourselves.
Empowerment: We value each individual’s contribution and encourage team members to consistently look for new ways to add value.
Accountability: Everyone is equally held responsible and praised for their successes and failures. They dutifully accept the rewards and consequences of their behaviors and decisions.
Equality: People are valued regardless of circumstances and will be encouraged to speak out if they sense any form of inequality in the workplace.
Respect: All individuals are always given respect and will subsequently always get respect. Everyone has the opportunity to be heard and valued.
Communication: We want to collaborate among team members, solve problems, provide support, and voice concerns as often as possible. We will be efficient, respectful, transparent, and collaborative in how we listen to others.
Organization: We value efficiency, flexibility, and clarity. Following guidelines and the timely completion of tasks will be the barometers for our organizational success.
These values are shown in all aspects of our everyday operations, including new hire interviewing, trans/non-binary inclusive hiring and retention, employee onboarding, the use of egalitarian criteria for employee evaluations and promotions, regular professional development, and harassment and bystander prevention training.