Real, anonymous reports from people who interviewed for Software Engineer at CloudKitchens, newest first and distilled into what to expect across the loop.
I started with a recruiter outreach on LinkedIn and moved through the earlier screening rounds before reaching a take-home step. After I submitted the assignment, they wanted to dive deep on the project, so I prepared to defend my approach.
After a recruiter call, I moved into a very technical loop that felt heavy on evaluation rather than conversation. The first major technical stage was low-level design paired with a live deep dive: I had to produce class design and also end with workable code, not just diagrams. After that, there was a longer technical deep dive that pushed much deeper into the problem space.
The interview process typically begins with a recruiter call that includes behavioral questions and an overview of the interview steps. Candidates noted varying levels of responsiveness and clarity from recruiters, with some experiencing delays in scheduling and communication.
Candidates often complete a substantial take-home project, which can be complex and time-consuming, focusing on building real-world applications or systems. Feedback on these assignments may be inconsistent, leading to frustration if expectations are unclear or if candidates feel their submissions are not fairly assessed.
The technical interviews generally consist of multiple rounds, including coding challenges, system design, and project deep dives. Candidates reported a mix of structured and unstructured formats, with some interviews feeling more evaluative rather than conversational, impacting the overall experience.
Many technical rounds emphasize concurrency, multi-threading, and system design, requiring candidates to demonstrate their understanding of these concepts through practical coding tasks and design discussions. Candidates found these segments challenging, often needing to defend their design choices under scrutiny.
The atmosphere during interviews varied, with some candidates experiencing a cold or impersonal tone from interviewers, while others noted a more relaxed and conversational style. The quality of interaction significantly influenced candidates' perceptions of the interview process.
Candidates frequently reported a lack of closure or timely feedback after interviews, with some experiencing ghosting or unclear reasons for rejection. This contributed to a sense of frustration, especially after investing significant time and effort into the process.