Kennedy Concepts' mission is to enrich the lives of our guests and our team members. We do this through serving the highest level of food quality, bar drink quality, and legendary guest service in a clean and comfortable environment with an energetic ambiance. We believe in treating our team members and guests like family and know that our success depends upon creating and retaining a team capable of delivering an exceptional dining experience to every guest, every time and creating memories our guests will never forget.
The Culinary Director will be an experienced and creative individual overseeing our growing culinary team across all current and future locations. It will be imperative for the Culinary Director to lead, mentor, and motivate a team of culinary professionals as they strive to meet performance goals. A strong sense of creativity, adaptability, and an exceptional eye for detail will support the research and development efforts while creating new recipes and dishes across all restaurants. Performance includes but is not limited to guest satisfaction, maintaining and improving our standards, achieving financial objectives, and maintaining a positive work environment. The goal is to ensure the culinary team provide guests with the highest level of food quality in a clean, comfortable environment with an energetic ambiance. Excellent communication and interpersonal skills are essential, and proficiency in Spanish is highly desirable.
*RELOCATION ASSISTANCE IS PROVIDED
Duties & Responsibilities:
Team leadership & Development
Lead, mentor & develop a team that fosters a culture of creativity, collaboration & continuous learning
Work with training department on the creation of BOH KCI training materials (recipes, specs., checklists, SOPs, etc.)
Oversee staffing budgets, pars, and coverage within designated locations which may include working in-store as needed to support and mentor various restaurant teams.
Manage staff recruitment, hiring, training, retention, mentorship, development of current and future team members through an HR Department partnership
BOH Staffing & Schedules
Provide feedback on BOH work schedules to ensure they are prepared accurately, on time and within budget
Develop and train Executive Chefs and BOH staff on how to schedule for proper sales volumes and how to maintain our labor costs within our budgets
Work directly with the Corporate Executive Chef to build up and trim down restaurant par levels
Utilize progressive discipline as needed and notify Corporate Executive Chef when BOH supervisors are not holding their staff accountable for their actions
Hold the Chef and leaders 100% accountable for their actions
Acknowledge and reward the Chefs, BOH Managers and BOH employees for their excellent job performance
BOH Staff Supervision
Assist in the growth of our Chef de Cuisine, Sous Chefs, Hourly Managers and BOH team members
Support onsite BOH leaders with the progressive discipline situations when necessary
Build BOH teams through interviews and hiring of BOH team members
Ensure that there is no internal theft and that we are keeping product waste to a minimum
Constantly develop/train/provide feedback to leaders with a goal they will perform at the highest levels
Consistently develop, train and execute practices that will eliminate FOH issues with the BOH performance
Provide weekly meetings with other Corporate Executive Chefs to ensure consistent communication
Assist stores as a fill-in manager to cover vacations, staffing shortages, and/or terminations.
Food Standards
Work directly with Corporate Executive Chefs to research and develop and execute the best tasting food and most beautiful food possible.
Ensure all restaurants' food quality meets or exceeds the highest standards. These standards are set by a team, including the President.
Create all necessary documentation, such as tech sheets, recipe files, and lookbooks for current and new concepts and menus
Research, develop, execute, file, and help train the BOH staff on new food recipes, ingredients, complete dishes, and plate presentations
Take the lead in menu development, recipe design, and inventory building and costing for current & new projects
Organize and oversee menu updates and changes, including tastings, recipes, costing, training materials and implementation at the direction of the President
Develop and implement processes to ensure recipe adherence and preparation is 100% accurate
Work with Corporate Chefs to research, create, develop, price, and train each restaurant's BOH team on monthly food specials
Menu development & Innovation
R&D will be a constant practice
Organize and oversee menu updates and changes, including tastings, recipes, costing, training materials and implementation (FOH & BOH) at the direction of the President
Vendor Sourcing & Relationships
Develop relationships with food vendors and suppliers to ensure the quality and availability of ingredients
Continuously evaluate new vendors and products to improve quality & cost effectiveness
Ensure everything ordered meets or exceeds our Food Quality Specs and Standards
Budgeting & Cost Control
Develop & manage the culinary budget of each location
Understand unique needs and goals for each designated location & work with teams to implement food cost control measures.
Improve cost efficiency without compromising on quality
Meet BOH budgeted labor cost goals
Ensure each kitchen's budgeted fixed & variable operating expenses are being met & analyze Profit and Loss reports
Cleanliness/Maintenance/Health Score
Oversee all kitchen operations to ensure compliance with health, safety & sanitation standards
Maintain and manage the quality and operation of all equipment and refrigeration through preventative maintenance schedules
Ensure all kitchens are well maintained and all Health Department rules and codes are being followed; BOH Health Inspection expect scores equal to or greater than 95 collaboration with other departments
Oversee the accountability of Exec Chefs and their teams for delivering and/or emailing all the proper daily, weekly, and monthly reports and deliverables are occurring in a timely manner
Attend Corporate meetings and help develop ideas, practices, and strategies to ensure the Company's success and growth
Collaborate with other departments, such as Marketing, to develop integrative strategies for business growth and ways to make the guest happy
Foster a cohesive FOH/BOH culture of transparency and engagement by building strong relationships
Participate in the development and opening of new stores
Qualifications
Required
Minimum of 7 years of experience with successful results as a Corporate Chef of multi-unit concepts or Executive Chef of a high-volume restaurant.
Bilingual (English and Spanish)
Bachelor's degree in culinary arts or equivalent experience
Outstanding skills in leadership, interpersonal communication, and staff development
Ability to Understand Profit and Loss Reports
Experience with Food Purchasing, Storing, Sanitation, and Inventory Practices and Procedures
Experience with LBW Purchasing, Storing, Sanitation, and Inventory Practices and Procedures
Experience with developing and implementing successful training policies and procedures.
Knowledge of Restaurant Safety and Sanitation
Serv Safe Certification
Experience with Labor Cost Control and Labor Scheduling
Experience with Inventory Control Procedures
Proficient Math Skills
Proven track record in managing budgets and cost controls to optimize profits and ensure success
Must be able to read, analyze, and interpret business records and statistical reports
Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal
Exceptional organizational skills to manage several locations with many moving parts
Proficient with Office365
Familiarity with TOAST POS System
Ability to drive sales and guest service initiatives by motivating team members
Strong track record of training and developing managers from within
Experience in Front of House operations while promoting superior service and guest hospitality