Executive Chef

Western Market Employment Benefits Western Market Benefits Health, Dental, and Vision insurance for full-time employees 401k Retirement Plan with an employer match Paid Time Off & Paid Sick Time Employee Discount Employee Assistance Program ____________________________________________________________________ Reports to : Upper Management Secondary Relationships : Chief Executive Officers, Director of Company Operations, Human Resources Supervisees : Assistant Executive Chef, Kitchen Managers, Catering Leadership, Culinary Team Leaders Position Summary : The Executive Chef is responsible for the overall leadership, profitability, growth, quality, and operational excellence of the Company's Prepared Foods, Catering, and Culinary Programs. This position serves as the senior culinary leader for the organization and oversees all aspects of food production, catering, menu development, merchandising, food safety, labor management, financial performance, and team development. The Executive Chef is responsible for developing and maintaining culinary standards across all company food service operations, driving sales growth, improving profitability, identifying emerging food trends, creating innovative products, and developing culinary talent. This role collaborates closely with Ownership, Operations, Human Resources, Marketing, Purchasing, and Department Leadership to support company objectives and future expansion initiatives. The Executive Chef will lead the Culinary Team, generate creative ideas to enhance company food service offerings, and implement initiatives based on customer feedback, operational needs, and strategic priorities. This position must possess a strong understanding of natural foods, specialty foods, dietary requirements, and current industry trends. This is a store-level Executive Team position with significant influence on company growth and development. This is a supervisory position with hiring, evaluative, disciplinary, and termination responsibilities. Essential Job Functions : Lead all Prepared Foods, Catering, and Culinary Operations. Establish department priorities and execute initiatives based on long-term company goals. Develop and maintain company-wide culinary standards, recipes, production procedures, and product specifications. Create and oversee menus, recipes, catering programs, seasonal offerings, holiday programs, grab-and-go products, prepared meals, and promotional food programs. Monitor emerging food, wellness, natural food, and dietary trends and implement appropriate product offerings. Ensure all recipes are documented, standardized, costed, maintained, and updated appropriately. Maintain consistency of quality, presentation, flavor profiles, and production standards across all locations. Work with Kitchen Management to improve departments, establish food safety protocols, guarantee product quality, and execute culinary initiatives. Develop Mission and Value statements and product policies for Kitchen departments in collaboration with Upper Management. Responsible for achieving departmental sales, labor, food cost, gross margin, waste reduction, catering revenue, and profitability goals. Monitor and analyze departmental financial performance and develop action plans to improve results. Participate in annual budgeting, forecasting, and strategic planning processes. Participate in monitoring food and labor budgets for all Kitchen departments. Ensure accurate coding, approval, and submission of invoices. Oversee inventory management, purchasing, receiving, production planning, and ordering activities. Work with vendors to negotiate pricing, sourcing opportunities, purchasing programs, and product selection. Maintain kitchen organization, cleanliness, workflow efficiency, and operational excellence. Coordinate production schedules to maximize freshness, quality, customer satisfaction, and profitability. Ensure department signage, merchandising, labeling, and pricing are accurate and compliant. D…

View the full posting and apply