Catering and Restaurant Sous Chef

Are you a dynamic and energetic culinary professional capable of providing our guests with an exceptional dining experience? Our established catering company and restaurant seek skilled chefs who can create & cook innovative menus and dishes, supervise all food leaving the kitchen, and ensure health and safety requirements are followed. Apply now if you're ready to bring your passion for food to our fantastic team!

This is an hourly position, with possibility of becoming a salaried position within 12 weeks, depending on your performance. In addition to restaurant, you will assist with all of our on-premise and off-premise catering as well. So you must have high-volume catering production experience as well as Restaurant line cooking and management experience. Hourly wage range is inclusive of catering tips and restaurant kitchen fee.

Responsibilities

• Lead, Assist and Oversee the preparation, portioning, garnishing, presentation, and safe storage of food 1 or more simultaneous catering events and tastings
• Maintain high standards of quality, flavor, and presentation for all the dishes being prepared
• Perform weekly inventory, maintain optimal Inventory Levels
• Make Restaurant Depot trip or local grocery store trips if needed
• Participate in weekly BEO meetings for events and tastings
• Help Create/Improve Menus - specifically local/seasonal/organic/Gluten Free/Vegan/Vegetarian
• Help minimize overtime of hourly employees to and maximize their utilization
• Help Keep food cost low and minimize wastage due to over-ordering and over-production
• Follow waste, compost, recycle guidelines and processes we have setup in our kitchen
• Ensure that all kitchen equipment is accounted for
• Follow, create, and improve processes
• Ensure that kitchen, equipment, and storage facilities are sanitary, neat, and organized
• Ensure all kitchen equipment is fully functional and you will take care of whatever needs to be done to make it happen. It could mean taking care of it yourself (e.g., cleaning up ice machine or expresso machine), it could mean having backup cooking equipment, it could mean preventive maintenance, it could mean contacting servicing companies to get it repaired
• Help with Off-site Catering
• Document Recipes and create/generate shopping list based on the documented Recipes and what is in stock. Ordering accuracy is very important to prevent multiple grocery store trips
• Be open to criticism. We are in the service business and all our feedback or criticism will be to serve that purpose
• Be a good mentor to elevate everyone's skills, cross train kitchen employees and utilizing their strengths
• Represent us in trade shows and weddings shows if needed
• Always maintain a professional demeanor – especially in front of clients and vendors
• Comply with all federal, state, and local regulations

Required Skills And Experience

• At least 20 years of Combined Full-Time Restaurant and Catering Experience
• At Least 10 years of high-volume food production experience
• At least 10 years of Cooking Experience in diverse cuisines spanning all continents
• At Least 5 years of menu development and costing experience
• Must be highly skilled at preparing sauces and dressings
• Advanced Knife Handling and Chopping/Grilling skills
• Excellent Presentation skills (plates, platters, buffet)
• Ability to deal with high pressure situations
• Must be creative and resourceful e.g. when ingredients and resources aren't available or to repurpose existing items and ingredients
• Must have a innate sense of flavors and spices to be able to create cross-cultural dishes and combine diverse ingredients in a unique way to create new and distinctive menu items and specials
• Tech savvy and be able to utilize technology for various aspects of your job including but not limited to Microsoft office, Scheduling, Recipe Costing, Inventory
• Must have excellent communication and interpersonal skills with customers and coworkers
• Possesses a strong work ethic and have high attention to detail
• Proficient with health and safety rules and regulations
• Excellent communication skills

Job Requirements

• Must be prepared to work early mornings, late nights, weekends, long hours
• Lift and transport up to 50 lbs.
• Frequently reaches, lifts, stoops, bends, and cleans to maintain service area
• Walks and stands during entire shift
• MUST have a valid Driver's License
• Possible job hazards include, but are not limited to; slips, trips, falls, burns, cuts and strains