Executive Sous Chef
Cedar Lakes Estate - Port Jervis, NY
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Overview The Executive Sous Chef at Cedar Lakes is a hardworking, passionate, and team-oriented employee who is responsible for supporting the Chef de Cuisine in managing the kitchen as a whole. He or she is responsible for overseeing and organizing the kitchen, supervising all food preparation, managing the culinary team, and upholding the Cedar Lakes standard for excellent food, a productive and positive work environment, and pristine cleanliness. Responsibilities Works with Chef de Cuisine on menu planning, food production and budget management. Assist CDC with all recipe testing and standardizing of CLE recipes. Creates substantial, creative menu substitutions for dietary restrictions including but not limited to vegetarian, vegan, dairy-free, gluten-free options Oversees the execution of all meal services, primarily the evening shifts. Supervises and assists in all food preparation, ensuring food adheres to our standards of quality. Creates detailed prep lists and delegates tasks accordingly. Acts as a direct support and number two to the Chef de Cuisine, who is responsible for the kitchen in its entirety. Assists in the management of all culinary team members, including: Banquet Cooks, Porters, Culinary Externs, etc. Understands their strengths and weaknesses, discovers what motivates them, and motivates them to be the best they can be. Assists Chef de Cuisine to recruit, hire, discharge, train, and evaluate all kitchen employees. Leads weekly kitchen meetings to communicate all upcoming event details to the team at large. Must be ready to temporarily fill any position if the need arises (for example, if a porter does not show up to work, sous chef must be ready to jump in and help). Creates the weekly schedule for kitchen team while working within the departmental labor budget. Trains new and existing culinary employees on our systems, techniques and unique recipes. Assists Chef de Cuisine in resolving any conflicts between employees. Debriefs with team after each shift and documents their feedback. Ensures improvement feedback is being implemented swiftly. Assists Purchasing Manager in receiving all food and supply orders and ensures completeness of order and quality of items. o Oversees this process in the absence of the Purchasing Manager and Chef de Cuisine Assists Chef de Cuisine in maintaining, organizing, and keeping inventory of all food. Consistently organizes, consolidates all kitchen ingredients, and discards expiring product. Supervises the maintenance, cleanliness, and organization of both kitchens and all kitchen equipment. Ensures all safe food-handling procedures are being demonstrated at all times. Utilizes Google Drive and Google Calendar, and has a strong understanding of all upcoming events or hotel stays and plans accordingly. Reads through Cedar Lakes' "˜Run of Shows', ensure the culinary team sticks to every detail and remains on time throughout the event. Works closely with the Front of House team to ensure smooth meal services and a cohesive FOH + BOH working relationship. Available as needed for all miscellaneous projects including, not limited to: o Menu tastings for potential or existing clients. o Recipe testing, food cost analysis, future planning. o Off-premise private catering events. o Creation and production of CLE shelf stable food for retail sale. o Performing stages at restaurants chosen by self and Owner. Provide professional and courteous service at all times while adhering to the Cedar Lakes Estate brand. Qualifications Must have strong managerial experience in a fine dining kitchen, ideally a catering kitchen. Must have a passion for farm-to-table cuisine, a love for the kitchen, and a strong desire to lead our kitchen team. Must have an extraordinary palate and strong interest in food trends and quality. Must be detail oriented, extremely organized and great at time management. Must have excellent knife skills and cooking techniques, ideally with experience in cooking exceptional food for very large groups. Must be extremely hard working and willing to work 35-70 hours per week during the high season, depending on the magnitude of the event. Must be professional, patient, adaptable, enthusiastic and cheerful (we like to have fun in our kitchen!) Must be able to commute to work and live relatively close by.
Created: 2024-10-01