Sous Chef (Culinary Assistant Project Manager)

Sous Chef — High-Volume Culinary Operations

Abilene, Texas | On-Site Position | $20/Hour + Overtime | Weekly Pay

Position Highlights

• $20 per hour plus applicable overtime
• Weekly pay
• Based in Abilene, Texas
• Approximately 12-hour shifts
• High-volume culinary leadership position
• No nationwide travel or extended deployment rotation required

The Opportunity

Sharp Spoon Network is recruiting an experienced, hands-on Sous Chef for a nationally recognized leader in large-scale culinary operations and workforce support.

This position is based in Abilene, Texas , supporting a high-volume culinary operation where food quality, consistency, operational efficiency, and kitchen leadership are essential.

We are looking for a skilled culinary leader who can do more than supervise a kitchen.

The ideal candidate must be able to personally execute professional cooking techniques, lead kitchen employees, maintain high culinary standards, and support operations producing 1,000 or more meals during a single meal service.

This is not a traditional restaurant Sous Chef position or a primarily administrative kitchen management role.

We need someone who is equally comfortable managing production, controlling food and labor costs, coaching kitchen employees, and stepping onto a cooking station whenever necessary.

High-volume production experience is essential, but volume alone is not enough. We are looking for chefs who know how to produce excellent food at scale.

What You'll Do

High-Volume Culinary Production

• Support daily high-volume breakfast, lunch, and dinner operations.
• Help coordinate culinary production for meal services involving 1,000 or more meals.
• Personally prepare and cook menu items using professional culinary techniques.
• Execute standardized recipes, scratch cooking, batch preparation, and large-scale food production.
• Maintain consistent flavor, seasoning, texture, freshness, temperature, and presentation throughout meal service.
• Prepare and oversee the preparation of proteins, vegetables, starches, sauces, and complete menu items.
• Organize production schedules, preparation assignments, and cooking workflows.
• Monitor food quality and correct issues involving preparation, seasoning, doneness, or presentation.
• Maintain portion-control standards without sacrificing food quality.
• Troubleshoot production challenges while maintaining food safety and service efficiency.

Kitchen Leadership & Staff Development

• Supervise, train, coach, and work alongside cooks and kitchen assistants.
• Support the Executive Chef / Project Manager in managing daily kitchen operations.
• Coordinate kitchen staffing, production assignments, and workflow.
• Maintain accountability for team performance, sanitation, and food quality.
• Demonstrate proper culinary techniques and professional preparation standards.
• Assist with employee scheduling, labor allocation, and productivity.
• Step into production positions whenever necessary to maintain efficient meal service.
• Help establish a professional, organized, and quality-focused kitchen environment.

Purchasing, Inventory & Operational Management

• Assist with food purchasing, ordering, and vendor coordination.
• Manage inventory procedures, receiving, storage, and product rotation.
• Monitor food costs, labor costs, waste, and portion control.
• Support menu planning, recipe execution, and production forecasting.
• Assist with staffing, scheduling, and operational planning.
• Maintain food safety, sanitation, and applicable HACCP procedures.
• Help ensure appropriate ingredient availability for scheduled meal services.
• Support operational decision-making and assume assigned leadership responsibilities when the Executive Chef is unavailable.

Minimum Qualifications — Required

Applicants must meet ONE of the following professional culinary experience pathways:

Path A — Professional Chef Experience

At least five years of hands-on, high-volume professional chef experience.

Qualifying experience must include meaningful professional cooking responsibilities, high-volume food production, and culinary leadership.

Relevant positions may include Sous Chef, Executive Sous Chef, Executive Chef, Chef de Cuisine, or Head Chef when hands-on professional chef duties are documented.

Kitchen Manager, Restaurant Manager, Food Service Director, and other management titles do not independently establish qualifying professional chef experience.

OR

Path B — High-Volume Culinary Production Experience

At least ten years of qualifying high-volume professional culinary production experience.

This experience must demonstrate substantial hands-on professional cooking, recipe execution, batch preparation, and quality-focused food production.

General food-service employment, administrative management, or kitchen supervision without meaningful professional cooking does not satisfy this requirement.

Mandatory High-Volume Production Requirement

Candidates must have experience producing at least 1,000 meals during ONE meal service.

This may be breakfast, lunch, dinner, or a comparable single meal period.

Applicants must be able to identify:

• The employer or culinary operation where this volume was achieved.
• The approximate number of meals produced during that single service.
• Their actual cooking, production, and culinary leadership responsibilities.
• The size of the kitchen team supporting the operation.

Producing 1,000 meals across an entire day does not satisfy this requirement.

Additional Required Experience

Qualified candidates must demonstrate:

• Strong hands-on professional cooking and culinary leadership skills.
• Experience preparing high-quality food in high-volume professional kitchens.
• Scratch cooking, standardized recipe execution, and large-batch food preparation.
• Ability to maintain excellent food quality, flavor, freshness, and presentation during large meal services.
• Experience supervising and developing professional kitchen employees.
• Knowledge of kitchen staffing, scheduling, and labor efficiency.
• Experience with purchasing, inventory management, and food cost control.
• Experience with labor management and labor cost control.
• Ability to organize kitchen production and manage competing operational priorities.
• Knowledge of professional food safety, sanitation, and proper food-handling procedures.
• Ability to work independently and make sound operational decisions.
• Ability to support an Executive Chef while assuming responsibility for assigned kitchen operations.
• Ability to work efficiently under pressure in a demanding, high-volume culinary environment.

Employment Stability

Candidates must demonstrate an average employment tenure greater than 12 months per job during the most recent five years.

Employment dates and job changes will be reviewed during the screening process.

Relevant Culinary Backgrounds

We especially value qualifying experience in:

• Upscale hotels and resorts
• Professional catering and high-volume banquets
• Quality-focused workforce and contract dining
• Cruise-ship culinary operations
• High-volume restaurants and hospitality kitchens
• Military culinary operations
• Large-scale corporate dining
• Remote workforce culinary operations
• Large-scale event and convention culinary operations

Experience must demonstrate both qualifying production volume and meaningful professional cooking responsibilities.

Fast-food transaction volume, basic food assembly, reheating prepared meals, or kitchen management alone does not establish the required culinary qualifications.

Work Location & Schedule

Location: Abilene, Texas

This is an on-site culinary leadership position supporting operations based in Abilene.

Candidates must:

• Be available to work on-site in Abilene, Texas.
• Be willing to work approximately 12-hour shifts.
• Be available for weekends and holidays when required by the operation.
• Have a valid driver's license and reliable transportation.
• Be comfortable working in a demanding, high-volume culinary environment.
• Be able to perform the essential duties of the position, with reasonable accommodation where applicable.
• Be willing to complete applicable background screening, drug testing, and onboarding requirements.

Candidates living outside the Abilene area must be prepared to arrange their own relocation or commute unless alternative arrangements are expressly confirmed by the employer.

Preferred Qualifications

Additional consideration may be given to candidates with:

• Experience producing 1,500 or more meals during a single service.
• Experience leading kitchen teams of 20 or more employees.
• Strong scratch-cooking skills and experience executing diverse, quality-focused menus.
• Experience preparing large quantities of proteins, sauces, starches, vegetables, and complete entrees.
• Demonstrated success maintaining culinary quality during large-scale production.
• Experience managing food and labor costs in complex kitchen operations.
• Experience in quality-focused workforce dining, high-volume hospitality, or banquet operations.
• ServSafe Food Protection Manager certification.
• Culinary degree, diploma, or formal professional culinary training.
• Experience independently managing kitchen operations in the absence of an Executive Chef.

Compensation & Benefits

• $20 per hour plus applicable overtime
• Weekly pay
• On-site position in Abilene, Texas
• Opportunity to work in a large-scale professional culinary operation
• Opportunity for advancement into higher-level culinary leadership positions based on performance and business needs

Specific schedules, overtime eligibility, benefits, and other employment terms will be confirmed by the client during the hiring process.

Annual earnings are not guaranteed and should not be represented as a fixed annual salary.

Before You Apply

Please apply only if you can answer YES to ALL of the following:

1. Do you have at least five years of hands-on, high-volume professional chef experience OR ten years of qualifying high-volume professional culinary production experience?
2. Have you produced at least 1,000 meals during ONE breakfast, lunch, dinner, or comparable single meal service?
3. Have you personally prepared and cooked professional menu items using established recipes and cooking techniques?
4. Have you supervised professional kitchen employees and directed culinary production?
5. Do you have experience with purchasing, inventory, staffing, and food and labor cost control?
6. Can you maintain high food-quality standards while producing meals at significant volume?
7. Are you available to work on-site in Abilene, Texas?
8. Are you willing to work approximately 12-hour shifts, including weekends and holidays when required?
9. Do you have a valid driver's license and reliable transportation?

Candidates without the required professional culinary experience or the mandatory 1,000-meal single-service production experience will not qualify for this position.

About Sharp Spoon Network

Sharp Spoon Network has been retained to recruit qualified candidates on behalf of our client.

Selected candidates will become employees of the client, not Sharp Spoon Network.

Final compensation, overtime eligibility, benefits, schedules, and employment terms are established by the client and confirmed during the hiring process.

Apply Today

If you are an experienced, hands-on culinary leader with proven high-volume production experience, strong operational skills, and a commitment to exceptional food quality, we encourage you to apply.

Your resume should clearly identify your qualifying culinary experience, employment dates, largest single-service meal volume, kitchen leadership responsibilities, and hands-on cooking duties.

Qualified candidates will be contacted by a Sharp Spoon Network recruiter for an initial screening conversation.