Kitchen Manager

Job Description

Job Description

Description: Location TBD: The location shown is a placeholder required for posting purposes. Final work location will be determined and communicated during the hiring process.

DEPARTMENT: Store Management Operations
REPORTS TO: Restaurant General Manager
SUPERVISION EXERCISED: Back-of-house team members and other team members as assigned
POSITION TYPE: Restaurant Management Position

Do you believe that dreams are built on smiles? At T’s, we do — literally! We hire SMILES, cook smiles, and serve smiles. We love what we do, and we love to share our passion for the art of breakfast, brunch, and lunch within our community.

Our team is everything to us. Smiling teams equal smiling guests, and that’s what T’s is all about.

T’s Restaurant Group is a growing, family-owned restaurant group that has been a Rhode Island tradition since 1982. We currently have locations in Cranston, East Greenwich, and Narragansett. With a commitment to carefully sourcing local food and products around the New England area, and with an eye on sustainability and partnerships with family-owned farms and businesses, we support real food, fresh ingredients, local purveyors, and sustainable choices whenever possible.

We are devoted to providing our teams and guests with a culture of gratitude, respect, safety, and belonging. We value life’s journey and believe in sharing the journey together, celebrating life one day at a time, one plate at a time.

As the Restaurant Kitchen Manager, you are responsible for leading and overseeing the daily back-of-house operations of one of our locations. You will uphold the company’s values and philosophies related to culinary arts, food quality, recipe execution, food safety, cleanliness, sanitation, inventory, food ordering, prep, cook line execution, kitchen organization, team development, and operational standards.

The Kitchen Manager is an experienced back-of-house leadership role with the ability to confidently lead kitchen operations while working alongside the Restaurant General Manager and management team. The KM must be able to foster teamwork, clearly communicate daily goals, coach and develop kitchen team members, support efficient ticket times, uphold food quality standards, and ensure the kitchen is prepared, organized, clean, and operating safely.

The Kitchen Manager must have strong working knowledge of all back-of-house operations, including prep, dish, pantry, cook line, expo, food handling, recipe execution, portioning, ordering, inventory, and kitchen cleanliness standards. The KM must be able to competently perform management duties and support restaurant operations in the absence of the Restaurant General Manager or as business needs require.

At T’s Restaurant Group, we are proud to offer a supportive team environment, growth opportunities, and a variety of benefits designed to support our team members.

Benefits may include:

• Ongoing development, growth, and advancement opportunities
• Positive and supportive team culture
• Competitive wages with annual performance reviews
• Paid Time Off Programs
• Day-only schedule — never work nights
• Flexible and predictive scheduling
• Meal benefit for T’s team members, whether on shift, off shift, or visiting any T’s location
• Home for the Holidays — Thanksgiving and Christmas Day OFF
• Tickets at Work Program, offering exclusive discounts, special offers, preferred seating, and tickets to top attractions, theme parks, shows, sporting events, movie tickets, hotels, and more
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP), offering voluntary, confidential support resources at no charge, including counseling support, financial resources, work-life solutions, and legal guidance
• Pet Insurance
• 401(k), subject to plan eligibility
• Accident Insurance, subject to plan eligibility

Additional benefits for eligible full-time team members may include:

• Medical Insurance
• Dental Insurance
• Vision Insurance
• Life Insurance

• Supports a hospitality-first culture by ensuring food quality, ticket times, cleanliness, and kitchen execution meet T’s standards.
• Ensures that food is prepared and served in a way that supports a positive, consistent, and memorable guest experience.
• Responds to food quality concerns by taking appropriate action to correct issues and support guest satisfaction.
• Maintains a kind, respectful, and inclusive environment for all team members and guests.
• Communicates effectively with front-of-house leadership to support smooth service and guest recovery when needed.

• Follows the restaurant’s 5 Commitments and upholds the restaurant’s Values and Mission Statement.
• Promotes T’s team spirit of positivity and a team-centered approach to the culinary and hospitality experience at all times, in all ways.
• Creates a culture of fairness and inclusion by following T’s guidelines, job descriptions, and training programs, and by maintaining healthy boundaries with team members.
• Provides direction, coaching, and feedback to back-of-house team members regarding operational and procedural issues.
• Assists with interviews for back-of-house team members and, when appropriate, other team members.
• Assists with hiring, supervision, development, and, when necessary, termination of team members.
• Conducts or supports orientation and oversees training for new back-of-house team members.
• Develops kitchen team members by providing ongoing feedback, establishing performance expectations, taking corrective action for violations of protocol, and supporting performance reviews.
• Builds a strong, reliable kitchen team by promoting accountability, teamwork, communication, and consistent execution.

• Adheres to company standards and service levels to increase sales and minimize costs, including food, supply, utility, and labor costs.
• Supports food cost control through proper ordering, inventory, recipe execution, portioning, waste reduction, and product rotation.
• Estimates food needs and places orders with distributors according to business needs and company standards.
• Monitors prep levels, product usage, and waste to support efficient kitchen operations.
• Assists with ensuring invoices, ordering records, inventory, and other kitchen-related administrative duties are completed accurately, on time, and in accordance with company policies and procedures.

• Enforces sanitary practices for food handling, general cleanliness, and maintenance of kitchen and prep areas.
• Ensures compliance with operational standards, company policies, federal, state, and local laws, and ordinances.
• Responsible for ensuring consistent, high-quality food preparation and service.
• Maintains a professional kitchen and restaurant image, including cleanliness, proper uniforms, and appearance standards.
• Ensures all food is prepared and served according to the restaurant’s recipes, portioning, cooking, and plating standards.
• Ensures proper product rotation, labeling, storage, temperature control, and food handling procedures are followed.
• Adheres to ServSafe, OSHA, HACCP, Food Safety, and Alcohol Safety standards, as applicable.

• Leads daily back-of-house operations, including prep, dish, pantry, cook line, expo, food production, and kitchen cleanliness.
• Ensures that the kitchen is prepared, stocked, organized, and ready for service.
• Manages shifts, including but not limited to daily decision-making, daily scheduling needs, operational planning, kitchen execution, food quality, and cleanliness.
• Ensures proper security and safety procedures are in place to protect team members, guests, and company assets.
• Ensures a safe working and guest environment to reduce the risk of injury and accidents.
• Completes accident reports promptly if a guest or team member is injured.
• Fully understands and complies with all federal, state, county, and municipal regulations that pertain to health, safety, and labor requirements of the restaurant, team members, and guests.
• Fills in where needed to ensure food quality, ticket times, kitchen standards, guest service standards, and efficient operations.
• Supports restaurant audits and assists with follow-up on operational needs identified through audits.
• Communicates kitchen needs, staffing concerns, equipment issues, food quality concerns, and operational opportunities to the Restaurant General Manager.
• Works with the Restaurant General Manager and management team to support scheduling, training, labor planning, ordering, and daily restaurant execution.
• May assist with restaurant marketing, community involvement, or company initiatives as needed.

• Supports a positive presence in the local community and participates in restaurant-level community involvement when applicable.

• Performs other duties as assigned.

We are looking for someone who has the desire to lead and develop an enthusiastic team of culinary professionals who are dedicated to creating and executing a memorable dining experience for our guests. This position requires a strong, positive back-of-house leader who can work alongside the Restaurant General Manager and management team while overseeing kitchen operations, food quality, cleanliness, safety, and team development.

This position is right for you if you are organized, hands-on, team-oriented, food-focused, and committed to upholding high standards in culinary execution, food safety, cleanliness, prep, cook line execution, ticket times, and kitchen leadership. If you enjoy coaching team members, leading kitchen operations, and creating a consistent guest experience through great food, you will enjoy this position.

• High School Degree required; college degree preferred in culinary, hotel, or restaurant management.
• A minimum of two years of restaurant kitchen management experience or food and beverage training, including back-of-house operations, cook line, prep, food safety, ordering, and kitchen team leadership.
• Strong working knowledge of kitchen operations, including prep, dish, pantry, cook line, expo, food handling, recipe execution, portioning, ordering, inventory, and cleanliness standards.
• Proficient with computers, including Microsoft Word, Excel, Point of Sale systems, and other restaurant technology platforms.
• Proficient in the following dimensions of restaurant functions: food planning and preparation, purchasing, sanitation, safety, security, company policies and procedures, personnel management, recordkeeping, and preparation of reports.
• Required certification in Food Safety and First Aid, or ability to obtain required certifications within two months of hire.
• Flexibility in schedule and the ability to work weekends are required.
• Must be eligible to work in the United States.
• Must agree to a background check.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills; proficient in the English language.

• Self-discipline, initiative, leadership ability, and an outgoing personality.
• Pleasant, polite manner and a strong, positive presence.
• Strong food quality standards with a passion for culinary execution and hospitality.
• Ability to motivate team members to work as a team to ensure that food and service meet appropriate standards.
• Must be able to handle the pressures of coordinating a wide range of kitchen and restaurant activities and recommend appropriate solutions to restaurant problems.
• Must possess strong communication skills for working with diverse staff and potential candidates.
• Possess excellent organizational, interpersonal, problem-solving, and collaboration skills.
• Ability to coordinate multiple tasks, including food preparation, ordering, inventory, kitchen cleanliness, food cost, labor awareness, and daily restaurant operations.

• Keeps the Restaurant General Manager promptly and fully informed of all issues, including problems, unusual matters of significance, and positive events, and takes prompt corrective action where necessary or suggests alternative courses of action.
• Adheres to job responsibilities and performance objectives.
• Maintains a favorable working relationship with all team members to foster and promote a cooperative and harmonious working climate that is conducive to maximum team member morale, productivity, efficiency, and effectiveness.
• Maintains accountability for back-of-house standards, including food quality, recipe execution, food safety, prep levels, cleanliness, and team performance.

• Expected hours: up to 50 hours per week. Hours may vary if the manager must fill in for his/her team/manager or if emergencies arise.
• Ability to perform back-of-house restaurant functions and support restaurant-level operations as needed.
• Position requires prolonged standing, bending, stooping, twisting, lifting products and supplies weighing 45 pounds, and repetitive hand and wrist motion.
• Work with hot, cold, and various kitchen and office equipment and answer phones.
• May be required to work at various locations on a limited basis to support business needs, leadership coverage, or emergency situations.

T’s Restaurant Group is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer, committed to a diverse, inclusive, and belonging work environment.