Kitchen Manager

Kitchen Manager, [West Chester, PA]
About Us
We are a family-owned specialty food company with retail stores, a production kitchen and catering. Everything we make, from sauces and spreads to prepared foods and holiday catering, runs through our main kitchen. We’re looking for an organized, hands-on leader to keep it running smoothly.

The Role
The Kitchen Manager is the center of our operation. You’ll oversee everything that comes into and goes out of the main kitchen and production areas, lead the packaging and receiving teams, and keep the kitchen, our other kitchens, our stores and the office team in step. You build the systems, train the team to follow them, and hold everyone to consistent, on-time standards.

The Schedule

• Full time, salaried, [days and hours are day time]
• At least one weekend day required
• Extra hours during peak seasons 

The Role

The Kitchen Manager is the center of our operation. You’ll work hand in hand with our chefs, oversee everything that comes into and goes out of the main kitchen and production areas, lead the packaging and receiving teams, and keep the kitchen, our other kitchens, our stores and the office team in step. You build the systems, train the team to follow them, and hold everyone to consistent, on-time standards.

What You’ll Do

Lead the Team

• Supervise packaging and receiving staff: assign daily tasks, set priorities and make sure work gets done on time and correctly
• Train staff on procedures, food safety and quality standards, and follow up so they stick
• Help with hiring, scheduling and performance reviews, and coach team members to improve

Partner with the Chefs

• Work closely with our chefs to plan daily and weekly production around menus, orders and seasonal demand
• Make sure ingredients, packaging and staff are lined up before production starts, so chefs can focus on cooking
• Help turn chefs’ recipes into standardized, documented procedures, including batch sizes, yields, packaging and labeling
• Roll out new and rotating menu items, from recipe to packed and labeled product on the shelf
• Pass along feedback from the stores and customers on quality, consistency and what’s selling

Run the Flow of the Kitchen

• Oversee receiving: check deliveries against orders for quantity, quality and temperature, and make sure everything is put away correctly
• Manage what leaves the kitchen: production for the stores, grab-and-go, wholesale and catering, packed, labeled and ready on schedule
• Track inventory, par levels and storage so ingredients and packaging are in stock and nothing goes to waste
• Coordinate with drivers and the fleet schedule so outgoing orders and deliveries go out on time

Communication Hub

• Serve as the main point of contact between the main kitchen, our other kitchens, the stores and the office
• Share production schedules, order changes, shortages and issues early, so nobody is surprised
• Bring problems and ideas to leadership with clear solutions

Systems and Standards

• Create and improve procedures, checklists and workflows for receiving, production, packaging and labeling
• Keep product standards, recipes, specs and records organized and up to date
• Enforce food safety and sanitation: temperature logs, labeling and dating, allergen control and FIFO
• Keep the kitchen, storage areas and paperwork organized and inspection-ready

What We’re Looking For

• 3+ years of kitchen or food production experience, including at least 1–2 years leading a team
• Experience with receiving, inventory and production in a commissary, catering, manufacturing or multi-location operation
• A natural organizer who builds systems and follows through
• Clear, calm communicator who can handle many moving parts and changing priorities
• Comfortable with Google Sheets/Excel, email and basic computer tools
• ServSafe Manager certification required, or ability to obtain within 60 days
• Able to stand, walk and lift up to 50 lbs during the shift

What We Offer

• [Salary: $24.00 - $27.00 per hour, depending on experience]
• [Benefits: health insurance, paid time off, employee discount, etc.]
• A central leadership role in a growing family-owned business
• The chance to build and shape how our kitchen runs