Director of Food And Beverage

The Grand Rapids Downtown Market is a vibrant destination where food, culture, and community come together year‑round. From unforgettable private events and public programming to one of the Midwest's premier holiday traditions, the Christkindl Markt, the Downtown Market welcomes hundreds of thousands of guests each year for experiences that celebrate connection, hospitality, and community. The Downtown Market is seeking an experienced, strategic, and hospitality‑driven Director of Food and Beverage to join our team! As the Director of Food and Beverage, you will play a vital leadership role in creating memorable experiences for guests by overseeing all food and beverage operations across the Downtown Market, including the Christkindl Markt, private events, public programs, and internal initiatives. You’ll work closely with organizational leadership, event teams, vendors, distributors, caterers, and staff to develop exceptional food and beverage experiences while driving operational efficiency, financial performance, and outstanding hospitality standards. From building strong systems and leading teams to creating innovative offerings and ensuring seamless event execution, this role is instrumental in bringing the Downtown Market experience to life. At the Downtown Market, we value individuals who bring energy, collaboration, resourcefulness, and a positive attitude. We strive to provide exceptional experiences while ensuring our guests, clients, vendors, staff, and community partners feel welcomed, supported, and cared for. We embrace a high‑level, passionate, fun, and engaging set of service standards that creates memorable experiences for every person who walks through our doors. Behind every successful event is a dedicated team committed to delivering exceptional hospitality, and we’re looking for someone who shares that passion. Core Values Integrity Respect Proactivity Fun Role Overview As the Downtown Market continues to grow, we’re excited to add a Director of Food and Beverage to our team. This role will lead the continued development of our food and beverage operations while supporting some of our most exciting experiences throughout the year. Ideal Candidate Profile We value leaders who take ownership of their work, inspire their teams, embrace challenges, and continuously look for opportunities to improve. If you’re passionate about hospitality, developing people, building efficient systems, and creating exceptional guest experiences, this could be the perfect opportunity for you. Qualifications & Experience 8+ years of progressive leadership experience in food and beverage operations, hospitality, restaurants, catering, festivals, event venues, or a related industry. Strong business acumen with excellent hospitality; experienced in driving revenue, improving efficiency, controlling costs, and building long‑term operational success. Exceptional organization skills; able to create systems for inventory, purchasing, staffing, vendor relationships, and event logistics. Solid inventory management, beverage costing, purchasing strategy, pricing, forecasting, and profitability knowledge. Effective communication and relationship building with staff, vendors, clients, and internal teams. Strategic and hands‑on mindset, comfortable reviewing reports or attending events and solving problems during operations. Thrives under pressure, adapts to changing priorities and works well during high‑volume events and seasonal operations. Proactive, resourceful, anticipates challenges, and designs better processes for guests and team. Understanding of hospitality rhythm; available evenings, weekends, holidays, and during Christkindl Markt. Strong time‑management and prioritization skills for simultaneous projects. Leadership that promotes integrity, open communication, support, and continuous improvement. Physical Capacity Ability to regularly lift and carry up to 50 lbs. Ability to stand, walk, (including on uneven surfaces), and perform manual tasks in varying and possibly extreme weather conditions. Availability for long shifts, evenings, weekends, holidays, and high‑volume event periods. Ability to frequently bend, stoop, and reach. Ability to effectively use in‑ear radio communication devices during work shifts. Ability to wear any and all required protective clothing and equipment. Time Capacity Highly skilled in time management and prioritization, and ability to work on simultaneous projects with tight and varied deadlines. Able to adjust between a Monday‑Friday schedule from January to October, with increased schedule flexibility and availability required during the Christkindl Markt during November and December. Benefits & Culture Why you’ll LOVE working here This is more than a food and beverage management role. It's an opportunity to shape the experiences that define one of West Michigan's premier destinations. You’ll lead the programs, teams, and systems that allow guests to create meaningful memories through exceptional hospitality. You’ll work alongside a passionate, collaborative team that values creativity, community, and operational excellence. Your leadership will directly impact thousands of guests each year while helping grow and evolve the Downtown Market’s food and beverage experiences. If you’re looking for a career where your work creates memorable moments, develops people, and contributes to one of West Michigan’s most unique destinations, we’d love to hear from you. The Grand Rapids Downtown Market is a Equal Opportunity Employer. #J-18808-Ljbffr Grand Rapids Downtown Market