Junior Sous Chef

JOB DESCRIPTION POSITION SUMMARY

The Junior Sous Chef is a hands-on culinary leadership position responsible for supporting the Chef de Cuisine, Executive Chef, and restaurant management team in the daily operation of the kitchen.

The Junior Sous Chef serves as a bridge between culinary management and the hourly kitchen team and is expected to lead by example. This position requires strong cooking ability, organization, urgency, attention to detail, and the ability to coach and direct employees while remaining actively involved in prep and service.

The Junior Sous Chef helps ensure that food quality, consistency, cleanliness, sanitation, preparation, organization, and kitchen execution meet company standards every shift.

This is a developmental management position designed for a strong culinary professional ready to take the next step toward becoming a Sous Chef, Chef de Cuisine, or Executive Chef.

CORE RESPONSIBILITIESCULINARY EXECUTION & QUALITY CONTROL

• Maintain established recipes, portions, preparation methods, and presentation standards.
• Inspect food for quality, freshness, seasoning, temperature, and presentation.
• Taste food throughout preparation and service.
• Monitor plates before they leave the kitchen.
• Identify and correct quality issues immediately.
• Ensure consistency regardless of station, cook, or volume.
• Communicate recurring quality concerns to culinary leadership.
• Maintain urgency during service without sacrificing quality.

SERVICE & LINE LEADERSHIP

The Junior Sous Chef is expected to be an active presence during service.

• Assist with leading line execution during service.
• Work stations when operationally necessary.
• Support expo and coordinate ticket flow.
• Monitor ticket times and communicate delays.
• Ensure proper firing and timing of courses.
• Maintain communication between stations.
• Help cooks prioritize and organize during high-volume periods.
• Recognize operational problems before they negatively affect service.
• Communicate immediately with FOH management when food delays or quality concerns may impact guests.
• Maintain composure, professionalism, and leadership during busy services.

PREP & PRODUCTION

• Review and execute daily prep lists.
• Ensure required production is completed before service.
• Inspect mise en place for quality, quantity, freshness, and organization.
• Monitor pars and communicate shortages.
• Prevent unnecessary overproduction.
• Ensure proper portioning and yields.
• Verify that products are properly labeled, dated, stored, and rotated.
• Assist with batch production, butchering, sauces, stocks, prep, and other culinary production as required.
• Maintain organized walk-ins, freezers, dry storage, prep areas, and line stations.

TEAM LEADERSHIP & TRAINING

• Lead kitchen employees by example.
• Help train new cooks, prep cooks, and other BOH employees.
• Reinforce recipes, procedures, station standards, and expectations.
• Coach employees constructively during prep and service.
• Help identify employees who require additional training.
• Support employee development and cross-training.
• Delegate tasks clearly and follow up on completion.
• Maintain accountability while treating employees professionally and respectfully.
• Help create a kitchen culture built around teamwork, pride, urgency, discipline, and respect.
• Communicate employee performance or behavioral concerns to senior culinary leadership.

OPENING & CLOSING MANAGEMENT

When assigned as the opening or closing kitchen leader, the Junior Sous Chef is responsible for ensuring the kitchen is properly prepared, maintained, and secured.

Opening responsibilities may include verifying deliveries, checking refrigeration temperatures, inspecting kitchen cleanliness, reviewing prep and production needs, confirming staffing, inspecting mise en place, and ensuring stations are completely ready before service.

Closing responsibilities may include inspecting cleaning, verifying proper food storage, checking labeling and dating, reviewing waste, ensuring equipment is properly shut down, confirming refrigeration and kitchen conditions, and ensuring the BOH is clean, organized, safe, and ready for the following day.

FOOD COST & WASTE CONTROL

The Junior Sous Chef is expected to understand that culinary leadership includes financial responsibility.

• Maintain proper portion control.
• Minimize unnecessary waste.
• Monitor overproduction and spoilage.
• Record waste according to company procedures.
• Protect product from improper handling and storage.
• Follow established recipes and yields.
• Assist with inventory counts.
• Assist with receiving and verifying deliveries.
• Monitor product usage and communicate unusual variances.
• Understand the relationship between preparation, portioning, waste, labor, and profitability.
• Help protect company assets and inventory.

RECEIVING & INVENTORY

• Inspect deliveries for quality and accuracy.
• Verify product temperatures when appropriate.
• Ensure products are stored immediately and correctly.
• Maintain FIFO rotation.
• Assist with inventory counts.
• Maintain organized walk-ins, freezers, and dry storage.
• Communicate low inventory and shortages proactively.
• Report damaged, incorrect, or unacceptable products.
• Help prevent unnecessary emergency ordering.

SAFETY & SANITATION

Food safety and sanitation are fundamental responsibilities of culinary leadership.

• Follow and enforce all applicable health department and food safety requirements.
• Maintain proper food temperatures.
• Monitor refrigeration and freezer temperatures.
• Ensure proper cooling, reheating, thawing, storage, labeling, and dating procedures.
• Enforce proper handwashing and personal hygiene.
• Prevent cross-contamination.
• Maintain proper sanitizer procedures.
• Ensure cutting boards, knives, equipment, workstations, and food-contact surfaces remain clean and sanitary.
• Maintain clean floors, drains, walls, storage areas, and equipment.
• Ensure chemicals are properly labeled and stored.
• Immediately address unsafe conditions.
• Report equipment, refrigeration, plumbing, electrical, pest, or other safety concerns immediately.
• Participate in and enforce daily and scheduled deep-cleaning procedures.

The kitchen should remain inspection-ready every day.

EQUIPMENT & FACILITY CARE

• Ensure kitchen equipment is used properly.
• Identify malfunctioning or unsafe equipment.
• Immediately report maintenance concerns.
• Help prevent equipment damage caused by improper use or cleaning.
• Ensure employees understand proper equipment operation.
• Maintain clean and organized equipment and storage areas.
• Protect company property and culinary tools.

HOSPITALITY & TEAMWORK

Although primarily a BOH position, the Junior Sous Chef contributes directly to the guest experience.

Every plate leaving the kitchen represents the restaurant.

The Junior Sous Chef should work collaboratively with FOH leadership and respond professionally to guest feedback, returned dishes, special requests, allergies, and service concerns.

The objective is never to argue about why something happened. The objective is to understand the issue, correct it when possible, communicate effectively, and protect the guest experience.

PROFESSIONALISM & LEADERSHIP

A Junior Sous Chef is expected to:

• Arrive on time and prepared.
• Maintain a clean and professional appearance.
• Demonstrate excellent personal hygiene.
• Lead through behavior rather than title.
• Remain composed under pressure.
• Communicate clearly and respectfully.
• Accept coaching and feedback.
• Take responsibility for mistakes.
• Bring solutions when identifying problems.
• Demonstrate initiative without exceeding appropriate authority.
• Support management decisions professionally.
• Maintain confidentiality when dealing with employee or business matters.
• Treat every employee with dignity and respect.

QUALIFICATIONS

The ideal candidate has previous professional kitchen experience with demonstrated ability to execute multiple stations at a high level and has begun developing leadership or supervisory experience.

Candidates should possess strong culinary fundamentals, knife skills, food-safety knowledge, organization, communication skills, attention to detail, and the ability to work effectively in a high-volume environment.

Prior experience as a Lead Line Cook, Kitchen Supervisor, Junior Sous Chef, or similar position is preferred.

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS

• Ability to stand for extended periods.
• Ability to work in hot and fast-paced kitchen environments.
• Ability to lift, carry, push, and pull up to 50 pounds.
• Ability to bend, reach, squat, and perform repetitive tasks.
• Ability to safely operate commercial kitchen equipment.
• Ability to work mornings, evenings, weekends, and holidays based on business needs.

SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE

A successful Junior Sous Chef makes the kitchen stronger whenever they are working.

The team is prepared. Stations are organized. Prep is completed correctly. Food is consistent. Ticket flow is controlled. Standards remain high during busy services. The kitchen stays clean and safe. Waste is minimized. Employees receive direction and support. Problems are identified early and communicated appropriately.

Most importantly, the Junior Sous Chef develops the ability to lead people, manage execution, protect quality, understand costs, and take increasing ownership of the kitchen —preparing them for the next level of culinary leadership.