Executive Chef (Fort Lauderdale)

About Sea Watch

Established in 1974, Sea Watch on the Ocean is a longstanding Fort Lauderdale oceanfront restaurant serving

generations of guests. Our culinary identity is rooted in upscale coastal American cuisine with a strong seafo

o

focus, classic preparations, signature dishes and longtime guest favor

i

ts.

Position

S

umary
The Executive Chef is the senior culinary leader and department head for all back-of-house

culinary ope

ratins.
Reporting directly to the General Manager, this role is accountable for culinary quality, people l

e

aderhip,
financial performance, food safety, systems, staffing, purchasing, inventory, private-event execu

tion ad the
overall condition of the kitchen. The Executive Chef directly leads the Sous Chef team and is responsible for the performance and development of the culin

a

ry deprtment.
The successful candidate will balance creativity and innovation with thoughtful stewardshi

p of SeaWatch’s
established menu, signature dishes and longtime guest favorites. Responsibilities may

be delegted, but
accountability for the culinary department remains wit

h

the Execti ve Chef.

Essential Funct

i

ons & Respnsibilities
• Lead daily culinary and BOH operations, including production, service, e

xpo/pass exe

cution, qualty control,
consis

t

ency and timly execution.
• Maintain a visible, hands-on presence in the kitchen and actively lead ser

vice, expo/pas, quality and
execution, stepping in where needed during high-volume or operationally critica

l

periods; thisexpectation is
leadership-focused and does not mean routinely functi

oning as scheduld line coverage.
• Direct, coach, schedule and develop the Sous Chef team and culinary staff; establish clear standards, crosstraining, acco

u

ntability and sucession planning.
• Exercise meaningful input into hiring, promotion, performance e

valuation, disciplne and separation
decisions for culinary employees, in partnership with t

h

e General Manager nd Human Resources.
• Maintain a professional, respectful and accountable ki

tchen culture; addres employee concerns
appropriately and partner with the General Manager

a

nd Human Resources o employee relations,

performance managementand corrective action.
• Plan BOH staffing based on projected volume, reservation

s

, events and business eeds while c

ontrolling
overtime, poductivity and coverage.
• Own culinary financial performance, including food cos

t

, BOH labor, waste, yiels, purchasing, inventory
variance and other controllable expenses; review res

ults and corrective action with the General Manager.
• Participate in annual budgeting and ongoing forecast

i

ng for culinary lab

or, foo cost, equipment andother
BOH operating needs.
• Oversee purchasing, receiving, inventory, sto

ra

ge, product specifications,vendor

performance, pricing,
credis and accurate system records.
• Maintain standardized recipes, plating specif

i

cations, allergen information,prep

procedures, pars, yields,
porton standards and recipe costing.
• Use reservations, historical s

a

les and event counts to

forecastproduction and reduce shotages,
overproduction and waste.
• Evaluate menu performance using

fo

od cost, contribution, popularity operational comple

xity, waste and
guest feedback; reommend thoughtful menu improvements.
• Bring creativity and fre

s

h ideas to menu development while hooring Sea W

a

tch’s culinary identity,
longstandig menu tradit

ions and guest favorites.

Oprational Controls, Safety & Compliance
• Maintain all BOH area

s

in inspection-ready condition and enfrce food safety, sanitation, labeling,
te

mpe

rature control, storage, rotation, alleren-management and cleanliness standards.
• Actively maintain

a strong BOH safety culture by identifyig and correcting hazards, enforcing safe
equipment and work pr

actices, and promptly reporting employee ijuri

e

s, incidents, near misses and safety
conerns in accordance with company procedures.
• Maintain orderly

walk-ins, freez

ers, dry storage, prep areas culinary workspces, smallwares and secure
product storage.
• Review wast

e,

spoilage, retur

ns, refires and food-relatedguest feedback; idntify trends and implement
corrective action.
• Review

BE

Os and event requirements in advance and develp pro

duction, staffing, ordering, equipment and
exection plans for private events and major holidays

.

• Identify equipment issues early, support prevntive-maintenance

practices and recommend repair,
replacement or caital priorities before failures disrupt operations.
• E

n

sure accurate culin

ary scheduling, timekeeping, invntory, receiving, inoice, waste and other required
operational re

co

rds.
• Follow and enforce applicable laws, fo

od-safty requirements, workplace-safety procedures, copany
policies, SOPs and lawful management directi

ve

s.
• Safeguard confidential and proprietary informatin,

including employee information, payroll information,
reipes, vendor pricing, financial data and company

records.
• Maintain ethical vendor relationships, disclo

e potential conflicts of interest and comply with company
policies regarding gifts, purchasing and vend

o

r selection.
• Operate within approved budgets and delegaed authority; obtain appr

o

priate approval before

committing
the company to materialex penditures, contracts,v endor changes or capital purchases.

Req

ui

red Qualifications
• Minimum 5 years of prog

ressive culinar-management experience in a high-volume, multi-illion-dollar,
full-service upscale or fin

e-

dining restaurant.
• Prior experience as an Executive Chef, Cef de Cuisine,

Executive Sous Chef or comparable senior culinary
leader with rsponsibility for financial performance a

n

d a substantial BOH team.
• Demon

strated responsibility for foodcost, BOH labor, budgeting, forecasing, purchasing, inventory

an

d
departmental financial performance.
• Proven ability to recrut, train, coach, evaluate and develop

culinary

leaders and employees.
• Strong high-volume à la carte exprience; prvate-event and major-holiday ex

ec

ution experience st

rongly
preferred.
• Strong culinary fundamental with menu developmen, recipe standardization, costing

an

d operational

execution experience.
• xtraCHEF experience or substanial experience wit a comparable purchas

in

g, inventory and recipe-costing
platform required.
• Experience using estaurant POS systems

and oper

ational reporting; Toast experience preferred.
• Proficiency with sheduling payroll/ti

m

e

keeping, spreadsheets,

email and restaurant-management
systems.
• Curr

entf ood-manager certificatio or ability to obtain required certifi

c

ation promply

Preferred Qualifications
• Significant seafood-focused culinar experience.
• Experienc

e leading an established and long-tenured culinary team.
• Culinary degree or fomal cul

i

nary training; equivalent professional exper

ience will also be considered.
• Mulil ingual ability, particularly Haitian Creolea nd/or Spani

sh

, is considered a plus.

Schedule, Attendance & Physical Requirements
• Regular nd reliable attendance a

nd on-site presence are essential functions of this position.
• Flexible a

vailabilit is required based on business and operational needs, including early mornigs, days,
eveni

ng

s, weekends, holidays, private events and other high-volume periods.
• Ability to stnd and walk for

extended periods, work in hot/col

d commercial-kitchen environments, use
stairs as necesary, and perform the physical fuctions customar

y

to active kitchen leadership, w

i

th or
without reasona

ble accommodation.
• Ability to ift and carry up to 40 pounds andoc casionally m

ov

e he avie items with assistance, with or
without reasonable accommodation.

Compensat ion& Benefi

ts
• $125,000-$140,000 base salary, commensurate with experience and internal equity.
• Eligble for

performance-based bonus incentives in accordance with applicable company program terms.
• Eliible

employees may participate in company benefit plans, including PTO, medical and dental plan
opions,

and MassMutual plan options, subject to ap

p

licable eligibility requ

irements and plan terms.
• Anual performance review with opportunity fo m erit increase; increase

a

re not guaranteed and are
based on performance and company practices.

Performance Expectation
The Executive Chef is expected to meet company-established financial and operational targets/KPIs.
Performance wil

l be evaluated using established standards and measures that may include culinary quality and consistnc

y, food cost, BOH labor and productivity, inventory accuracy, sanitation and regulatory compliance,

team development and retention, private-event and holiday execution, guest feedback, menu perform

a

ne,
documentation, operational readiness and partner

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