Pastry Chef / Kitchen Manager

Lead the Sweet Side of Forest City as Our Pastry Chef / Kitchen Manager

Bring your creativity, leadership, and scratch-baking expertise to a role where your work will be seen, tasted, and celebrated every day. Pie Safe Baking Company is seeking a hands-on Pastry Chef / Kitchen Manager to guide production, elevate guest experiences, and help shape a growing bakery operation. This is an exceptional opportunity for a bakery chef, pastry chef, dessert chef, or kitchen manager who enjoys balancing artistic craft with organized, people-focused leadership.

What You’ll Do:

• Lead daily kitchen and bakery production, ensuring pies, pastries, cheesecakes, desserts, and catering items meet high standards for flavor, freshness, consistency, and presentation.
• Create and execute seasonal menus, special desserts, and custom orders that keep guests excited to return.
• Manage food quality, portion control, prep schedules, inventory needs, and production flow to support efficient, profitable scratch cooking.
• Train, onboard, coach, and schedule kitchen team members while building a positive, accountable, service-minded work environment.
• Make sound operational decisions, address performance concerns appropriately, and support corrective and preventive actions that strengthen kitchen standards.
• Partner with the team to deliver exceptional guest service for bakery customers, catering clients, and special events, including wedding dessert orders.

What You’ll Bring:

• You have professional pastry, bakery, culinary, or kitchen management experience and can confidently lead a fast-moving scratch-production kitchen.
• You bring strong expertise in made-from-scratch baking, including pies, pastries, breads, desserts, and visually appealing dessert plating.
• You can plan menus, manage food quality, control portions, and organize production to meet both guest expectations and business goals.
• You lead with sound judgment, clear communication, and a commitment to fair team coaching, onboarding, and labor-law-aware practices.
• You have strong knife skills and a reliable understanding of kitchen safety, sanitation, and efficient prep techniques.

Preferred Culinary Strengths:

• A culinary degree, pastry certification, or comparable professional training is welcomed, though demonstrated hands-on skill and leadership ability are highly valued.

Compensation:

This in-person position in Forest City, North Carolina offers an annual salary of $45,000 to $55,000 , based on experience and qualifications. Benefits are not currently listed.

About the Company:

Pie Safe Baking Company is a bakery in Forest City, North Carolina, offering made-from-scratch pies, pastries, cheesecakes, espresso drinks, and catering services. You will join a team that values craftsmanship, welcoming hospitality, and the pride that comes from creating memorable food from quality ingredients. This is a place where your ideas can influence the menu, your leadership can develop others, and your passion for baking can make a meaningful impact in the local community.

Equal Opportunity Employer:

Pie Safe Baking Company is committed to creating an inclusive workplace and is proud to provide equal employment opportunities to qualified applicants. Hiring decisions are based on job-related qualifications, experience, and business needs.

Apply Today:

If you are ready to lead a talented kitchen team and create exceptional baked goods and desserts, apply today for this Pastry Chef / Kitchen Manager opportunity.