Prep Cook

Description:

About Sítio El Tropicano

Sítio El Tropicano is a vibrant renewal of one of San Antonio's most iconic riverfront landmarks. An urban resort and members' club where hospitality, wellness, dining, and creativity flow together effortlessly, Sítio invites guests to linger, explore, and connect.

About Emmer & Rye Hospitality Group

Emmer & Rye Hospitality Group is an award-winning, chef-driven, multi-concept restaurant group hailing from Austin, Texas. All food and beverage at Sítio El Tropicano is created and operated by Emmer & Rye Hospitality Group, carrying our commitment to local sourcing, seasonality, and genuine hospitality throughout the property. Our concepts at Sitio El Tropicano include Barberry, a seasonally driven all-day restaurant; Flamingo Bar, a cocktail bar celebrating Texas spirits; Prado Provisions, a grab-and-go café; and Bar Nado, serving handrolls, bento boxes, and frozen drinks poolside.

Position Summary

The Banquet Sous Chef leads daily culinary production and service execution for meetings, weddings, social events, hotel functions, member events, and other catered programs at Sítio El Tropicano. This position is responsible for translating banquet event orders into organized production plans, supervising banquet cooks, maintaining food quality, and ensuring every event is executed accurately and on time.

Reporting to the Culinary Director, the Banquet Sous Chef works closely with the Director of Banquets, Events team, Executive Pastry Chef, Stewarding, and other culinary leaders to coordinate menus, staffing, production, dietary accommodations, and service timelines. This is a hands-on culinary leadership position requiring strong organization, flexibility, cost awareness, and the ability to execute multiple events simultaneously.

Culinary Production & Event Execution

• Lead culinary production and service execution for meetings, weddings, social events, hotel functions, member events, and other catered programs.
• Execute all events according to the approved banquet event order, menu, guest count, service style, dietary requirements, and timeline.
• Review upcoming BEOs and translate event details into production schedules, prep lists, station assignments, equipment needs, and service plans.
• Maintain a visible, hands-on leadership presence throughout preparation, plating, service, and event breakdown.
• Ensure all food is prepared and presented according to approved recipes, plating specifications, portion standards, and quality expectations.
• Coordinate plated meals, buffets, receptions, action stations, breaks, family-style service, and other banquet formats.
• Lead banquet culinary briefings covering menus, timelines, assignments, allergens, service standards, and anticipated challenges.
• Monitor food quality, temperature, portioning, presentation, replenishment, and service timing throughout each event.
• Coordinate course timing and buffet replenishment with banquet service leadership.
• Adjust production and staffing when guest counts, event timing, or operating conditions change.
• Resolve culinary and service issues quickly while maintaining a calm, organized, and professional kitchen.
• Communicate product shortages, menu changes, equipment concerns, and event challenges promptly to the Culinary Director.

BEO Review & Production Planning

• Review banquet event orders, group resumes, diagrams, guarantees, and function schedules for accuracy and operational feasibility.
• Identify unclear, incomplete, or conflicting event information and seek clarification before production begins.
• Confirm final guest counts, menus, dietary accommodations, service times, locations, and special requests.
• Develop detailed production timelines for each event and coordinate preparation across multiple shifts.
• Establish and maintain production pars based on guest counts, service style, projected consumption, and appropriate overage.
• Prepare daily and weekly prep lists and assign responsibilities based on team-member capabilities.
• Coordinate shared production, ingredients, equipment, refrigeration, and storage with other hotel kitchens.
• Plan appropriate holding, transportation, plating, and replenishment procedures for each event space.
• Develop contingency plans for changes in guest count, weather, equipment availability, product supply, or event timing.
• Communicate production status and outstanding needs through clear shift notes and leadership handoffs.
• Participate in BEO meetings, pre-convention meetings, menu tastings, and event-planning discussions as assigned.

Menu Development & Tastings

• Partner with the Culinary Director and Events team on the development of banquet menus, wedding packages, buffets, receptions, and seasonal offerings.
• Assist with recipe testing, costing, documentation, and presentation standards.
• Ensure banquet menus can be consistently executed at the intended volume, service style, and price point.
• Develop appropriate options for dietary restrictions and special requests without compromising quality or operational efficiency.
• Support wedding, client, and special-event tastings with organized, polished, and accurate presentations.
• Document tasting feedback and ensure approved changes are reflected in recipes, BEOs, production plans, and plating guides.
• Identify opportunities to improve banquet quality, presentation, efficiency, and profitability.
• Maintain awareness of seasonal ingredients and products appropriate for the banquet program.

Team Leadership & Development

• Supervise, train, coach, and develop banquet cooks and other assigned culinary team members.
• Support recruiting, interviewing, onboarding, scheduling, performance management, and retention for the banquet culinary team.
• Assign production and service responsibilities based on the event calendar and team-member capabilities.
• Establish clear expectations and hold team members accountable for food quality, attendance, productivity, cleanliness, safety, and professional conduct.
• Provide technical training in banquet production, batch cooking, plating, buffet presentation, food holding, transportation, and equipment use.
• Evaluate team-member performance and provide timely coaching and constructive feedback.
• Coordinate breaks, shift transitions, and team deployment while maintaining production and service coverage.
• Identify performance concerns and communicate them promptly to the Culinary Director.
• Partner with the Culinary Director and Human Resources on performance documentation and corrective action when necessary.
• Foster a positive, disciplined, inclusive, and professional banquet-kitchen culture.
• Develop culinary team members who can independently lead assigned production and event stations.

Staffing & Labor Management

• Prepare or support banquet culinary schedules based on event volume, guest counts, menus, service styles, production requirements, and approved labor targets.
• Build event-specific staffing plans that reflect operational complexity rather than guest count alone.
• Adjust schedules and assignments as BEOs, guarantees, and timelines change.
• Monitor daily staffing, productivity, overtime, and labor efficiency.
• Coordinate support from other culinary departments when banquet volume requires additional staffing.
• Release or reassign team members when production and service needs permit.
• Review employee timekeeping for accuracy and communicate missed punches, overtime concerns, and attendance issues.
• Maintain an appropriate balance between advance production, event-day labor, and food quality.
• Communicate staffing risks and additional labor needs to the Culinary Director in advance.

Purchasing, Inventory & Cost Control

• Support the Culinary Director in managing banquet food cost, labor, purchasing, waste, inventory, and production efficiency.
• Prepare event-specific product requisitions based on BEOs, guarantees, recipes, yields, and approved overage.
• Order approved banquet products and supplies according to established purchasing procedures.
• Inspect deliveries for quality, quantity, condition, temperature, and specification compliance.
• Maintain organized banquet refrigeration, freezers, dry storage, equipment storage, and production areas.
• Monitor product usage, yields, portions, spoilage, overproduction, refires, and waste.
• Ensure banquet waste is recorded promptly and accurately.
• Minimize waste through accurate forecasting, recipe adherence, thoughtful production, and appropriate product repurposing.
• Complete inventory counts, transfers, production records, waste logs, and other required documentation.
• Communicate purchasing needs, inventory shortages, and product-quality concerns promptly.
• Protect food quality and maintain accurate controls when products are transported between kitchens and event spaces.

Food Safety, Allergens & Sanitation

• Ensure compliance with health department regulations, HACCP principles, food safety requirements, and ERHG policies.
• Maintain proper food temperatures throughout receiving, production, cooling, storage, transportation, holding, plating, and service.
• Enforce proper labeling, dating, rotation, thawing, cooling, reheating, holding, and disposal procedures.
• Complete required temperature logs, cooling logs, sanitation records, and event food-safety documentation.
• Ensure dietary restrictions and allergies are accurately communicated, prepared, labeled, transported, and served.
• Prevent cross-contact during preparation, storage, plating, and service.
• Maintain clean, organized, sanitary, and inspection-ready kitchens, storage areas, mobile equipment, and event-production spaces.
• Ensure buffets, action stations, and food displays meet required holding, protection, and service standards.
• Monitor the safe operation and condition of ovens, ranges, hot boxes, refrigeration, induction equipment, portable cooking equipment, and other banquet tools.
• Report equipment failures, maintenance concerns, pest activity, accidents, injuries, and safety hazards promptly.
• Coordinate with Stewarding to maintain appropriate levels of clean cookware, utensils, china, serviceware, and sanitation supplies.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Partner with the Culinary Director to execute the property’s banquet culinary vision and operating priorities.
• Collaborate with the Director of Banquets on event timing, service style, staffing, guest feedback, and operational requirements.
• Work closely with the Events team to confirm BEO details, guarantees, dietary accommodations, tastings, and last-minute changes.
• Coordinate with the Executive Pastry Chef on desserts, breads, breaks, amenities, wedding items, and special presentations.
• Collaborate with Barberry and Bar Nado culinary leaders when sharing products, production spaces, equipment, or employees.
• Partner with Stewarding on china, glassware, cookware, equipment, cleaning, and event-turn requirements.
• Coordinate with Purchasing, Receiving, Engineering, Security, Housekeeping, and other hotel departments as necessary.
• Communicate event changes promptly to every affected culinary and operational leader.
• Participate in post-event reviews and help implement improvements based on guest and team feedback.

Standards & Conduct

• Uphold ERHG and Sítio El Tropicano’s image, values, culinary standards, and professional expectations.
• Maintain exceptional standards for food quality, kitchen cleanliness, organization, equipment care, and team-member appearance.
• Demonstrate integrity, accountability, consistency, urgency, flexibility, and sound judgment.
• Remain calm, organized, and solutions-oriented during complex or high-volume event periods.
• Foster a harmonious, positive, disciplined, and professional culinary culture.
• Complete responsibilities accurately, on time, and in accordance with company policies and procedures.
• Perform additional responsibilities as reasonably assigned based on operational needs.

Qualifications

• Three or more years of progressive culinary experience in banquets, catering, hotels, resorts, event venues, or similarly high-volume operations.
• Previous Banquet Sous Chef, Sous Chef, Junior Sous Chef, Lead Cook, or comparable culinary leadership experience preferred.
• Demonstrated experience executing plated events, buffets, receptions, weddings, and large-volume food production.
• Strong command of banquet event orders, production schedules, event timelines, batch cooking, plating, and food holding.
• Working knowledge of recipe costing, purchasing, inventory, scheduling, labor management, and food-cost control.
• Proven ability to lead culinary teams and manage multiple events or production timelines simultaneously.
• Strong communication, organization, time-management, and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to remain composed and make sound decisions when event details or timelines change.
• Working knowledge of health department regulations, HACCP principles, allergen procedures, sanitation, and food safety standards.
• Experience with event-management, recipe-costing, inventory, purchasing, scheduling, and payroll systems preferred.
• ServSafe Manager certification required or ability to obtain within the required timeframe.
• Culinary degree or equivalent professional kitchen experience preferred.

Physical Requirements

• Ability to stand and walk for extended periods during production, setup, service, and breakdown.
• Ability to lift and carry up to 50 pounds when necessary.
• Ability to push and pull loaded hot boxes, speed racks, carts, and banquet equipment.
• Ability to perform frequent bending, reaching, twisting, kneeling, and repetitive movements.
• Ability to work safely around commercial kitchen equipment, hot surfaces, open flames, steam, sharp tools, and active event environments.
• Ability to work in hot, cold, refrigerated, outdoor, and otherwise changing environments.
• Ability to taste and evaluate food products regularly.
• Ability to work early mornings, evenings, overnight shifts, weekends, holidays, split shifts, and extended hours based on the event calendar.

Direct Reports: Banquet Cooks and other assigned hourly culinary team members.

Reports To: Culinary Director.

This job description provides a general overview of the position and is not intended to be a comprehensive list of all responsibilities, duties, or qualifications. Responsibilities may evolve based on business and operational needs, and team members may be asked to perform other duties as reasonably assigned.

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