Sous Chef

Job Purpose

The Sous Chef serves as second-in-command of the kitchen, partnering with the Executive Chef to lead daily culinary operations and ensure every dish reflects Executive Branch's white-glove standard of excellence. This role provides hands-on leadership to the cook and steward team, drives consistency in food quality, presentation, and sanitation, and steps in as kitchen leader-in-charge whenever the Executive Chef is unavailable.

Principal (Essential) Duties

● Lead daily kitchen operations in the Executive Chef's absence, directing cooks and stewards across à la carte service, private events, and special functions.

● Execute and enforce recipes, plating standards, and portion specifications to ensure consistency across all dayparts and dining outlets.

● Supervise, train, mentor, and schedule cooks and stewards, reinforcing station responsibilities and upholding the club's culinary and service standards.

● Oversee food preparation, quality control, temperature logs, and sanitation practices, ensuring full compliance with D.C. food safety regulations.

● Manage kitchen inventory, ordering, receiving, and waste control in partnership with the Executive Chef, supporting cost and quality objectives.

● Collaborate with the Executive Chef, Pastry Chef, and Sushi Chef to coordinate timing, staffing, and execution for daily service and private events.

● Conduct pre-shift lineups to communicate menu changes, 86'd items, and service priorities to the culinary team.

● Uphold discretion, professionalism, and confidentiality in all interactions involving members, guests, and staff.

Secondary Duties

● Performs other duties and special projects as required or assigned.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

● Advanced culinary technique across multiple cooking methods, cuisines, and kitchen stations.

● Proven leadership and team management ability, including training, coaching, and performance accountability.

● Thorough knowledge of food safety, sanitation, and D.C. health code requirements.

● Strong organizational and time-management skills; ability to execute flawlessly under pressure.

● Ability to read, scale, and standardize recipes for consistent execution.

● Professional, discreet communication style appropriate to a private club environment.

● Flexible, proactive, and dependable, with the ability to anticipate needs and elevate the member experience.

Experience/ Education Requirements

● Culinary degree or equivalent professional training required.

● Minimum of 5-7 years of progressive culinary experience, including at least 2 years in a sous chef or equivalent supervisory role, preferably in fine dining, luxury hospitality, or a private club.

● Current or ability to obtain D.C. Certified Food Protection Manager (CFPM) certification.

● Demonstrated experience training and supervising kitchen staff.

Working Conditions/ Physical Demands

While performing the duties of this job, the employee must be able to:

● Travel up to 5% to sites beyond the primary kitchen.

● Indomitable work ethic and willingness to work additional hours, evenings, weekends, and holidays as needed.

● Ability to stand for extended periods, up to 12 hours in a shift, in a hot, humid, and high-noise kitchen environment.

● Perform heavy work, exerting up to 50 lbs of force occasionally and lesser force frequently, to lift, carry, push, or pull kitchen equipment and supplies.

● See, hear, talk, and perform tasks requiring manual dexterity and visual acuity; kneel, sit, stand, walk, crouch, stoop, bend, stretch, twist, reach, pull, push, and other similar repetitive physical tasks.