EXECUTIVE CHEF

Executive Chef Position

Metz Culinary Management is seeking an experienced, hands-on Executive Chef to lead culinary operations at The Nathaniel Witherell, a skilled nursing and senior care community in Greenwich, Connecticut.

The Executive Chef is responsible for the daily operation of the kitchen, including food quality, resident satisfaction, food safety, therapeutic and texture-modified diets, purchasing, inventory, food-cost control, production planning, staffing, training, and employee accountability.

This position requires a visible, organized leader who can successfully manage a fast-paced healthcare food-service operation while maintaining professional relationships with residents, employees, facility leadership, vendors, and temporary staffing partners.

Salary range: 74k 86k

Key Responsibilities

• Direct daily kitchen production for resident meals, Caf service, special events, and catered functions.
• Ensure meals are prepared and delivered accurately, safely, and within established service times.
• Maintain food quality, temperature, presentation, consistency, and portion-control standards.
• Ensure compliance with HACCP, sanitation, labeling, dating, temperature logs, CMS requirements, state regulations, and company policies.
• Ensure standardized recipes are followed for regular, therapeutic, allergen-sensitive, texture-modified, and mechanically altered diets.
• Train cooks, supervisors, and line-service employees on food safety, recipes, portion control, therapeutic diets, and texture standards.
• Manage weekly food spending within the established budget while maintaining quality and resident satisfaction.
• Develop waste-reduction initiatives and identify appropriate opportunities to replace convenience products with cost-effective scratch preparation.
• Complete monthly inventories accurately and maintain appropriate par levels, FIFO rotation, receiving controls, and purchasing records.
• Prepare food orders and maintain reliable contingency plans for vendor shortages or delivery disruptions.
• Develop efficient schedules, control overtime, and use temporary-agency staff only when operationally necessary and properly authorized.
• Provide appropriate coverage plans for vacations, callouts, open positions, and other staffing challenges.
• Coach, mentor, and hold the Sous Chef, cooks, supervisors, and food-service employees accountable for their responsibilities.
• Conduct and document regular coaching, training, and supervisory meetings.
• Develop internal employees through structured culinary training and career-development programs.
• Maintain professional, respectful, and solution-oriented communication with employees, management, residents, clients, vendors, and temporary staff.
• Communicate operational risks promptly and follow through on assignments, corrective actions, and reporting requirements.

Qualifications

• Minimum of three years of culinary leadership experience as an Executive Chef, Chef Manager, Sous Chef, or comparable role.
• Healthcare, skilled nursing, senior living, hospital, or institutional food-service experience strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated knowledge of therapeutic diets, food allergies, texture-modified diets, and resident-centered meal service.
• Strong knowledge of food safety, HACCP, sanitation, and regulatory compliance.
• Experience managing food cost, purchasing, inventory, waste, labor, scheduling, and overtime.
• Proven ability to train employees, delegate effectively, document performance, and hold staff accountable.
• Ability to remain composed and professional during staffing challenges and other operational pressures.
• ServSafe Manager certification required or must be obtained within the timeframe established by Metz Culinary Management.
• Culinary degree or equivalent culinary training preferred.
• Experience working in a union environment is helpful.
• Proficiency with ordering, inventory, scheduling, email, spreadsheets, and food-service management systems.

Schedule Requirements

This is a full-time leadership position. The Executive Chef must be available based on operational needs, including early mornings, occasional evenings, weekends, holidays, emergencies, and special events.

The successful candidate will be a hands-on culinary leader who combines strong cooking and operational skills with accountability, professionalism, financial stewardship, and a genuine commitment to resident care.