Area Chef

SFE- Southwest Foodservice Excellence; Sweetwater (TX); On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

SFE- Southwest Foodservice Excellence is seeking an Area Chef to lead culinary operations across multiple school cafeterias. You will provide hands-on cooking leadership, ensure high standards, and support sites with training, audits, and menu execution.

This role requires travel up to 80% (overnight stays) and a culinary degree or equivalent, with 7+ years in food service and multi-unit supervision. You will drive food safety, cost controls, and production planning while aligning with company

Qualifications

• Culinary degree preferred or equivalent experience.
• 7+ years in food service and fresh food production, including hands-on chef experience.
• 2-3 years of multi-unit culinary management or supervisory experience.

Responsibilities

• Establish annual operational plans and goals; implement initiatives across locations.
• Develop, implement, and monitor culinary concepts, menu programs, and product enhancements.
• Ensure compliance with corporate standards, including food safety, risk management, purchasing, cost controls, and ordering systems.
• Oversee training execution for recipes, menu changes, food safety standards, and culinary procedures; conduct audits to verify adherence.
• Support business operations through performance evaluations, staffing support, event execution, sales proposal input, and cost/quality improvement programs.

Skills

Hands-on chef experience

High-volume batch cooking

Food safety knowledge

Cost controls

Production execution

Travel up to 80%

Education

Culinary degree

Equivalent experience

Tools

MS Office (Excel)

Adobe

Job description

Summary of Position

The Area Chef plays a vital role in ensuring exceptional culinary standards and customer satisfaction across school cafeteria operations within an assigned region. This position provides hands-on culinary leadership, operational support, and strategic guidance to deliver high-quality, nutritious, and compliant meals that meet organizational standards. As a key member of the Culinary & Organizational Excellence Team, the Area Chef collaborates closely with site teams to strengthen performance, elevate service, and maintain consistency across locations. This role requires flexibility and a proactive approach, stepping into facilities as needed to provide supervision, operational support, and culinary expertise.

Responsibilities

• Establish annual operational plans and goals; implement initiatives across locations using internal and external resources.


• Develop, implement, and monitor culinary concepts, menu programs, and product enhancements at regional and national levels.


• Ensure compliance with corporate standards, including food safety, risk management, purchasing, cost controls, and ordering systems.


• Oversee training execution for recipes, menu changes, food safety standards, and culinary procedures; conduct audits to verify adherence.


• Support business operations through performance evaluations, staffing support, event execution, sales proposal input, and cost/quality improvement programs.

Qualifications

• Culinary degree preferred or equivalent experience; minimum 7 years in food service and fresh food production, including hands-on chef experience.


• 2-3 years of multi-unit culinary management or supervisory experience in restaurant or food service operations.


• Experience in high-volume batch cooking, complex food-service environments, and catering operations.


• Knowledge of food safety, sanitation standards, cost controls, and recipe/production execution, including ability to follow production sheets and standardized processes.


• SERV Safe certification (or ability to obtain within 6 months), valid driver’s license, ability to pass background check, proficiency in MS Office (Excel, Adobe), and ability to travel up to 80% including overnight stay.

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer, Gender/Minority/Veterans/Disabled and participates with E-Verify Employment Eligibility Program.