Culinary Operations Manager

Midtown Athletic Clubs; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 90,000 - 100,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Complimentary Midtown club membership

Associate discounts & professional dev

Medical, dental, vision insurance

401(k) with company match

Paid time off and parental leave

Flexible Spending Accounts

Life, AD&D, and disability insurance

Job summary

Midtown Athletic Clubs is seeking a Culinary Operations Manager to strengthen operations and deliver a consistent, exceptional member experience across eight clubs. This on-site role reports to the National Food & Beverage Director and partners with club leaders to translate strategy into practical standards, systems, and training that improve food quality, kitchen efficiency, and cost control.

You'll coach teams, support menu development, recipe standards, inventory management, and procurement.

Qualifications

• Culinary leadership with multi-unit experience and cost control focus.
• Experience translating strategy into practical kitchen standards.
• Strong financial understanding and ability to interpret P&L data.

Responsibilities

• Lead and coach across eight clubs to ensure consistent execution.
• Support menu development, recipe specs, and nutrition standards.
• Create systems and workflows for kitchen ops, inventory, and procurement.
• Standardize costing, portions, yields, and production to drive efficiency.
• Monitor financial performance and implement corrective actions.

Skills

Multi-unit culinary operations

Menu development

Financial acumen

Coaching / training

Leadership / team coaching

Nutrition standards

Education

Culinary degree or equivalent

Nutrition credential preferred

Job description

About Midtown

Midtown exists to inspire people to become their best selves through the power of movement, connection, and belonging. Founded in 1970, Midtown has grown from one tennis club in Chicago to owning and operating eight luxury athletic clubs across the United States and Canada.

The Opportunity & Your Impact

Midtown is looking for a Culinary Operations Manager to strengthen operations and deliver a consistent, exceptional member experience across our eight clubs. Reporting to the National Food & Beverage Director, you'll work hands-on alongside club leaders and frontline teams to identify opportunities, understand operational challenges, and put practical solutions into action. You'll translate Food & Beverage strategy into clear standards, practical systems, tools, and training that support food quality, kitchen efficiency, and cost control. Through coaching and ongoing follow-through, you'll help teams build lasting skills and habits to execute consistently every day.

Job Overview

• Location: This role is primarily based on-site across Midtown's eight clubs, providing coaching and support to individual locations as needed. Approximately 25% travel is expected throughout the Midtown portfolio, with occasional visits to the Corporate Office for onboarding, training, and team collaboration.
• Serve on Midtown's Food & Beverage Leadership Team, collaborating with F&B managers across clubs to drive consistent execution.
• Travel approximately 25% to assess operations, train teams, implement changes, and verify adoption.
• Support menu development, recipe and inventory management, and nutrition standards.
• Partner with club teams to solve operational challenges through systems, tools, and coaching that improve food quality, efficiency, and cost control.

How You'll Contribute

• Work alongside club teams, teaching culinary skills and coaching leaders to sustain consistent execution.
• Support menu development with tested recipes, clear specifications, and nutrition standards.
• Create practical systems, tools, and workflows for kitchen operations, inventory, procurement, and front-of-house coordination.
• Standardize costing, portions, yields, and production. Evaluate products, workflows, and labor models for quality and efficiency.
• Assess operations and financial performance, partner with club leaders on corrective actions, and verify adoption.

What You'll Need to Succeed

• Culinary degree or equivalent experience with a proven track record of culinary leadership. A recognized nutrition credential is preferred but not required.
• Progressive experience in multi-unit culinary operations, including hands-on menu and recipe development, costing, portions, yields, purchasing, inventory management, and production planning.
• Strong financial acumen to interpret P&L reports, diagnose cost issues and inefficiencies, and implement corrective actions.
• Ability to teach culinary skills to associates of varying experience levels through hands-on demonstration, real-time coaching, and follow-up.
• Alignment with Midtown's core values: Win together, Glass half-full, Passionate about helping others, Better than yesterday, and Kind.

How You'll Know You're Successful

• Clubs meet financial targets through accurate costing, portion control, inventory management, and waste reduction.
• Teams consistently execute recipes and SOPs, with adoption verified through training and follow-up.
• Menus deliver consistent quality, portions, yields, and presentation, with transparent ingredient, allergen, and nutritional information.
• Members receive consistent quality and hospitality, reflected in stronger service audit scores, reliable ticket times, and positive member feedback.
• Audits confirm teams adopt standards and execute consistently, strengthening food quality, service, cleanliness, and the overall member experience.

Compensation & Benefits

Compensation Range: $90,000 - $100,000. The final offered rate will be based on several factors, including but not limited to the candidate's depth of experience, skill set, qualifications, and internal pay equity.

Some of the benefits offered to eligible team members include:

• Complimentary individual Midtown club membership
• Associate discounts, recognition programs, and professional development support
• Medical, dental, and vision insurance where applicable
• 401(k) retirement savings plan with company match
• Paid time off and paid parental leave
• Flexible Spending Accounts
• Life, AD&D, and disability insurance
• And more

Please refer to our benefits overview for full details: https://careers.midtown.com/about-us/benefits/

Interview Process Transparency

Within two weeks, the Hiring Manager will review your application. If your experience doesn't align with the needs of the role at this time, we will let you know. If we'd like to move you to the next step of the process, we'll reach out to schedule the first interview.

You'll receive an update on your application within 48 hours of each interview.