Culinary R&D & Menu Innovation Specialist

BK FRANCHISE HOLDINGS LLC; Carlstadt (NJ); On-site; USD 85,000 - 105,000; Full time

Job summary

BK Franchise Holdings LLC is seeking a Production R&D Specialist to support Production and R&D across brand concepts including Ten Thousand Coffee and L’AMI Bakery & Flower. The role develops and maintains core culinary infrastructure for scalable, high-quality brand operations.

You will manage end-to-end menu development, standardize recipes and SOPs, conduct pre-launch cooking tests, and create training materials for new store openings, ensuring consistent execution across diverse environments.

Qualifications

• Culinary school graduate or equivalent professional culinary experience.
• Bachelor’s degree in culinary arts, Food Science, Hospitality Management, or related field preferred.
• Food safety and sanitation certification (e.g., ServSafe or equivalent) preferred.

Responsibilities

• Menu & Recipe Testing: conduct cooking tests for new menu items and develop prototypes; measure and quantify recipes; create Standard Recipes and Spec Sheets; verify taste, texture, and quality standards; support seasonal and promotional menus; provide menu development ideas based on market trends.
• Culinary Process Standardization: create cooking SOPs; document Recipe Cards and Prep Guides; support field training content; assist in BOH operations design; conduct culinary experimentation and establish standard processes.
• Field Test & Training Support: provide BOH setup and cooking-operation support during new store openings; conduct recipe training and demos; stabilize product quality during openings; run on-site pilot tests; diagnose issues and propose solutions.
• Quality Control & Production Support: conduct QC sampling and evaluations; review Raw Material Specifications and test ingredients; propose improvements for kitchen processes; collect feedback and report improvements; verify quality impacts when recipes or materials change.

Skills

BOH culinary experience

Menu testing

R&D experience

Recipe standardization

SOP documentation

Training materials

Quality control

Team collaboration

Problem solving

Multitasking

Food safety knowledge

Education

Culinary school graduate or equivalent

Bachelor’s degree in culinary arts / Food Science / Hospitality Management

Food safety and sanitation certification (e.g., ServSafe)

Tools

PowerPoint

Excel

Photo/Video shooting basics

Job description

BK Franchise Holdings LLC is seeking a Production R&D Specialist to support Production and R&D across brand concepts including Ten Thousand Coffee and L’AMI Bakery & Flower. The role develops and maintains core culinary infrastructure for scalable, high-quality brand operations.

You will manage end-to-end menu development, standardize recipes and SOPs, conduct pre-launch cooking tests, and create training materials for new store openings, ensuring consistent execution across diverse environments.