Executive Chef

Gate Gourmet; Colorado; On-site; USD 115,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Paid time off

401k with company match

Medical, dental, vision plans

Life insurance

Disability insurance

Employee Discounts

Free meals

Job summary

Gate Gourmet is seeking an Executive Chef, Operations in Colorado to lead daily meal preparation for multiple airline accounts, managing chefs, sous chefs, and cooks while upholding the highest culinary standards. You will drive quality, safety, and efficiency in a fast-paced unit.

The role requires a strong culinary leadership background, with 10+ years as a Chef, 4+ years as an Executive Chef, and experience in high-volume food production or in-flight catering. Travel up to 10% may apply.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's or Associate degree in Culinary Arts or related field, or 10+ years of chef experience.
• Minimum 10 years as a Chef and at least 4 years as an Executive Chef.
• 1–3 years supervisory experience in high-volume food production or catering.

Responsibilities

• Oversee culinary operations for multiple airline accounts and unit staff.
• Ensure HACCP, FDA and safety compliance across all meals.
• Lead menu design, portion control, and product quality audits.
• Monitor labor costs and productivity to meet financial targets.
• Train and develop cooks and sous chefs to maintain high standards.

Skills

Leadership

Staff coaching

Time management

Communication

Problem solving

Education

Culinary degree

Tools

ServSafe

Job description

We're looking for motivated, engaged people to help make everyone’s journeys better. Reporting to the General Manager of the unit, the Executive Chef, Operations is responsible for daily monitoring of the preparation of the pre-designed meals for multiple customer accounts with culinary expertise through the management of all Chefs, Sous Chefs and Cooks at the unit, and promoting and providing quality food services to airline clients.

Annual Hiring Range $115,000 - $120,000/Per Year

• Paid time off 401k, with company match
• Company sponsored life insurance
• Medical, dental, vision plans
• Voluntary short-term/long-term disability insurance
• Voluntary life, accident, and hospital plans
• Employee Assistance Program
• Commuter benefits
• Employee Discounts
• Free hot healthy meals for unit operations roles

Job Summary: Reporting to the General Manager of the unit, the Executive Chef, Operations is responsible for daily monitoring of the preparation of the pre-designed meals for multiple customer accounts with culinary expertise through the management of all Chefs, Sous Chefs and Cooks at the unit, and promoting and providing quality food services to airline clients.

Main Duties and Responsibilities

Achieves culinary operational objectives by contributing information and analysis to strategic plans and reviews; preparing and completing action plans; implementing production, productivity, quality, and customer-service standards; serving as culinary resource to operations managers; identifying and resolving problems; completing audits; determining system improvements; implementing change. Meets culinary financial objectives by estimating requirements; assisting with menu design; anticipating and evaluating response to menu presentation; scheduling expenditures; analyzing variances; initiating corrective actions; evaluating time-saving production techniques; training others in specialty techniques. Adheres to recipes and portion specifications as required by the customer by understanding consumer tastes and nutritional needs; reviewing product specifications; evaluating ease of menu preparation; applying established procedures and budgetary constraints. Oversees food preparation by consulting with the Buyer; Sous chefs, cooks, and team leaders; overseeing portion size; controlling productivity; providing culinary leadership in areas of personal expertise; monitoring presentations, garnishments, and sauces. Improves menu quality and consistency by analyzing food production records and menu expenses; promoting kitchen staff interest in quality improvement; studying, evaluating, and re‑designing processes; implementing changes. Prepares menu and food preparation reports by collecting, analyzing, and summarizing food, dining, and customer data and trends. Maintains safe, secure, and healthy work environment by establishing, following, and enforcing standards and procedures; complying with sanitation and federal, state, and local legal regulations; overseeing food preparation, safety, and security; reviewing and implementing accident and disaster plans. Using menu specifications, maintains food ingredients, food preparation, and general supplies by selecting and purchasing menu ingredients; evaluating the quality of fresh food and food product deliveries; maintaining general supplies; establishing inventory levels, re‑order points, storage requirements, and cost‑controls. Maintains culinary equipment by following operating instructions; instructing staff in equipment use; troubleshooting breakdowns; maintaining equipment supplies; performing preventive maintenance; calling for repairs; evaluating new equipment; preparing administrative proposals to justify purchases. Maintains professional and technical knowledge by attending educational workshops; reviewing professional publications; establishing personal networks; benchmarking state‑of‑the‑art practices; being sought for opinions as a culinary expert; contributing to professional publications; participating in professional societies and sharing this information with direct reports. Accomplishes culinary goals by accepting ownership for accomplishing new and different requests; exploring opportunities to add value to job accomplishments. Ensures quality production standards are followed and maintained. Ensures employees adhere to HACCP, FDA and safety regulations and compliance with company policies and procedures. Trains and monitors employees on proper work procedures and production of products to ensure maximum productivity with minimum labor and food expenses. Assists in the development and training of cooks as required. Prepares administrative reports as required. Ensures maximum productivity and labor costs are maintained according to financial requirements. Monitors daily manpower planning and employee turnover. Responsible for employee retention. Ensures meal cycles are communicated in a timely and accurate basis. Monitor yields of products to ensure maximum usage. Works with management staff to improve performance of the unit. Ensures Menu presentations are properly planned, set up, and specifications reviewed to ensure compliance. Maintains labor requirements, food costs, overtime, and all productivity requirements. Must ensure all cooks, and Sous Chef employees have the skill and ability to perform all cooking and food preparation requirements of all the Airline Accounts serviced in the Unit. Ensures all products are cooked at required temperature according to airline and food safety specification, etc. Responsible for coaching, counseling and preparing corrective action for employees. Completes all company required training including but not limited to ServSafe Sanitation Manager Certification.

Qualifications Education

• Associate Degree or Bachelor Degree in the Culinary Arts or a related field, (formal culinary education) required or at least 4 years of experience in an Executive Chef role

Work Experience

• Minimum 10 years as a Chef required
• Minimum of 4 years as an Executive Chef required
• Minimum of 1-3 years supervisory experience working in a high volume, manufacturing, food production and restaurant or catering environment required
• In-flight catering experience or experience in a high-volume food service environment required

Technical Skills: (Certification, Licenses and Registration)

• Ability to cook meals according to detailed specifications.
• Ability to work in a fast paced, deadline driven environment.
• Must have strong and effective leadership skills, and the ability to successfully manage a staff of 2 to 3 Sous Chefs and over 20 cooks.
• Current or previous labor relations experience is a plus, but not required.
• Candidate must be comfortable with all levels of employees and have the ability to drive positive program change.
• Ability to train others required.
• Must have the ability to give negative and positive feedback to employees on a daily basis.
• Excellent time management skills required.
• Ability to handle multiple tasks without losing focus on priorities.
• Strong organizational, analytical, communication and leadership skills required.
• Must be innovative and have the ability to make changes to the operation as needed to further improve the work environment and unit performance.
• Experience with menu design a plus
• Basic computer skills required.
• Working knowledge of Microsoft Office products preferred

Technical Skills: (Certificates, Licenses and Registration)

• ServSafe Certified preferred.

Language / Communication Skills

• Must have excellent written and oral communication skills.
• Multi-lingual a plus.

Job Dimensions Geographic Responsibility

Unit Type of Employment: Full-Time Travel %: Yes - Up to 10% Exemption Classification: Exempt Work Environment / Requirements of the Job: Regularly, stands, bends, lifts, and moves intermittently during shifts of 10+ hours. In a normal production kitchen facility there may be physical discomfort due to temperature and noise. Must be able to lift, push, pull and move product, equipment, supplies, etc., in excess of twenty-five (25) pounds. A rotating schedule of over 55 hours per week is typical.

Gate Group Competencies Required to be Successful in the Job

• Thinking – Information Search and analysis & problem resolution skills
• Engaging – Understanding others, Team Leadership and Developing People
• Inspiring – Influencing and building relationships, Motivating and Inspiring, Communicating effectively
• Achieving – Delivering business results under pressure, Championing Performance Improvement and Customer Focus

Employees at gategroup are expected to live our Values of Excellence, Integrity, Passion and Accountability. To demonstrate these Values, we expect to observe the following from everyone: We treat each other with respect and we act with integrity We communicate and keep each other informed We put our heads together to problem solve and deliver excellence as a team We have passion for our work and we pay attention to the little details We foster an environment of accountability, take responsibility for our actions and learn from our mistakes We do what we say we will do, when we say we are going to do it We care about our coworkers, always taking an opportunity to make someone’s day better

The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by the individual(s) assigned to this position. They are not intended to be an exhaustive list of all duties, responsibilities, and skills required. Management reserves the right to modify, add, or remove duties and to assign other duties as necessary. In addition, reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of this position.

gategroup is an equal opportunity employer committed to workforce diversity. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment and will not be discriminated against on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran status, disability status or other category under applicable law. For further information regarding Equal Employment Opportunity, copy and paste the following URL into your web browser: http://www.dol.gov/ofccp/regs/compliance/posters/pdf/eeopost.pdf

We anticipate that this job will close on: 09/25/2026

gategroup is the global leader in airline catering, retail-on-board and hospitality products and services. gategroup provides passengers with superior culinary and retail experiences, leveraging innovation and advanced technology solutions. Headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland, gategroup delivers operational excellence through the most extensive catering network in the aviation industry, serving passengers from over 200 operating units in over 60 countries/territories across all continents. We work in an exciting industry – fast-paced and ever-changing. Industry trends and customer expectations are constantly evolving and it is critical that we are agile, innovative and ready for change - and our people are our driving force. We offer attractive opportunities to be part of this fast-paced and truly international working environment.