Executive Sous Chef

Fairmont Hotels & Resorts; New Orleans (LA); On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

Fairmont New Orleans is seeking an executive-level culinary leader to oversee all culinary operations across luxury outlets in our downtown property. You will partner with the Executive Chef to align teams on culture, accountability, and excellence, while managing labor, costs, and daily quality control to deliver exceptional guest experiences.

With oversight of high-volume kitchens, you will drive innovation, maintain strict food safety, and ensure adherence to Fairmont brand standards.

Qualifications

• Minimum 8 years of progressive culinary leadership experience within luxury hotel or high-volume kitchen
• Proven ability to lead with influence, foster trust, accountability, and a culture of excellence
• Demonstrated success in recruiting, mentoring, and retaining top-tier culinary talent with long-term succession planning
• Strategic and operational expertise in labor management, food cost control, and productivity optimization

Responsibilities

• Provide strategic culinary leadership in partnership with the Executive Chef, aligning the culinary leadership team around culture and operational excellence
• Lead, develop, and inspire a high-performing culinary brigade through recruitment, onboarding, coaching, and performance management
• Drive financial performance and operational excellence by overseeing food and labor costs, budgeting and forecasting, yield analysis, inventory management, procurement, scheduling, and waste reduction initiatives
• Ensure exceptional culinary execution and elevated guest experience through menu engineering, recipe costing, daily QA, and adherence to quality and dietary standards
• Champion and uphold Fairmont brand standards and all health, safety, and regulatory requirements
• Foster collaboration across Food & Beverage and other hotel departments to deliver guest experiences and identify opportunities for continuous improvement

Skills

Culinary leadership

People management

Operational excellence

Budgeting & forecasting

Tools

Birchstreet

Watson LMS

Job description

Company Description

Company Description
Company Description
Fairmont Hotels & Resorts is a renowned luxury hotel brand with a global presence and a commitment to creating lasting memories for our guests. With over 30,000 colleagues worldwide, we are dedicated to delivering exceptional service, fostering a culture of excellence, and making special happen.

Hotel Overview

Located in the heart of downtown Fairmont New Orleans will be an impressive new addition to Fairmont’s luxury portfolio, offering 250 luxury guest rooms, four food & drink venues, a rooftop pool with expansive views of the city, more than 19,000 square feet of function space, and a 10,000 square-foot spa. This property is destined to become an illustrious destination in the Central Business District, nearby the city’s renowned and historic French Quarter.

Job Description

• Provide strategic culinary leadership in partnership with the Executive Chef, aligning the culinary leadership team around culture, accountability, operational excellence, and the philosophy of “Make It Count”. Assume full operational responsibility for culinary operations in the Executive Chef’s absence
• Lead, develop, and inspire a high-performing culinary brigade through recruitment, onboarding, coaching, succession planning, and performance management, fostering an engaged, inclusive, and collaborative culture across all culinary operations
• Drive financial performance and operational excellence by overseeing food and labor costs, budgeting and forecasting, yield analysis, inventory management, procurement (Birchstreet), workforce scheduling (Watson LMS), and initiatives that reduce waste and support sustainability
• Ensure exceptional culinary execution and elevated guest experience through menu engineering, disciplined recipe costing, daily quality assurance, real-time coaching, and strict adherence to food quality, presentation, consistency, and dietary requirements
• Champion and uphold Fairmont brand standards, as well as all health, safety, and regulatory requirements, including food safety, sanitation, grooming and hygiene standards, equipment maintenance, and compliance with the hotel’s Culinary Cultural Manual
• Foster collaboration across Food & Beverage and other hotel departments to deliver exceptional guest experiences, drive innovation across restaurants, bars, banquets, Fairmont Gold and in-room dining, and leverage operational and financial performance data to identify opportunities for continuous improvement

Qualifications

• Minimum 8 years of progressive culinary leadership experience within a luxury hotel or high-volume kitchen environment
• Proven ability to lead with influence, foster trust, accountability, and a culture of excellence
• Demonstrated success in recruiting, mentoring, and retaining top-tier culinary talent, with a focus on long-term succession planning
• Strategic and operational expertise in labor management, food cost control, and productivity optimization

Additional Information
All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.