Kitchen Leader: High-Volume BOH, Food Safety & Quality

Silver Ventures; San Antonio, Northern (TX, KY); Hybrid; USD 52,000 - 76,000; Full time

Job summary

Santonia Cantina is seeking a hands-on Kitchen Manager in San Antonio, TX to lead the back-of-house with urgency, pride, and hospitality, ensuring dishes are prepared safely and consistently to Santonia’s standards while building a motivated kitchen team.

You will oversee prep, line, sanitation, inventory, cost control, and staff development, collaborating with the General Manager and FOH for an exceptional guest experience.

Qualifications

• 2+ years of kitchen management or senior kitchen leadership experience in a high-volume restaurant.
• Strong working knowledge of kitchen stations and systems, including prep, line, grill, fry, expo, sanitation, and quality-control standards.
• Demonstrated ability to train, coach, organize, and lead a diverse BOH team.
• Strong understanding of food safety, sanitation, allergy awareness, and safe food-handling practices; current manager-level food-safety certification preferred or ability to obtain as required.
• Experience with inventory, ordering, receiving, food-cost control, portion control, and waste management.
• Working knowledge of restaurant financial drivers; experience with food cost, labor, and P&L accountability is strongly preferred.
• Comfort using POS, inventory, scheduling, communication, and HR systems, with the ability to learn new restaurant software quickly.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills and the ability to work effectively with both BOH and FOH leadership.
• Resourceful, organized, and steady under pressure, with strong problem-solving skills and attention to detail.
• Availability to work a flexible schedule including mornings, nights, weekends, holidays, and special events as business needs require.
• Ability to stand and work in a commercial kitchen environment for extended periods and lift up to 50 lbs.
• Bilingual English/Spanish is a plus, but not required.

Responsibilities

• Lead day-to-day kitchen operation, including prep, line, food production, sanitation, opening, and closing standards.
• Monitor recipes, portions, temperatures, preparation methods, presentation, and ticket execution.
• Coach team to execute recipes, station standards, and quality identifiers.
• Protect food safety with proper receiving, storage, labeling, allergy awareness, and sanitation practices.
• Conduct line checks and correct any quality or safety issues.
• Build prep and production systems to support volume, minimize shortages, and reduce waste.
• Manage weekly inventory, ordering, receiving, product rotation, and storage while pursuing food-cost and waste goals.
• Monitor yields, waste, and communicate opportunities or concerns to the General Manager.
• Assess BOH staffing needs and participate in hiring, training, and development.
• Train, cross-train, coach, and develop BOH Team Members across stations and roles.
• Organize, validate, and follow up on BOH training programs and onboarding.
• Set expectations for speed, cleanliness, teamwork, and professionalism; enforce with respect.
• Partner with GM on BOH scheduling and labor deployment for business levels and events.
• Ensure BOH setup before shifts and breakdown after service.
• Lead pre-shift meetings and communicate menu notes, specials, reservations/events, safety reminders, and priorities.
• Collaborate with FOH leadership for smooth ticket flow and guest recovery.
• Support menu rollouts, recipe testing, seasonal changes, events, and openings.
• Maintain kitchen equipment and smallwares; report maintenance needs promptly.
• Work with People & Culture on training, documentation, disciplinary action, and separation.
• Model Santonia’s culture through calm leadership, ownership, hospitality.

Skills

Kitchen management

Food safety

Team leadership

Inventory management

Food cost control

POS systems

Communication skills

Problem solving

Bilingual English/Spanish (plus)

Flexibility

Education

Food safety certification (manager level)

Tools

POS systems

Inventory software

HR systems

Job description

Santonia Cantina is seeking a hands-on Kitchen Manager in San Antonio, TX to lead the back-of-house with urgency, pride, and hospitality, ensuring dishes are prepared safely and consistently to Santonia’s standards while building a motivated kitchen team.

You will oversee prep, line, sanitation, inventory, cost control, and staff development, collaborating with the General Manager and FOH for an exceptional guest experience.