Kitchen Manager

Au Bon Pain; Hartford (CT); On-site; USD 30,000 - 40,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive salary

Weekly pay

Quarterly bonuses

Medical, dental, and vision insurance

Pet insurance

Vacation time

401K

Job summary

A national café chain in Hartford, Connecticut, is seeking enthusiastic team members to create delicious food and provide exceptional guest service. You will be responsible for organizing food operations, ensuring quality product preparation, and maintaining excellent hygiene standards. Candidates should have 0-5 years of experience in food service, excellent communication skills, and a passion for food. This role offers competitive benefits and a structured training program.

Qualifications

• Experience in restaurant or food service industry (0-5 years).
• Lifting capacity of at least 35 pounds.
• Demonstrated operational experience with P&L responsibility.

Responsibilities

• Celebrate fresh food and engage with guests.
• Maintain organization standards for storage and handling.
• Utilize tools to ensure product quality and availability.
• Formulate weekly and daily production plans.
• Ensure quality during delivery processes.
• Manage food costs and labor costs.
• Maintain cleanliness and safety in food production areas.

Skills

Excellent communication and listening skills

Knowledge of food

Ability to respond with urgency

Above-average hospitality

Technical proficiency in food production

Ability to maintain cleanliness and safety

Accurate cash handling

Education

Culinary degree preferred

Job description

Overview

Crafting distinctively delicious food starts early morning in Au Bon Pain cafe. Our bakers line the shelves with hot, freshly baked pastries, muffins, bagels and scones. Other team members brew our rich coffee and espresso blends from premium Arabica beans, set up the health-smart oatmeal bar, and prepare dozens of fresh eggs for nourishing breakfast sandwiches. Our food and beverages include mouthwatering sandwiches and wraps on freshly baked breads, hearty soups, stews and macaroni and cheese, enticing salads with our signature dressings, assortments of fresh fruit, cheese and crackers, energy bars, nuts, yogurt and indulgent cupcakes, cookies and brownies. Au Bon Pain caters to today\'s sophisticated but time-constrained customer, offering made-to-order customized items or pre-made options. We promise delicious, fresh food and fast, friendly service in every visit. Au Bon Pain—Taste the goodness in every flavor-full bite!

Responsibilities

Responsibilities are organized under seven areas of focus to support a culture of learning, execution and appreciation of fresh, convenient, customizable food and beverage operations.

1. Hospitality
   • Celebrate fresh food and a cultural appreciation of quality ingredients.
   • Proudly work to spread the message of fresh food to every guest.
   • Proactively engage with guests on the floor and seek guest conversation where appropriate.
   • Reiterate compliance with station-specific interaction scripts.
   • Multitask effectively with a primary focus on a “Guest First!” mentality.
   • Aim to turn every guest into a loyal guest by delivering a consistent, friendly, and easy shopping experience.
   • Instill these qualities in all crew members you train and interact with.
2. Receiving/Storage/Organization
   • Maintain organization standards for storage and handling as per ABP standards.
   • Respect the food and take pride in receiving and storing quality product; ensure product integrity through thorough inspections of all incoming items.
   • Adhere to the Produce Handling Guide at all times and uphold ABP health-code standards.
   • Maintain a “Clean as you go” mentality and schedule staff to meet and exceed budget goals while preserving standards.
3. Prep/Premade
   • Utilize tools (Prep Sheet, Procedure Cards, Step by Step, Café Requisition Sheet and Café & Culinary Readiness Journal) to ensure product quality and availability.
   • Develop a cultural appreciation of prepping and preparing food that is fresh, convenient, and of the highest quality.
   • Teach and maintain proper station setup to maximize efficiency.
   • Maintain premade handling and wrapping procedures to ensure product meets temperature and ABP standards.
   • Accurately merchandise products per merchandising guides and schematics.
   • Check for quality and escalate any items below standard to the General Manager; never serve substandard product.
   • Taste menu items with team members to build overall product knowledge.
4. Food ordering/Production planning/Inventory
   • Maintain and actively use ABP order guides for all food and paper orders; develop pars for all food, paper and beverage products.
   • Ensure weekly food inventory is complete every Thursday; review product sales mix and waste daily.
   • Formulate weekly and daily production plans considering P&L, waste, forecast, and weather.
   • Maintain inventory of labels for grab-and-go packaging; perform weekly inventories with the General Manager.
5. Distribution
   • Ensure use of requisition sheets for all deliveries from the production kitchen to outlets.
   • Manage packaging of product for delivery using proper equipment to maintain product integrity.
   • Develop delivery schedules to ensure outlets are properly stocked at the right times without disrupting business.
   • Maintain food quality and temperature throughout the delivery process and the sanitation of all delivery equipment and vehicles.
6. Profitability
   • Ensure profitability through proper planning and execution of food and labor processes; manage food cost variance within standard and labor costs within standard.
7. Sanitation and Safety
   • Ensure all food production areas are maintained at the highest level of cleanliness and safety.

Qualifications

Requirements:

• Demonstrate excellent communication and listening skills.
• Demonstrate broad knowledge of and passion for food.
• Respond to opportunities with a sense of urgency.
• Be able to lift a minimum of 35 pounds.
• Show above-average hospitality with both guests and team members.
• Technically proficient in food production.
• Demonstrate the ability to maintain a clean and safe work environment.
• Demonstrate accurate cash handling and administrative record-keeping and reporting.

• 0-5 years proven experience in the restaurant/food service/hospitality industry in a similar or equivalent position.
• Culinary degree preferred.
• Operational experience with full P&L responsibility required.

Additional Information

Working at ABP:

• 5 day work weeks
• 7-week structured training program
• Competitive salary, weekly pay
• Quarterly bonuses
• Medical insurance/Dental insurance/Vision insurance
• Pet insurance; Employee Referral Programs
• Vacation Time
• 401K
• Workplace banking and much, much more!