Kitchen Manager

Opaa!; Hermann (MO); On-site; USD 52,000 - 62,000; Full time

Job summary

Opaa! Food Management, Inc. is seeking a Kitchen Manager to direct day-to-day kitchen operations, ensuring food quality and safety standards are met across school meal programs.

The role involves supervising staff, coordinating meal preparation, and maintaining regulatory compliance. This position requires leadership, strong organizational skills, and the ability to manage inventory, meal counting software, and timekeeping processes.

Qualifications

• Education requirement: High School Diploma, GED, or relevant experience.
• Ability to read and comprehend simple instructions and communicate effectively.
• Basic math skills for counts, rates, ratios, and percentages.
• Ability to apply common sense and solve basic problems with standard procedures.
• Familiarity with kitchen equipment and meal counting software is preferred.

Responsibilities

• Direct daily kitchen operations to meet Opaa! standards and safety regulations.
• Lead staff, conduct safety and production meetings, and train kitchen personnel.
• Ensure compliance with HACCP, HHFKA, CACFP, and safety policies.
• Coordinate food orders, inventory, and FIFO storage; monitor counts and logs.
• Communicate with building principals and participate in weekly kitchen meetings.

Skills

Leadership

Food safety

Communication

Time management

Education

High School Diploma or GED

Tools

Meal Counting Software

ADP timekeeping

Job description

Position Summary

The Kitchen Manager is responsible for directing the day-to-day operation of the kitchen to ensure Opaa! standards are met and maintained, and the kitchen is compliant with all safety and health regulations.

Opaa! Food Management, Inc. operates across 10 states. Our pay rates vary depending on state and position.

Functions of the Job

Essential Functions Production

• Monitor food and food preparation to maintain quality standards for preparation, presentation, and sanitation.
• Promote customer service by investigating and resolving food quality and service complaints.
• Coordinate the preparation and daily transportation of meals going to all satellite buildings, where applicable.

Supervisory

• Conduct daily safety and production meeting with kitchen staff.
• Demonstrate and promote Opaa’s Core Values of “Act in the Best Interest of the Students, Schools, and Communities We Serve”, “Be Honest”, “Have a Passion to Serve Others”, and “Commit to Continuous Improvement”. Report concerns to the DNS immediately.
• Supervise kitchen staff in all areas of production. Delegate workflow and inform DNS immediately of any personnel issues.
• Train, cross-train and certify all kitchen job stations. Be prepared to perform any kitchen function, as required.
• Ensure overall cleanliness and organization of the kitchen and storage areas.

Compliance

• Maintain compliance with Opaa! recipes and menu plans. Obtain approval for menu changes from the DNS at least 24 hours in advance.
• Maintain strict compliance with the Opaa! Food Management, Inc. Timekeeping Policy. Report discrepancies to DNS immediately.
• Submit all hours worked by clocking in and out in ADP or by submitting an edit sheet for any missing time.
• Maintain compliance with all HACCP processes and procedures.
• Maintain compliance with HHFKA and CACFP Meal Patterns.
• Maintain compliance with all Opaa! safety processes and procedures, worker and health safety regulations, and State and Local Health Department requirements. Report unsafe working conditions and safety incidents in a timely manner.

Administrative

• Coordinate and submit food and supply orders to Boss.
• Ensure production records are complete and accurate daily, per student grade groups.
• Oversee, take commercial/commodity physical inventory count, and input into Boss. Ensure First In First Out (FIFO) standards in storage.
• Ensure all product is properly received, counted, and discrepancies from the vendor invoice are noted on the receiving document. The invoice to be approved the day it is received.
• Enter participation counts into Boss daily.
• Ensure accurate and timely completion of all required logs.
• Perform daily tray counts and reconcile them with the district report. Ensure all meals are reimbursable.
• Maintain open lines of communication with the building principal. Conduct a weekly update meeting.
• Conduct “Daily Dish” meetings. Organize and use the production board to plan and monitor the flow of service.
• Attend and actively participate in all weekly Kitchen Manager meetings with DNS.
• All other duties as assigned by Opaa! Food Management.

Physical/Visual Activities or Demands

Physical/visual activities or demands that are commonly associated with the performance of the functions of this job.

• While performing the duties of this job, the employee is frequently required to stand, walk, sit, squat, climb, balance, kneel, crawl, push, pull, grasp, feel, taste, smell, talk, hear, and reach with hands and arms.
• The employee must exert over 60 pounds of force occasionally and/or be able to frequently lift, carry, push, pull, or otherwise move objects up to 25 pounds.
• Specific vision abilities required by this job include concentrated attention, depth perception, ability to bring objects into sharp focus, color vision.

Working Conditions

Working conditions commonly associated with the performance of the functions of this job.

• Inside and outside working conditions.
• Frequently works around moving mechanical parts and is frequently exposed to wet and/or humid conditions and extreme heat.
• Occasionally exposed to toxic or caustic chemicals and extreme cold.
• The noise level is usually loud.

Position Qualifications

Education:

High School Diploma, GED, or Relevant Experience Required

Language Skills:

Ability to read and comprehend simple instructions, short correspondence, and memos. Ability to write simple correspondence. Ability to effectively present information in one‑on‑one and small group situations to customers, clients and other employees of the organization.

Mathematical Skills:

Ability to add, subtract, multiply, and divide in all units of measure, using whole numbers, commons fractions and decimals. Ability to compute rate, ratio, and percent and to draw and interpret bar graphs.

Reasoning Ability:

Ability to apply commonsense understanding to carry out detailed but uninvolved written or oral instructions. Ability to deal with problems involving a few concrete variables in standardized situations.

Machines, Tools, Equipment and Work Aids:

Dishwasher, Steamer/Kettle, Mixer, Oven, Stove, Fryers, Slicer, Thermometers, Gauges, Knives, Box Cutters, Meal Counting Software, Desktop PCs, Calculator, Telephone, Fax, Scanner, Copier, Printer.

License(s)/Certification(s) Required: Serve Safe Certification; Additional certifications may vary by state

Opaa! is committed to creating a diverse environment and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer.

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, or veteran status.