Kitchen Manager

Mystic Cafe; Lewiston (ID); On-site; USD 47,000 - 53,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Paid time off

401(k) matching

Job summary

Mystic Cafe is hiring a Kitchen Manager for a high-volume restaurant in Lewiston, Idaho. You will oversee daily food production, lead kitchen staff, manage prep, inventory, and plating quality while ensuring safety and cost control.

The role requires strong culinary knowledge, leadership, and experience in fast-paced kitchens. Benefits include health insurance, PTO, and 401(k) matching. Full-time, evenings/weekends required.

Qualifications

• High familiarity with food preparation and current culinary trends
• Highly organized and detail-oriented
• Leadership and self-starter attitude
• 5 years of high-volume kitchen experience, 2+ years in supervisor/management roles

Responsibilities

• Oversee daily food production in a high-volume kitchen
• Develop and maintain prep lists and production priorities
• Ensure stations are stocked and prepared before service
• Quality check for flavor, seasoning, temperature and presentation
• Manage expo, station coordination and timely plating during service
• Uphold food safety, sanitation, and inventory controls
• Train kitchen staff in knife skills, recipes, and plating standards
• Lead kitchen staff during high-volume periods and maintain organization

Skills

High-volume production

Mise en Place

Culinary techniques

Menu development

Food quality & plating

Expedite & service management

Food safety & sanitation

Inventory & food cost control

Receiving & quality checks

Staff training

Kitchen leadership

Standardization

Professional development

Supervisory/management experience

Job description

Benefits

• Health insurance
• Paid time off
• 401(k) matching

Kitchen Manager

Happy Day Restaurants is accepting applicants for the position of Kitchen Manager of a high-volume professional restaurant Mystic Cafe. The successful applicant will be well-versed in standard kitchen procedures and the running of high-volume kitchens, with strong culinary skills and administrative skills including food costing, computer ordering, and inventory management experience.

The Kitchen Manager position requires strong culinary knowledge combined with effective leadership and administrative skills. Key culinary qualifications include:

• High-Volume Food Production: Ability to organize and execute daily food preparation and service in a fast-paced, high-volume restaurant environment while maintaining consistency, quality, and efficiency.
• Mise en Place & Production Planning: Develop and maintain daily prep lists, establish production priorities, and ensure all stations are properly stocked and prepared before service.
• Culinary Techniques: Proficiency in knife skills and fundamental cooking techniques including grilling, sautéing, roasting, frying, baking, braising, and proper preparation of sauces, soups, proteins, vegetables, and garnishes.
• Recipe & Menu Development: Assist with creating, testing, costing, and refining menu items and daily specials while maintaining standardized recipes and consistent portion sizes.
• Food Quality & Presentation: Inspect food for proper flavor, seasoning, temperature, texture, portion size, doneness, and presentation before it leaves the kitchen.
• Expo & Service Management: Effectively manage the expo position, coordinate multiple kitchen stations, monitor ticket times, communicate with front-of-house personnel, and ensure complete and accurate plates are delivered during peak service.
• Food Safety & Sanitation: Maintain strict standards for personal hygiene, cleaning, sanitizing, cross-contamination prevention, allergen awareness, food storage, temperature control, cooling, reheating, and safe handling of food in accordance with applicable health regulations.
• Inventory & Food Cost Control: Conduct inventory counts, establish par levels, monitor product usage, practice FIFO rotation, calculate recipe and food costs, control portions, reduce waste, and assist with computerized ordering.
• Product Quality & Receiving: Inspect incoming products for freshness, quality, proper temperature, quantity, and specifications while ensuring products are properly stored and rotated.
• Waste Reduction: Monitor food waste, identify causes of spoilage or overproduction, maximize ingredient utilization, and implement practices that improve food-cost performance.
• Culinary Staff Training: Train cooks in knife skills, station procedures, cooking techniques, recipes, plating standards, food safety, sanitation, and proper use of kitchen equipment.
• Kitchen Leadership: Assign stations, coordinate prep and service responsibilities, conduct pre-shift meetings, maintain kitchen organization, and keep staff focused and motivated during high-volume periods.
• Consistency & Standardization: Maintain standardized recipes, preparation procedures, portion sizes, cooking methods, and plating specifications to ensure guests receive a consistent product on every visit.
• Professional Development: Create a positive kitchen environment that encourages employees to develop their culinary skills and progress toward increased responsibilities and professional culinary positions.

This is a full-time hourly position, with total compensation $47,000 to $53,000 per year/DOE + bonuses. Ability to work evenings and weekends is required. Enjoy the benefits of working for a successful company, with comprehensive training, benefits to qualifying employees including a monthly meal discount card to all Happy Day locations, medical and dental insurance, 401(k) with company match, tuition assistance, and daycare reimbursement, and being a partner to the community.

Qualifications and Requirements

• High familiarity with food preparation and current culinary trends and exhibits a solid knowledge of all food products
• Highly organized and detail-oriented
• A team-oriented approach and a calm demeanor during time-sensitive tasks
• Displays leadership skills and must be a self-starter
• Maintains high standards for work areas and dress for success appearance
• 5 years of high-volume professional kitchen experience. At least 2 of those years will be as supervisory or management level.