Kitchen manager

Old Skool Cafe; San Francisco (CA); In loco; USD 44.000 - 52.000; Tempo pieno

Descrizione del lavoro

Old Skool Cafe is seeking a Kitchen Manager to lead day-to-day kitchen operations, supervise Culinary Coaches, and drive youth development through structured training and hands-on instruction. This hands-on leadership role emphasizes safety, quality, and cost control in a fast-paced, community-oriented setting.

Youth-focused training, adherence to standards, and collaborative work with staff and youth are essential to success in this role.

Competenze

• 3+ years professional kitchen experience with staff supervision.
• Experience managing budgets, cost controls, and inventory.
• Commitment to youth development, mentorship, and equity.
• Strong organizational skills and documentation habits.
• ServSafe Manager Certification or ability to obtain within 30 days.
• Pass a background check per youth-safety policies.

Mansioni

• Oversee daily kitchen operations: prep, production, service, sanitation, and closing.
• Direct Culinary Coaches: scheduling, performance management, and accountability.
• Model professional culinary techniques, safety, and service standards.
• Own culinary training for youth and progress through required stations.
• Maintain training records and communicate youth progress to leadership.
• Coordinate Practical Exams, Skills Tests, and quarterly reviews.
• Ensure safety concerns are raised per OSC policies and mandated reporting.

Conoscenze

Staff supervision

Budget management

Youth development

Documentation & tracking

Formazione

ServSafe Manager Certification

Descrizione del lavoro

Collaborates With: Program and Operations Teams

Employment Type: Non-Exempt, Hourly

Schedule: Full-Time, approximately 40 hours per week, including evening service, catering, weekends, and special events as needed

Location: On-site at Old Skool Cafe, with off-site catering/events as needed

Who We Are

Old Skool Cafe is a faith-based violence prevention program and youth-run social enterprise providing workforce development and marketable employment skills to justice-involved, system-impacted, and foster youth ages 16–22. We provide more than employment; we offer a structured, supportive environment where young people develop the confidence, discipline, and skills needed to succeed in the workplace and in life.

Our work is grounded in Christian faith and the belief that every young person has dignity, purpose, and the capacity to grow. We expect staff to lead with compassion, accountability, humility, and excellence while creating an environment where youth feel supported, challenged, and valued.

Role Summary

The Kitchen Manager oversees the day-to-day operation of Old Skool Cafe's kitchen, including food production, prep, service execution, food quality, safety, staffing, inventory, and cost control.

This is a hands-on leadership position responsible for directing Culinary Coaches, maintaining operational standards, and ensuring consistent kitchen performance. The Kitchen Manager works alongside staff and youth, modeling professional standards while holding the kitchen team accountable for execution, quality, and conduct.

Youth development is an essential responsibility. The Kitchen Manager owns the execution of culinary training within daily operations, ensuring youth receive structured, hands-on instruction, progress through required stations and skill benchmarks, and develop the technical abilities and workplace habits needed for professional employment.

Key Responsibilities

Kitchen Operations & Staff Leadership

• Oversee daily kitchen operations, ensuring prep, production, service, sanitation, and closing are organized and executed consistently.
• Plan and direct daily prep, ensuring ingredients, recipes, equipment, and stations are ready for service.
• Supervise Culinary Coaches, including scheduling, assignments, performance management, coaching, and accountability.
• Work alongside staff and youth, modeling culinary techniques, safety practices, service standards, and professional conduct.
• Maintain compliance with food safety regulations, health requirements, and OSC policies.
• Oversee kitchen execution for catering, special events, and off-site operations as needed.
• Lead BoH execution during live service, coordinating with FoH leadership to maintain ticket times, food quality, communication, and timely resolution of service issues

Youth Training Ownership & Documentation

• Own day-to-day execution of culinary training, ensuring youth progress through required stations, skills, and program milestones.
• Direct Culinary Coaches in integrating OSC's workbook curriculum and skill benchmarks into daily kitchen assignments.
• Ensure youth receive consistent instruction, demonstration, practice, feedback, and opportunities to apply learned skills.
• Maintain accurate training records and communicate youth progress, concerns, and milestone completion to culinary and program leadership.
• Coordinate Practical Exams, Skills Tests, and quarterly program reviews.
• Recognize and promptly elevate youth safety concerns, significant behavioral incidents, and suspected abuse or neglect in accordance with OSC policies and applicable mandated-reporting requirements.

Budget & Resource Management

• Oversee ordering, receiving, inventory, par levels, waste reduction, and vendor relationships.
• Monitor financial performance, identify variances, and communicate budget risks to the General Manager. Major spending decisions and final budget authority remain with executive leadership.

Team Development & Culture

• Recruit, train, coach, and evaluate Culinary Coaches, ensuring they meet required certifications and performance standards.
• Address performance and conduct issues promptly, documenting concerns and escalating significant or safety-related issues appropriately.
• Build a kitchen culture that combines accountability, professionalism, learning, and respect for both staff and youth.
• Maintain appropriate professional boundaries and ensure BOH staff follow OSC’s youth protection, communication, and conduct policies.

Success Metrics

• Youth Progression: At least 90% of youth demonstrate documented skill progression within six months.
• Service Execution: At least 95% of dinner services are executed on time and meet established quality standards.
• Financial Performance: Food and labor costs remain within approved budget parameters, with variances identified and communicated promptly.
• Food Safety: Health, safety, and sanitation standards are consistently maintained, with deficiencies promptly corrected.
• Staff Performance: Culinary Coaches consistently meet operational, training, and professional expectations.

Qualifications

Required

• 3+ years professional kitchen experience, including experience supervising staff.
• Demonstrated ability to manage budget, cost controls, and inventory.
• Genuine commitment to youth development, mentorship, and equity.
• Strong organizational and documentation habits; comfortable owning a training/tracking system, not just informal notes.
• ServSafe Manager Certification, or ability to obtain within 30 days of hire.
• Ability to pass a background check consistent with Old Skool Cafe youth-safety policies.

Preferred

• Experience in workforce development, nonprofit, culinary education, or training kitchens.
• Prior experience balancing hands-on production work with supervisory responsibility

Old Skool Cafe’s Compensation Policy

This full-time, non-exempt position offers $32-$38 per hour, commensurate with experience. OSC provides medical, dental, and vision benefits to eligible full-time employees, along with paid time off in accordance with organizational policy and applicable California law.Equity and Inclusion

Why This Role Matters

The Kitchen Manager is the operational heartbeat of Old Skool Cafe. What happens in this kitchen every shift - the standards held, the instruction delivered, the culture maintained - directly shape the trajectories of young people who have often been told they are not capable of excellence. Every plate that leaves this kitchen is a statement about what our youth can do. Every skill benchmark met, every station mastered, every moment of accountability delivered with dignity is an investment in a life that extends far beyond these walls. This role is not for someone looking to run a kitchen. It is for someone who understands that running this kitchen well is one of the most meaningful things they will ever do with their craft.