Sous Chef

Dreaming Out Loud, Inc.; Washington (District of Columbia); On-site; USD 33,000 - 35,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health and Dental Insurance

401(k) match

Paid Time Off

Monthly cell phone stipend

TransitBenefits

Job summary

Dreaming Out Loud, Inc. seeks a Sous Chef (Culinary Coordinator) to assist the Culinary Manager in a high-volume kitchen and at events in Washington, DC. You’ll handle kitchen setup, inventory, food prep, presentation, and ensuring safety standards and quality.

This role supports community outreach through catering, pop-ups, and the Dreaming Out Loud Food Hub, offering opportunities to develop relationships with local partners while delivering healthy, affordable meals to the DC metro region.

Qualifications

• Minimum 3 years in food service or catering, including high-volume events.
• Food safety knowledge and ServSafe certification required.
• Reliable and adaptable, able to work evenings and weekends.
• Ability to lift up to 50 pounds and work in varied weather conditions.
• Driver's license and clean driving record may be required for deliveries.

Responsibilities

• Assist Culinary Manager in kitchen setup, inventory, food prep, and plating.
• Lead in high-volume production, ensuring quality and safety per standards.
• Follow recipes, HACCP guidelines, and portion controls for consistency.
• Support event logistics, vendor coordination, and on-site setup/teardown.
• Maintain kitchen cleanliness, equipment care, and required documentation.

Skills

3+ years food service

High-volume catering

ServSafe certified

Reliability & adaptability

Ability to lift 50 pounds

Evening & weekend availability

Driver's license

Database entry

Job description

Job Title: Sous Chef (Culinary Coordinator)

FLSA Status: Full Time, Non-Exempt

Reports to: Manager, Culinary

Work Location: Marion Barry Avenue Market, 303 Marion Barry Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20020

Compensation Range: $24.04 - $25.50 per hour

Dreaming Out Loud, Inc.

Dreaming Out Loud's mission is to create economic opportunities for the DC metro region's marginalized communities through building a healthy, equitable food system. We are rebuilding urban, community-based food systems through cooperative social enterprise: increasing access to healthy food, improving community health, supporting entrepreneurs and cooperatives from low-income communities, and creating opportunities for at-risk residents to earn sustainable, family-supporting wages and build wealth. We believe that all communities deserve equal access to fresh, healthy food choices, but that achieving this requires moving beyond the "access" paradigm to a focus on community self-determination and food sovereignty. Utilizing the food system as a catalyst, we are working to create an integrated pipeline to jobs, economic opportunity, and community wealth-building for our most marginalized communities.

The Culinary Program continuously vets community partners for culinary opportunities in catering, pop-ups, and community outreach. The program also supports Dreaming Out Loud's ecosystem in creating value-added products for distribution via the Food Hub and other retail and wholesale markets. The value-added work includes new product development, manufacturing and production, testing, packaging, and scaling.

Position Summary

The Sous Chef (Culinary Coordinator) is responsible for assisting the Culinary Manager in all activities in the kitchen and at events. This includes kitchen setup, inventory, food preparation and presentation, cleaning, kitchen breakdown, and menu development. The Sous Chef oversees the product kitchen and performs food preparation and service in a timely manner and according to all safety and sanitation standards. The Sous Chef will be responsible for upholding exemplary customer service. The ideal candidate loves food, can "roll up their sleeves" and get to work, and has a strong interest in developing meaningful relationships with the community.

Key Responsibilities

• Obtains daily production schedule and preparation requirements from the Culinary Manager and supports kitchen operations as needed
• Work in a high-volume production kitchen preparing and packaging thousands of pounds of produce and other goods
• Ensures consistency and quality of food preparation by following approved recipes, production standards, serving temperatures, and portion controls
• Tastes completed meals and monitors production to ensure food quality and adherence to established standards
• Complies with all federal, state, and local health and sanitation regulations, department procedures, and HACCP guidelines
• Operates, cleans, and maintains kitchen equipment in accordance with department procedures and assists with equipment inventory
• Completes required kitchen documentation, reports, and logs
• Contributes to the development and improvement of processes that enhance kitchen safety, efficiency, and food quality
• Properly stores, labels, dates, and rotates food items while monitoring waste, overproduction, and appropriate use of leftovers
• Supports the planning and execution of community outreach activities, events, and other business development opportunities
• Coordinates event logistics based on client requirements, including communication with vendors, exhibitors, stakeholders, and other partners
• Addresses customer concerns and helps ensure a positive customer and event experience
• Supports event execution, including loading and unloading vehicles, setting up event kitchens and displays, managing equipment, and completing event set-up and tear-down
• Assist with the daily operations of the Marion Barry Ave Market & Café, including production, food preparation, and providing coverage for in-store shifts as needed

The duties and responsibilities contained herein are representative of the essential functions of this position. The dynamic nature of our work requires flexibility and our collaborative environment necessitates cross-functional support. Employees are expected to adapt to our ever-evolving organizational and community needs and perform other duties as assigned to contribute to Dreaming Out Loud's success.

Required Skills and Experience

• 3 or more years of relevant experience in food service, food production, and high-volume catering
• 3 or more years of experience in running food distribution at events or festivals
• Working knowledge of the fundamentals of cooking
• ServSafe certified
• Reliability & adaptability
• Ability to work in various weather conditions
• Ability to lift up to 50 pounds
• Availability on evenings and weekends
• Demonstrated ability to engage in creative problem solving
• Valid driver's license with a clean driving record and ability to safely operate company vehicles as needed
• Computer skills and experience with database entry

Benefits

• Generous Paid Time Off
• Health and Dental Insurance
• Monthly Cell Phone Stipend
• Flexible Spending Accounts for Transit, Parking, and Healthcare
• Transit Assistance through SmartBenefits
• Automatic salary increases with tenure milestones
• 401(k) match up to 5%
• 100% Employer Paid Life Insurance
• 100% Employer Paid Short and Long-Term Disability

Equal Employment Opportunity

Dreaming Out Loud Inc. provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, age, disability or genetics. In addition to federal law requirements, Dreaming Out Loud complies with applicable state and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment in every location in which the organization has facilities. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, and transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training.