Strategic Culinary Leader for Multi-Brand Growth Openings

Reach Recruiting; Detroit (MI); On-site; USD 120,000 - 160,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Performance-based bonus

Health, dental, vision insurance

Flexible Spending Account

Generous paid time off

R&D allowance

Dining discounts and meal benefits

Relocation assistance

Job summary

Reach Recruiting seeks a Director of Culinary to provide strategic leadership across its portfolio of restaurant concepts. You will translate culinary vision into repeatable systems, protect brand identity, and drive profitability while leading development of chefs and operations teams.

Ideal candidate will manage menu development, SOPs, audits, and vendor relations, with hands-on leadership at openings and ongoing growth across markets. Travel and relocation support may be provided.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of multi-unit culinary leadership within hospitality.
• Significant experience overseeing culinary operations across multiple restaurants, concepts, or markets.
• Strong culinary foundation and understanding of product quality, technique, and concept-driven menu execution.
• Proven ability to operate strategically while maintaining credibility and connection with restaurant-level culinary teams.
• Proven success creating, documenting, training, auditing, and continuously improving culinary SOPs.
• Strong experience developing Executive Chefs and other culinary leaders.
• Experience recruiting, coaching, motivating, teaching, and holding high-performing teams accountable.
• Experience guiding menu development and engineering items for quality, profitability, operational feasibility, and consistent execution.
• Strong recipe development, documentation, scaling, costing, and implementation experience.
• Strong financial acumen with the ability to read and create P&Ls, budgets, and forecasts.
• Demonstrated success managing food cost, labor, inventory, purchasing, and profitability.
• Experience traveling to oversee openings and operations.

Responsibilities

• Provide strategic culinary leadership across multiple restaurant concepts and locations.
• Establish, document, implement, and continually improve culinary SOPs and operating standards.
• Protect the unique identity of each concept while creating scalable systems.
• Maintain a hands-on presence in restaurant operations and lead with Executive Chefs.
• Develop best practices for receiving, storage, production, pars, and purchasing.
• Conduct and improve culinary and facility audits, identify trends, and action plans.
• Provide direction around menu development, profitability, and vendor relationships.
• Lead and develop Executive Chefs and culinary leaders; recruit regional/national talent.
• Develop food and labor budgets, read P&Ls, and monitor performance across portfolios.
• Oversee kitchen design, equipment plans, and operational readiness for openings.

Skills

Multi-unit leadership

Strategic leadership

Financial acumen

Menu development

Team development

Vendor management

Travel readiness

Operations leadership

Tools

Google Workspace

Job description

Reach Recruiting seeks a Director of Culinary to provide strategic leadership across its portfolio of restaurant concepts. You will translate culinary vision into repeatable systems, protect brand identity, and drive profitability while leading development of chefs and operations teams.

Ideal candidate will manage menu development, SOPs, audits, and vendor relations, with hands-on leadership at openings and ongoing growth across markets. Travel and relocation support may be provided.