Executive Chef

Executive Chef / Culinary Director

Garofano House — Catskill, New York

Garofano House is a new design-led hospitality and retreat destination in the Catskills, approximately two hours from New York City. Conceived as an intimate Italian-influenced country house rather than a traditional hotel, Garofano House will bring together exceptional accommodation, food, wellness, nature, weddings, retreats and private gatherings in a highly personal setting.

We are looking for an entrepreneurial Executive Chef / Culinary Director to create and lead the food program from its inception.

This is not a conventional hotel Executive Chef position. We are looking for someone who is equally comfortable developing the culinary identity of the property, cooking for an intimate table of guests, leading a wedding dinner, working with local producers, and building a simple and commercially disciplined kitchen operation.

The Role

The Executive Chef / Culinary Director will be responsible for the complete culinary vision and day-to-day food operation of Garofano House.

The food should reflect the character of the property: Italian at heart, seasonal, generous, ingredient-driven and sophisticated without becoming formal or overcomplicated.

We are particularly interested in a style of cooking inspired by Italian country houses, agriturismi and Mediterranean hospitality: outstanding ingredients, excellent bread, pasta, vegetables, meats, fish, olive oil and simple dishes executed extremely well.

The objective is not fine dining for its own sake. It is to create food that guests remember and associate specifically with Garofano House.

Responsibilities

The chef will:

• Develop the culinary concept and identity of Garofano House.
• Create seasonal breakfast, lunch, aperitivo and dinner menus.
• Develop menus for weddings, wellness retreats, corporate retreats, private events and celebrations.
• Create a food offering that can adapt from intimate meals to approximately 100-person events.
• Establish recipes, portioning, costing, purchasing and kitchen operating procedures.
• Source outstanding local Hudson Valley and Catskills ingredients while integrating selected Italian products and traditions.
• Build strong relationships with farms, growers, butchers, bakeries and specialist suppliers.
• Help develop the Garofano House Italian grocery/pantry concept, including products that may be served to guests and eventually sold at the property.
• Work with ownership and the design/project team on the final kitchen layout, equipment requirements, storage and service flows.
• Recruit, train and manage a lean culinary team appropriate to the scale of the operation.
• Develop a flexible staffing model using additional cooks and event staff when required rather than maintaining an unnecessarily large permanent brigade.
• Establish food-safety, sanitation, allergen-management and HACCP-style operating procedures.
• Maintain appropriate New York State and local health-code standards.
• Control food cost, labor cost, waste and inventory.
• Develop supplier specifications and purchasing standards.
• Create prep, production and service systems that can operate consistently even when the Executive Chef is not personally cooking every service.
• Coordinate closely with the hospitality, events, wellness and operations teams.
• Participate personally in important guest experiences and signature events.

The Food Philosophy

We want the culinary program to be:

Italian, but not clichéd.The inspiration is Italy’s culture of hospitality and excellent ingredients rather than a conventional Italian-American restaurant menu.

Seasonal and local.The Hudson Valley and Catskills provide extraordinary agricultural products. The chef should make those ingredients central to the experience.

Simple but technically excellent.A beautiful tomato, handmade pasta, grilled fish, excellent chicken, seasonal vegetables or a perfect tiramisu should matter more than excessive complexity.

Generous and social.Much of the food experience should encourage sharing, conversation and conviviality.

Adaptable.Garofano House will host couples, groups, retreats, weddings and private events. The culinary system must work across these different formats.

Commercially intelligent.The menu must deliver an exceptional guest experience while maintaining disciplined food cost, staffing and operational complexity.

Typical Experiences Could Include

Breakfast baskets or breakfast served in the house.

Long Italian-style communal breakfasts and brunches.

Poolside lunches and simple summer dishes.

Aperitivo with excellent cocktails, wines, salumi, cheeses and small plates.

Wood-fired or outdoor cooking.

Pasta dinners and family-style meals.

Chef-led dinners for private groups.

Wellness-oriented retreat menus when required.

Wedding rehearsal dinners, wedding meals and Sunday brunches.

Seasonal dinners involving local farms and producers.

Private celebrations and corporate retreats.

Special culinary weekends or guest-chef collaborations.

Who We Are Looking For

The ideal candidate will have:

• Significant professional culinary experience, ideally including experience as an Executive Chef, Chef de Cuisine, senior Sous Chef or equivalent.
• Strong knowledge of Italian or Mediterranean cooking.
• Excellent fundamental cooking technique.
• Experience designing menus and costing recipes.
• Experience with both à la carte or intimate hospitality and larger events, weddings or catering.
• Strong understanding of kitchen economics and food-cost management.
• Experience sourcing seasonal ingredients and working directly with producers.
• Strong food-safety and kitchen-management knowledge.
• Ability to establish systems, standards and procedures from scratch.
• Ability to lead a small team without unnecessary hierarchy.
• High standards combined with a practical operating mentality.
• Excellent organizational and communication skills.
• Comfort working directly with ownership in an entrepreneurial environment.

Experience in boutique hotels, private clubs, luxury lodges, destination restaurants, agriturismi, private estates, retreats or high-end event operations would be particularly relevant.

What Matters Most

We care less about Michelin-star credentials than about judgment.

We want a chef who understands that exceptional hospitality does not require twenty components on a plate.

Someone who can taste a tomato and know what to do with it.

Someone who can create an extraordinary dinner for twelve people and, the following weekend, organize an excellent dinner for one hundred.

Someone who understands both the romance of hospitality and the economics required to make it sustainable.

And someone who wants to help build a culinary program from the beginning rather than inherit an established restaurant.

Development Phase

Garofano House is currently being developed for a planned 2027 opening.

The selected chef may become involved before opening to help with:

• kitchen planning and equipment selection;
• menu development;
• supplier identification;
• operating procedures;
• food and beverage costing;
• event-menu development;
• staffing strategy;
• pre-opening testing; and
• development of the property’s broader culinary identity.

For the right candidate, this represents an opportunity to shape the food program of a new hospitality concept rather than simply operate an existing kitchen.

Location

Catskill, New York / Hudson Valley-Catskills region.

The position will ultimately require regular on-property presence. Relocation or practical proximity to the property will therefore be necessary once operations begin.

Compensation

Competitive compensation commensurate with experience, with the structure to be discussed depending on whether the successful candidate joins initially in a consulting/pre-opening capacity before transitioning to a full-time operating role.

How to Apply

Please send a CV or résumé together with a short introduction explaining your approach to food and hospitality.

We would also like to understand:

• the type of food you most enjoy cooking;
• your experience with Italian or Mediterranean cuisine;
• your experience with weddings, retreats or private events;
• examples of menus or projects you have developed; and
• why the opportunity to build a culinary program from the ground up interests you.

Pay: $26.14 - $50.00 per hour

Work Location: In person

Salary : $26 - $50