Position: Executive Chef

Reports to: Steve Pickford, Innkeeper and General Manager

Directs: Sous Chef(s), Cooks, Salad Bar, Bakery, Dishwashers, Utility, and Laundry

Schedule: Saturday, Sunday, and 3 other weekdays per week (TBD). Schedule must be flexible due to service needs. Some holiday work may be required.

The Wayside Inn, one of America’s oldest operating inns, is looking for a new Executive Chef to assume responsibility for all kitchen operations and staff, menu curation, and meal preparation and service, with a goal to provide consistent, high-quality food service. Strong leadership, communication, and organizational skills required.

Duties include:

• Work with Innkeeper to develop and then supervise all menus for the Inn’s hospitality operations (breakfast, lunch, dinner, and banquet services) which must include time-honored traditional recipes but also innovative and creative daily or weekly specials to broaden our appeal to possibly attract new diners.
• Elevate overall quality of meals, plating, and presentation.
• Bring new ideas and suggestions to constantly improve overall dining experience in a way compatible with the Inn’s history and historic setting.
• Source and order all food related ingredients and supplies within budgets and maintaining cost controls.
• Schedule all employees according to forecasted service levels and control labor costs and hours within budgeted guidelines (all staff overtime must be preapproved by the Innkeeper).
• Improve and maintain food quality controls and provide consistency for our guests.
• Oversee or prepare all soups and sauces for the day based on daily production sheets and estimated customer counts. Ensure that standardized recipes are followed and proper portioning wherever applicable.
• Provide guidance and supervision to kitchen staff and train kitchen staff to support to further skill and service development.
• Banquet food preparation and plating, ensuring quality and consistency. Oversee that banquet service staff is following all procedures outlined in the banquet server manual.
• Ensure that all meal service checklists are properly completed on a daily basis and signed (including production chart, pre-meal checklist, and salad bar checklist).
• Maintain a safe work environment through proper organization, sanitation, and cleanliness of all kitchens, prep spaces, walk-ins, coolers, food pantries, kitchen storage, and other food service areas and support areas (storerooms, service halls, laundry room, etc.). Work closely with all kitchen personnel to ensure proper food handling techniques are followed according to Federal, State, and local regulations. Must be certified in “Serv-Safe” every five years according to local Board of Health laws. Must make sure all cleaning schedules and checklists are updated as needed and followed and initialed.
• As a key supervisor, maintain a safe and pleasant working environment for all employees and report all incidences of incidents/accidents to the Innkeeper.
• Supervise stocking, rotating, or racking of cook/chill bags, etc. as necessary.
• Assist with food and related supply purchasing and receiving as needed.
• Assist/Supervise food service for tent functions. 
• Walk through dining rooms during meal services to engage with guests in clean uniform and hat; must be a positive and personable ambassador for the Inn’s food service operations.
• Assist at any time in any kitchen position as required or needed due to staffing issues or circumstances.
• Ensure compliance by kitchen staff with all policies and procedures as outlined in the employee handbook. Serve as role model and positive leader. 
• Ensure proper operation, maintenance and service of all kitchen equipment, and coordinate service issues with Innkeeper.
• Oversee that daily employee meals for lunch and dinner are appetizing, prepared in appropriate amounts, and provide variety.
• Every effort has been made to keep this job description as complete as possible. However, it in no way states or implies that these are the only duties required. The omission of specific statements of duties does not exclude them if the work is similar, related, or a logical assignment of this position.

Salary commensurate with experience.