Chef de Cuisine at JouJou

JouJou is a grand new French restaurant by David Barzelay & Colleen Booth, co-owners of Lazy Bear and True Laurel, opening this winter in San Francisco’s design district. We are seeking a Chef de Cuisine to start up, organize and run our kitchen and culinary program.

Our cuisine will blend French flavors and culinary traditions with high quality ingredients, top notch technique with no shortcuts, and crowd-pleasing rather than ego-driven composition. This position is ideally suited for a candidate with both fine dining kitchen experience, as well as experience in higher-volume (250+ covers) kitchen operations. Strong leadership skills, communication skills, and an aptitude for organization and logistics are essential to this role.

Bilingual (English/Spanish) is a plus. Must be authorized to work in the US. Relocation reimbursements will be offered.

DESCRIPTION:

The Chef de Cuisine is responsible for overseeing all kitchen personnel to ensure the highest quality culinary execution and professionalism.

Opening

• The CdC will assist Ownership with all opening BOH duties including interviewing, hiring, onboarding, and the training and development of BOH staff and management.
• Along with the Executive Chef, develop and R&D all opening menus.
• Develop and implement initial kitchen organization, defining the various kitchen stations and the associated prep and service requirements.
• Create and maintain station order sheets, prep lists, deep cleaning tasks, and schedules.
• Work alongside General Manager and service management team to lay out flow of service, kitchen timing, reservation pacing, and POS printing stations.
• Organize and set up the new kitchen physically, including equipment and dry storage.
• Purchase and set up smallwares and opening inventory.
• Collaborate with events team on event menu options and systems.

Culinary

• Manage & mentor our team of sous chefs, ensuring the highest level of execution and professionalism, with specific focus on a respectful and positive environment, thoughtful instruction, attention to detail, and quality.
• Work collaboratively with the Executive Chef to continue to evolve the menu and cuisine, quality/qualitative measures, efficiencies, etc. 
• Oversee quality control: ingredients, finished products, and facilities.
• Ensure that all food items are executed properly, while maintaining cost controls and minimizing waste.
• Ensure that all food prep & storage areas are maintained in a clean and orderly state, and adhere to all relevant health and safety standards.
• Maintain facilities and equipment by scheduling and overseeing proper regular maintenance and repairs.
  
  

Financial & Administrative

• Participate in the collaborative oversight of the overall financial performance of the restaurant. The CDC will be well-versed in financials from a restaurant level and aware of what practices and systems influence our financial successes. Training can be provided in these areas.
• Work with Marketing as needed to promote JouJou in a wide variety of media.
• Work directly with Events team to ensure seamless and successful execution of on- & off-site events including service outline, menu design and execution.
• Ensure all labor and HR requirements are met and oversee time & attendance, time off requests, etc. for all BOH.
• Conduct regular performance reviews of all BOH employees.
• Ensure BOH invoices get coded properly and are submitted to be paid.
• Work closely with other managers to ensure smooth relationships between departments.
  
  

REQUIREMENTS:

• Proven success as a chef in a lead role in a similarly-sized, single unit or multiple unit restaurant.
• Minimum 5+ years kitchen management experience (preferably with at least some in fine dining). Experience opening a restaurant as a sous chef or higher is a plus.
• In-depth knowledge on cooking techniques, sanitation principles, and food preparation.
• Ability & desire to lead, develop junior kitchen staff, educate & work in a collaborative & creative environment.
• Strong attention to detail and ability to comfortably lead a team in a busy atmosphere.
• Cool under pressure, maintaining composure and respectful decorum at all times, never screaming or berating.
• Computer literacy and familiarity with Google Docs.
• Knowledge of local purveyors, vendors, and seasonal products is a plus.

BENEFITS:

• Competitive Salary ($105-125k+)
• Subsidized Health/Dental/Vision
• PTO
• Group dining discounts
• Relocation assistance ($5k max)
• We are an Equal Opportunity Employer, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.