Company description

Langwater Farm is a family farm growing certified organic mixed fruit and vegetables started in 2010, and currently producing on close to 80 acres. We produce over 60 different crops and distribute through our on-farm farm store, our 600 member CSA, 3 weekly summer and 1 weekly winter farmers markets, and wholesale to restaurants, schools, and local aggregators/distributors. Langwater Farm’s mission is to grow healthy, delicious, organic produce of the highest quality to feed our community.

Job description

Last September, we completed construction of our new year-round farm store and kitchen in North Easton, MA. This was a huge step for our farm business and the culmination of many years of dreaming, planning, and building. Our vision for the farm store and kitchen is to provide a year-round source for the community to access healthy, locally-produced products from our own organic fruits, vegetables, and flowers to locally-raised meats, eggs, dairy and locally-produced foods such as honey, maple syrup, bread, and beverages.The focus is on our own organic produce and other locally produced, high quality products. We'd like to highlight seasonality and educate our customers, through our offerings, on what to eat in each season. One of our enduring goals since starting the farm in 2010 is to encourage more of the mainstream community around us to adjust their eating habits and consume more locally-produced, seasonal foods. The new Farm Chef will play a critical role in implementing and achieving the vision. The Farm Chef will be required to be nimble and creative; it is imperative that kitchen production constantly evolves, rotates, and reflects our daily harvests.

The farm kitchen is equipped, and we are ready to launch a new kitchen program. This is an ideal job for real farm-to-table cooking. The position is a year-round, full-time, Tuesday through Saturday daytime chef job. The role of the Farm Chef will be to showcase and utilize the crop as it comes in. The ideal candidate is someone who has serious cooking chops, a passion for vegetable cooking, management experience and is a creative self-starter. Opportunities to maximize the abundance are still being explored. The first steps are to build on the prepared salad program, develop and launch a made to order sandwich/prepared food program, and find creative ways to prepare and offer items from the surplus produce.

The farm already scoops Maple Valley Creamery ice cream, fries apple cider donuts in the Fall, and hosts several community events including a strawberry festival, farm-to-table dinners, and a monthly pizza night, cooking upwards of 500 pizzas from two wood-burning ovens.The Farm Chef’s responsibilities include supervising the food prep and cooking, maintaining a fully-stocked kitchen inventory, complying with safety and cleanliness standards, developing recipes for our farm-grown produce, and preserving the harvest.

Langwater Farm has engaged Chef Chris Douglass to assist with the launch of the kitchen program. Chef Douglass – a 40-year veteran chef in the Boston restaurant scene and the Lead Culinary Instructor at Boston University – will lead the hiring process. The Farm Chef will have the opportunity to work closely with and be mentored by Chef Douglass.

Responsibilities

• Oversee all kitchen operations including inventorying and procuring supplies and prep work
• Oversee sandwich-making operations including inventorying and procuring supplies and prep work
• Develop and document recipes to use farm produce in prepared foods
• Oversee food prep and production of prepared foods including inventorying and procuring supplies and prep work
• Participate in farm-to-table dinners and other community food-related events on the farm
• Assist with interviewing and hiring kitchen staff
• Manage kitchen staff and coordinate production
• Train kitchen staff on prep work and production techniques
• Schedule kitchen staff shifts
• Establish portion sizes
• Price menu items in collaboration with the Farm Store Manager
• Inventory and order food supplies and kitchen equipment, as needed
• Store and organize food products in compliance with safety practices (e.g. in refrigerators/freezers)
• Coordinate with vegetable production team on availability and timing of harvests for preservation
• Maintain sanitation and safety standards in the kitchen area

Requirements and skills

• Proven work experience as a Kitchen Manager, Sous Chef, or Head Chef
• Hands-on experience with planning menus and ordering ingredients
• Passion for creative vegetable cooking
• Familiarity with kitchen sanitation and safety regulations
• Excellent organizational skills
• Conflict management abilities
• Ability to manage a team in a fast-paced work environment
• Able to lift 50 pounds
• Enjoys a collaborative work environment
• Has an infectious love of cooking and sharing great food

Compensation

• Hourly or salary wage, commensurate with experience
• Participation in 3% employer matching SIMPLE IRA program after one year of employment
• Health benefits or stipend
• 5 days PTO
• CSA Vegetable Share from the farm

Compensation

this position is: salaried, varies DOE, $60,000.00 - $72,000.00

Application instructions

Deadline

no deadline