Company description

Hotel Washington is a welcoming, seasonal business located on a small island off of Lake Michigan. The historic grounds feature over 10 acres of oak trees & pines, just steps away from Lake Michigan.

Our offerings include a seasonally guided, locally focused, restaurant & bakery, historic lodging, on site retail market, and yoga studio. All of which are open for both the public and hotel guests to enjoy.

Hotel Washington is also available for full service weddings and events.

Our business is a part of a vibrant little island community. It's important for us to find candidates who will align with our values to connect with the community around us and embrace all that the island has to offer.

Job description

We are seeking 1 - 3 individuals to build a small kitchen team with a passion for hyper locality, community and creativity.

Our hope is to find a group of folks with previous experience working & creating together OR who are open to collaborating with others to develop a concept that aligns with our values.

This group of candidates would work closely with our management and bakery team to curate a dining experience that honors our diverse range of clientele. They would share excitement for the growth and unity of all business branches; pulling inspiration from Washington Island and showcasing some of best quality produce and products from Wisconsin.

This group would be expected to execute a 3 to 5 day dinner service week and a handful of on site special events throughout the season.

Our kitchen is shared production space for the restaurant & bakery. Both of these business branches must be able to create & flourish in this space, good communication, teamwork and flexibility is essential.

Options for seasonal commitments with us :
(we are open to other business offerings & operating windows as long as they meet our profit/loss goals)

• Two month restaurant (july & august operating window) roughly 12 week commitment, including prep & clean up
• Four month restaurant (july - october operating window) roughly 20 week commitment, including prep & clean up
• Six month restaurant (may - october operating window)
  roughly 26 week commitment, including prep & clean up

Pay can be divided by hours & responsibility or split evenly with shared responsibilities.
Suggested roles, but not limited to; head chef, sous chef, line cooks, prep cooks..etc or joint leadership.

Qualifications :

• At least 2 years previous experience in the desired role in a culinary environment
• Strong organizational, managerial, and leadership skills
• Passion for hyper locality
• Event catering experience preferred
• Commitment to providing exceptional customer service and associate relations
• Service oriented style with inventive presentation skills and attention to detail
• Commitment to quality - consistently upholding and improving defined standards over time
• The ability to positively lead others while multitasking and prioritizing workloads.
• Flexibility and willingness to adapt to seasonal realities and ongoing changes
• Professional and confident verbal and written communication skills with guests, employees, and ownership
• High standard of cleanliness & quality control

Responsibilities :

• The Kitchen Team manages and coordinates activities and operations of BOH and is engaged in preparing and cooking food products; managing all aspects of food purchasing, food preparation, and presentation.
• Developing and maintaining a strong culinary concept for Hotel Washington; creating fresh, seasonal recipes.
• Spearheading menu planning activities that highlight our island partner farms, recipe testing, and menu development
• Building and maintaining relationships with vendors and purveyors
• Assisting general manager as requested in areas such as special event menu planning
• Possessing and maintaining thorough knowledge of wines offered in restaurant and wine/food pairings
• Ensuring all kitchen and food operations are in compliance with all legislated health and licensing guidelines; ensuring adherence to all health and safety regulations and procedures
• Implementing new systems for inventory, organization & kitchen standards, maintaining detailed purchase history including product specifications, designated vendor information and regular inventory (monthly)
• Hiring, training, supervising, and developing kitchen staff
  Effective, positive and solution-oriented communication with all staff to ensure smooth operations
• Preserve abundance of season through freezing, dehydrating, pickling, fermentation

Compensation & Benefits :

• Housing provided (cost covered by hotel washington)
• Sick Pay, and Personal Days

Equal Opportunity Employer

Hotel Washington is an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate based on race, color, religion, national origin, gender, age, marital status, sexual orientation, disability, veteran status, or any other prohibited basis. It is our intention that all qualified applicants be given equal opportunity and that selection decisions be based on job-related factors.

Compensation

this position is: hourly, varies DOE, $17.00 - $28.00

Application instructions

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Deadline

April 01, 2026