Company description
We are a stealth food company building a better model for everyday foodservice. We create fresh, craveable meals for high-volume dining environments using thoughtfully sourced ingredients, transparent standards, and disciplined culinary operations
Job description
The Culinary Operations Director is a key founding team member working with the COO to build Central Texas’s first commissary and supply chain.
Initially leading procurement and execution for Austin school foodservice, the Director will establish systems and supplier networks to expand into corporate meals and a ghost restaurant. The role requires balancing strategy and hands-on execution across menu development, team training, food cost management, and facility planning.
This is a builder role for an operator committed to delivering exceptional quality alongside operational excellence.
RESPONSIBILITIES
- Culinary operations & execution
Translate culinary concepts into daily operating systems prep lists, production schedules, batch-cooking plans, cooling and reheating procedures, packaging, delivery, and service.
Set and hold quality standards for flavor, texture, appearance, temperature, portioning, and presentation across commissary production, transport, holding, and service.
Cook daily against production orders, and lead the culinary side of new site openings and customer launches.
Support commissary planning including equipment, workflow, storage, capacity, food-safety design, labor efficiency and drive corrective action on recurring problems.
Maintain standardized recipes specifications, yields, portions, methods, holding instructions, allergen information, packaging that execute consistently across commissary, satellite, and school sites.
Lead tastings, feedback sessions, and pilots; develop alternatives for vegetarian, allergen, and other dietary needs; and incorporate seasonal, local, organic, and regeneratively produced ingredients where they fit our quality and cost requirements.
- Sourcing standards & food integrity
Operationalize certified ingredient, handling, and workplace standards across recipes, training, purchasing, production, and quality assurance.
Partner with procurement and operations so ingredients, vendors, equipment, and kitchen practices meet our internal and third-party certification requirements, and maintain approved specs and sourcing documentation.
Train employees on the purpose behind these standards, support internal reviews and certification audits, and communicate our sourcing standards to customers, families, and suppliers.
- Food safety & quality assurance
Establish and oversee HACCP-based food-safety systems covering temperature control, sanitation, allergen management, receiving, storage, cooling, reheating, and transport.
Ensure compliance with federal, state, and local food codes, keep team members trained and certified, and prepare sites for inspections, customer reviews, and third-party certification audits.
Lead investigations and corrective action on food-safety, quality, allergen, supplier, or customer concerns, treating safety and quality as non-negotiable.
- Team leadership & development
Recruit, train, coach, and develop chefs, cooks, and production employees as the company grows, with clear roles, expectations, and accountability.
Create training programs covering recipe execution, knife skills, batch cooking, portion control, equipment use, food safety, and service standards, with hands-on coaching during launches.
Build a culture of craftsmanship and hospitality, and develop future leaders capable of supporting additional kitchens and markets.
- Financial performance & procurement
Own culinary performance against food-cost, waste, yield, portioning, labor-efficiency, and contribution-margin targets.
Cost all recipes and menus accurately and keep costs current, using menu engineering, purchasing discipline, portion and yield controls, forecasting, and waste tracking to improve results.
Partner with procurement on specifications, supplier evaluation, product testing, SKU rationalization, and backup sourcing, balancing premium ingredients against affordability expectations.
- Customer experience & program growth
Serve as the culinary representative with school leaders, prospective customers, suppliers, and partners, leading tastings, presentations, and menu demonstrations, and represent the company at industry and community events.
Partner with business development and operations to design programs for new customers, evaluating menu, equipment, staffing, production, and sourcing requirements, and build flexible systems adaptable to different populations, service models, facilities, and budgets.
QUALIFICATIONS
REQUIRED
10+ years of restaurant and foodservice experience, including 3+ years in senior culinary leadership or a multi-site role.
Strong command of recipe development and scaling, food costing, production planning, batch cooking, portion control, yield management, and kitchen workflow.
Strong understanding of food safety, HACCP, sanitation, temperature control, allergen management, and food codes.
Current Certified Food Protection Manager credential, or ability to obtain it before starting.
Experience leading and developing culinary teams, and working across operations, procurement, finance, and customer-facing functions.
Ability to develop clear recipes, SOPs, training materials, and quality-control documentation, with comfort using spreadsheets and digital tools for costing, planning, and inventory.
Demonstrated ability to balance culinary quality with food cost, labor, purchasing constraints, and scalability, working hands-on in an early-stage company where priorities evolve quickly.
Based in or willing to relocate to Austin, Texas, with regular travel among Austin-area kitchens and customer locations and periodic national travel.
PREFERRED
Background in multiple channels: K-12, corporate dining, healthcare, higher education, or hospitality.
Experience sourcing organic, local, or regenerative ingredients and managing dietary restriction menus.
Familiarity with kitchen equipment/layout design, third-party audits, and early-stage growth startups.
ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS
Ability to lift up to 25 lbs unassisted and stand for 8–12 hours daily.
Flexibility to work varied shifts, overtime, weekends, and holidays as needed.
Adaptability, problem-solving skills, and attention to detail.
TX Food Manager and TABC certifications (or ability to complete upon hire).
Compensation
this position is: salaried, more than $100,000
Application instructions
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Deadline
no deadline