Kitchen - Executive Sous Chef

DES MOINES GOLF AND COUNTRY CLUB•West Des Moines, IA

1d•$60,000 - $70,000

About The Position

The Executive Sous (ES) is responsible for all food production throughout the club. The ES is a hands-on position which actively produces banquet and a la carte items, develops menus, manages food purchases, maintains the kitchen bible and its recipes, and monitors food and labor budgets for the department while maintaining the highest professional food quality and sanitation standards. The ES understands that all food is to be consistently outstanding, ensuring such levels of quality ranging from high-end wine dinners to a la carte service to the snack bars on the golf courses.

Requirements

Culinary Arts degree, preferred, or equivalent experience.
Minimum of one-year prior management experience in the culinary field.
Must be certified in food safety with a willingness to enforce such standards.
Be an effective and passionate hands-on leader with a proven track record of providing high-level services in the culinary arts.
Country club, restaurant, or high-end hotel experience with a strong background in banquet production.
A team builder who mentors kitchen staff, providing leadership and guidance in an even-keeled manner, knowing when to show empathy and when to be firm.
Takes tremendous pride in making members happy and exceeding their expectations, instilling that passion in the team.
Has some knowledge about wine and wine pairings.
Has solid computer skills including but not limited to Microsoft applications, as this position requires frequent use of computers and various software programs.
Understands how to write schedules while knowing how to navigate the nuances of juggling the schedules of the staff.
Possesses strong written and verbal communication skills.
Is organized as well as flexible.
Can proactively lead a la carte and banquet operations simultaneously while showing the ability to execute pop-up member events successfully.
The number of covers fluctuates greatly depending on the night and event, as well as the busy season in the summer and the very-slow season in the winter.
Has a very strong track record of proactively managing food and labor costs, inventory, waste, etc.
Exhibits a positive disposition along with a sense of humor.
Embodies the club’s core values while insisting the team does the same.

Nice To Haves

A desire for continual development with the goal of becoming an EC in two years.
Put in the initial time to understand the program as quickly as possible to get up to speed.
Embrace a “first one in, last one out” mentality to establish leadership and instill trust with the team.
Once trust has been established, show a willingness to provide and live the “work-life balance” lifestyle which the membership desires for the staff.
A willingness to be a team player, not just within the culinary department, but with all departments, as the culture at DMGCC is currently very strong.
Exhibit Midwest values which include showing patience, empathy, compassion, and a willingness to help those throughout the membership and staff.
A demeanor which doesn’t accept shortcuts as a way to success.
Understands DMGCC is not a club whose goal for F&B is to make a profit, but to responsibly lose money while providing exemplary and memorable experiences.
Learning the culinary tastes and desires of the membership, thereby creating menus and dishes based on their wishes instead of the other way around.
Showing a willingness to experiment and fail, as the membership strongly supports culinary risk-taking and growth.

Responsibilities

Fulfill the duties of the Executive Chef (EC) in their absence.
Assists in the hiring, training, scheduling, and supervising of the Sous Chefs, Executive Pastry Chef, and all other culinary professionals on staff.
Plans menus with the Executive Chef, Assistant General Manager (AGM) and the Director of Events (DE) for all food outlets, special occasions and club events.
Ensures that high standards of sanitation, cleanliness and safety are maintained throughout all kitchen areas at all times.
Establishes and maintains controls to minimize food and supply waste and theft.
Safeguards all food-preparation employees by implementing training to increase their knowledge about safety, sanitation, and accident-prevention principals.
Develops standard recipes and techniques for food preparation and presentation which meet consistently high standards.
Cooks and/or directly supervises the cooking of items which require skillful preparation.
Willingly and actively participates in the preparation of banquet and a la carte food when necessary.
Evaluates all food production to assure quality standards are consistently attained.
Interacts with applicable food and beverage managers to assure food production and service consistently exceeds the expectations of members and guests.
Plans and manages the employee “family meal” program which is held to a high standard, given the importance the club puts on the well-being of its staff.
Recruits and makes hiring decisions. The ES also evaluates job performances of kitchen staff while coaching, mentoring, and disciplining staff in a fair and legal manner.
Establishes and maintains a regular cleaning and maintenance schedule for all kitchen areas and equipment.
Provides training and professional development opportunities for all kitchen staff.
Establishes and ensures creative buffet presentations.
Maintains an active physical presence during times of high business volume.
The ES is very hands-on with a core-focus on banquet production.
Be a partner with community culinary leadership, specifically, the Iowa Culinary Institute, which has a working relationship with DMGCC.

Benefits

Health insurance – 85% of Premium paid by the club.
Vision & Dental insurance.
401K – Traditional and Roth plans with an employer match.
Life insurance – 100% of Premium paid by the club.
Short-term and long-term disability insurance.
Free employee meals during the shift.
Free golf on Mondays.
Scholarship and professional development opportunities.
Paid time off for holidays.
Accrued paid time off after 90 days.
Numerous employee appreciation events throughout the year such as donut and coffee trucks and parties.
Employee holiday bonus paid for by the membership.
Salary range: $60k-$70k with a performance-based bonus plan.