SOUS CHEF

Compass Group•Oak Lawn, IL

3d•$72,000 - $85,000•Onsite

About The Position

Working as the Sous Chef, you will support the successful operation of the Culinary Department within a fast-paced, high-volume healthcare environment. This role assists in overseeing food production and daily kitchen operations across multiple service areas, including patient dining, retail food venues, physician dining, catering, and specialty pediatric meal services. You will collaborate closely with the Executive Chef to ensure exceptional food quality, regulatory compliance, patient satisfaction, and operational excellence. The ideal candidate is a hands-on culinary leader who thrives in a complex healthcare setting and is passionate about delivering outstanding dining experiences to patients, visitors, and staff.

Requirements

Minimum 3+ years of progressive culinary leadership experience in healthcare, hospitality, hotel, university, corporate dining, or other high-volume foodservice environments.
Experience supporting complex foodservice operations serving multiple customer populations and service platforms.
Strong knowledge of patient foodservice operations, therapeutic diets, food safety practices, and regulatory compliance.
Experience with retail dining concepts, catering, physician dining, and large-scale food production.
Demonstrated ability to lead teams in a fast-paced environment while maintaining high standards of food quality and customer service.
Knowledge of food cost controls, labor management, purchasing, inventory management, and waste reduction strategies.
Proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite, Outlook, and foodservice management systems.
Strong communication, organizational, and coaching skills.
ServSafe Certification required or ability to obtain within a specified timeframe; HACCP knowledge strongly preferred.
Experience in healthcare foodservice or hospital dining operations highly preferred.

Nice To Haves

Associate's degree in Culinary Arts, Hospitality Management, or related field; equivalent experience considered.

Responsibilities

Assist the Executive Chef in managing daily culinary operations for a 650-bed hospital, including patient meal services, retail dining, physician lounge, children's hospital dining, and catered events.
Support labor and food cost management initiatives while maintaining quality, service, and budgetary goals.
Oversee food production, batch cooking, preparation, presentation, and distribution to ensure consistency and compliance with healthcare foodservice standards.
Assist with menu planning and recipe development, taking into account patient diets, culinary trends, seasonality, and customer preferences.
Ensure compliance with all food safety, sanitation, infection prevention, and regulatory requirements, including HACCP guidelines.
Supervise, train, coach, and develop hourly culinary associates to promote engagement, accountability, and operational excellence.
Support retail and patient satisfaction initiatives through menu innovation, service enhancements, and execution of special events.
Coordinate and execute catering functions, physician events, community programs, and hospital leadership meetings.
Partner with culinary and wellness teams to implement new programs, menu offerings, and operational best practices.
Assist with inventory management, ordering, receiving, and product utilization to minimize waste and maximize efficiency.