Chef de Cuisine

JOB SUMMARY

Accountable for the overall success of the daily culinary operations within the assigned restaurant or kitchen. Demonstrates strong culinary expertise by personally performing tasks while leading, supervising, and developing the culinary team to consistently deliver high-quality food and exceptional dining experiences.

Oversees all food-related functions within the outlet, ensuring that dishes are prepared and presented consistently in accordance with established recipes, presentation standards, and quality expectations. Works closely with the culinary leadership team to continuously improve guest and employee satisfaction while effectively managing food costs, productivity, and the operating budget.

Responsible for guiding, coaching, and developing culinary associates, including direct reports, while fostering a positive, collaborative, and performance-driven work environment. Ensures compliance with all food safety, hygiene, sanitation, HACCP, and kitchen operational standards.

Maintains a strong focus on menu quality, consistency, creativity, and innovation, while supporting the restaurant's culinary concept and overall dining experience.

CANDIDATE PROFILE

Education and Experience

High school diploma or GED; minimum 4 years of experience in culinary operations, food and beverage, or a related professional area, preferably within a high-volume or luxury hospitality environment.

OR

2-year degree from an accredited university in Culinary Arts, Hotel and Restaurant Management, or a related major; minimum 2 years of experience in culinary operations, food and beverage, or a related professional area

CORE WORK ACTIVITIES

Ensuring Culinary Standards and Responsibilities are Met

• Prepares and cooks food of the highest quality, including dishes for regular service, special events, VIP guests, and functions.
• Leads and supervises the daily culinary operations of the assigned restaurant or kitchen to ensure smooth and efficient service.
• Reviews and continuously improves kitchen systems, processes, and procedures to enhance operational effectiveness and consistency.
• Develops, designs, and creates menus and recipes that reflect the restaurant concept, brand standards, guest preferences, and culinary trends.
• Demonstrates strong knowledge of high-quality food products, ingredients, preparation techniques, presentation, and flavor profiles.
• Ensures consistency in the quality, taste, portioning, presentation, and temperature of all food items served.
• Checks the quality of raw and cooked food products to ensure established culinary and quality standards are consistently achieved.
• Determines appropriate food presentation and plating standards and creates visually appealing food displays.
• Ensures proper handling, storage, labeling, rotation, and temperature control of all food products.
• Ensures full compliance with food safety, hygiene, sanitation, and HACCP standards, as well as all applicable laws and regulations.
• Implements and reinforces the brand's safety, hygiene, and food-handling standards across the culinary team.
• Supervises kitchen shift operations and ensures compliance with all established Food & Beverage policies, standards, SOPs, and procedures.
• Maintains appropriate standards for purchasing, receiving, storage, and inventory management to ensure product quality and availability.
• Supports effective food cost, portion control, inventory, and waste-management procedures while maintaining established quality standards.
• Monitors food production and quantities based on forecasted business levels to minimize wastage while ensuring sufficient availability.
• Operates and ensures the proper maintenance of kitchen equipment and promptly reports equipment malfunctions or maintenance requirements.
• Works closely with the Executive Chef and other culinary leaders to achieve departmental operational and financial objectives.
• Develops and implements environmentally responsible practices related to food preparation, energy consumption, responsible sourcing, and waste reduction.
• Encourages culinary creativity and innovation while maintaining consistency with the restaurant's identity and established standards.
• Maintains a clean, organized, safe, and professional kitchen environment at all times.
• Leads by example and maintains a strong presence in the kitchen during service to ensure consistent execution and support the culinary team.

Leading Culinary Team

• Supervises and coordinates the activities of Chefs, Cooks, and culinary associates engaged in food preparation and daily kitchen operations.
• Utilizes strong interpersonal and communication skills to lead, influence, coach, and motivate the culinary team while demonstrating honesty, integrity, and sound business judgment.
• Leads by example and serves as a role model by consistently demonstrating professional behavior, culinary expertise, and established service standards.
• Manages the day-to-day operations of the assigned kitchen and maintains sufficient knowledge of all culinary positions to effectively support operations in employees' absence.
• Builds and promotes a working environment based on mutual trust, respect, teamwork, and cooperation.
• Establishes and maintains open and collaborative relationships with employees and encourages effective communication throughout the culinary team.
• Monitors and maintains employee productivity levels to ensure operational requirements, quality standards, and business objectives are achieved.
• Ensures all menu items are consistently prepared, portioned, cooked, and presented according to approved recipes, presentation standards, and established specifications.
• Estimates daily and weekly production requirements based on business forecasts, occupancy, reservations, events, and anticipated demand.
• Communicates daily production requirements and operational priorities clearly to the culinary team.
• Leads kitchen shifts while remaining hands-on in food preparation and service, ensuring dishes are executed according to required specifications.
• Provides ongoing coaching and guidance to culinary associates to improve technical skills, product knowledge, consistency, and overall performance.
• Monitors team performance during service and takes appropriate corrective action to maintain food quality and operational efficiency.
• Supports the training and development of culinary associates and identifies opportunities for cross-training and career development.
• Conducts regular kitchen briefings to communicate business levels, menu updates, VIP requirements, special requests, operational priorities, and guest feedback.
• Promotes accountability within the team while recognizing and celebrating strong performance and individual contributions.
• Works collaboratively with Food & Beverage Service and other operational departments to ensure efficient service and a seamless guest dining experience.

Maintaining Culinary Goals

• Achieves and strives to exceed established performance, financial, operational, and team goals for the assigned culinary operation.
• Develops specific goals and action plans to effectively prioritize, organize, and accomplish operational requirements.
• Demonstrates an understanding of budgets, operating statements, food costs, payroll, and other financial reports to support the effective financial management of the department.
• Understands the impact of culinary operations on the property's overall financial goals and manages resources effectively to achieve or exceed budgeted objectives.
• Monitors food costs, labor costs, productivity, operating expenses, and waste while maintaining established food quality and presentation standards.
• Schedules culinary associates according to business demands, occupancy levels, reservations, events, and operational requirements.
• Monitors and tracks employee time and attendance, ensuring effective utilization of available manpower and compliance with established scheduling guidelines.
• Regularly reviews staffing levels to ensure guest service, culinary quality, operational requirements, and financial objectives are consistently achieved.
• Adjusts staffing and scheduling based on anticipated and actual business volumes to optimize productivity and control labor costs.
• Ensures appropriate workforce planning to maintain adequate kitchen coverage during peak business periods, special events, and other operational requirements.
• Supports inventory management and purchasing decisions to ensure appropriate stock levels while controlling costs and minimizing wastage.
• Ensures culinary associates have the appropriate uniforms, tools, equipment, and resources required to perform their duties effectively.
• Maintains appropriate inventory and control of employee uniforms and culinary supplies in accordance with established budgets and procedures.
• Identifies opportunities to improve operational efficiency, productivity, cost control, and profitability without compromising food quality or the guest experience.

Ensuring Exceptional Customer Service

• Provides culinary experiences that go above and beyond guest expectations, contributing to overall guest satisfaction and loyalty.
• Manages day-to-day culinary operations to ensure food quality, presentation, consistency, and service standards meet or exceed guest expectations.
• Maintains a strong presence during service periods to monitor food quality and ensure a consistent and exceptional dining experience.
• Sets a positive example for guest relations and encourages the culinary team to maintain a guest-focused approach at all times.
• Engages with guests, when appropriate, to obtain feedback on food quality, presentation, menu offerings, and the overall dining experience.
• Responds promptly and professionally to guest concerns, feedback, and complaints related to culinary operations and ensures appropriate follow-up and corrective action.
• Works closely with the Food & Beverage service team to understand guest preferences, dietary requirements, allergies, and special requests, ensuring these are handled accurately and safely.
• Communicates guest feedback to the culinary team and uses it as an opportunity to continuously improve food quality, consistency, and service performance.
• Provides guidance, feedback, coaching, and support to culinary associates to help them understand and consistently deliver against guest expectations.
• Ensures culinary associates receive ongoing training and development in food quality, presentation standards, product knowledge, guest expectations, and service excellence.
• Identifies opportunities to enhance menu offerings and the overall culinary experience based on guest feedback, business trends, and operational observations.
• Collaborates with culinary and Food & Beverage leadership to implement appropriate corrective action plans and continuously improve guest satisfaction.
• Promotes a culture of culinary excellence, attention to detail, accountability, and continuous improvement throughout the kitchen team.

Managing and Conducting Human Resource Activities

• Identifies the developmental and training needs of culinary associates and provides ongoing coaching, mentoring, and guidance to improve their knowledge, technical skills, and overall performance.
• Develops and implements structured training and development programs to enhance culinary skills, product knowledge, food safety awareness, and operational standards.
• Provides hands-on training and demonstrations on cooking techniques, food preparation, presentation, recipes, and quality standards.
• Supports the interviewing, selection, and hiring of culinary associates with the appropriate skills, experience, and attitude to meet operational requirements and quality expectations.
• Participates in the employee performance appraisal process, providing constructive and timely feedback while identifying individual development opportunities.
• Regularly monitors employee performance and provides appropriate coaching and follow-up to support continuous improvement.
• Promotes an open-door culture, actively solicits employee feedback, and addresses concerns in a fair, professional, and timely manner.
• Reviews employee satisfaction feedback and works with culinary leadership to identify and implement appropriate actions to enhance employee engagement and the working environment.
• Recognizes strong performance and encourages the continued growth and career development of culinary associates.
• Identifies high-potential team members and supports their development through cross-training, additional responsibilities, and career development opportunities.
• Conducts regular culinary training and knowledge-sharing sessions to ensure consistency in recipes, preparation techniques, presentation, portioning, and product quality.
• Collaborates with the Restaurant and Catering teams to provide training on menu items, key ingredients, preparation methods, allergens, dietary requirements, presentation, and unique flavor profiles.
• Ensures Food & Beverage service associates have sufficient menu knowledge to confidently explain dishes and provide accurate information to guests.
• Encourages a culture of continuous learning, teamwork, accountability, and culinary excellence throughout the department.

Additional Responsibilities

• Communicates relevant operational information clearly and effectively to culinary leadership, team members, and other departments through verbal communication, written correspondence, email, meetings, and daily briefings.
• Ensures key information regarding business levels, menu changes, VIP requirements, dietary requests, guest feedback, and operational priorities is communicated accurately and in a timely manner.
• Analyzes operational information, evaluates results, and applies sound judgment to identify solutions and resolve culinary and operational challenges.
• Identifies potential issues proactively and takes appropriate corrective action to maintain food quality, service efficiency, and guest satisfaction.
• Collaborates effectively with Food & Beverage Service, Purchasing, Stewarding, Engineering, and other relevant departments to support smooth and efficient operations.
• Attends and actively participates in all relevant culinary, Food & Beverage, operational, and departmental meetings.
• Contributes ideas and recommendations to improve culinary quality, operational efficiency, cost management, employee engagement, and the overall guest experience.
• Communicates meeting outcomes and operational updates to the culinary team and ensures appropriate follow-up and implementation of agreed actions.

At Marriott International, we are dedicated to being an equal opportunity employer, welcoming all and providing access to opportunity. We actively foster an environment where the unique backgrounds of our associates are valued and celebrated. Our greatest strength lies in the rich blend of culture, talent, and experiences of our associates. We are committed to non-discrimination on any protected basis, including disability, veteran status, or other basis protected by applicable law.

At Le Méridien, we are inspired by the era of glamorous travel, celebrating each culture through the distinctly European spirit of savouring the good life. Our guests are curious and creative, cosmopolitan culture seekers that appreciate moments of connection and slowing down to savour the destination. We provide authentic, chic and memorable service along with experiences that inspire guests to savour the good life. We’re looking for curious and creative people to join our team. If you appreciate connecting with like-minded guests and have a deep desire to create memorable experiences, we invite you to explore career opportunities with Le Méridien. In joining Le Méridien, you join a portfolio of brands with Marriott International. Be where you can do your best work, begin your purpose, belong to an amazing global team, and become the best version of you.