Executive Chef

PURPOSE/SUMMARY

The Executive Chef AP / EL/IL Hybrid is responsible for leading a blended culinary operation that may include Active Passionate, Enriched Living, and Inspired Living dining services. This role requires a luxury hospitality mindset, strong resident-centered leadership, disciplined kitchen execution, regulatory and dietary awareness, high sanitation standards, team development, and financial accountability. The position is expected to represent the best of Holbrook culinary standards by delivering safe, consistent, restaurant-quality food while supporting resident dignity, preferences, physician diet orders, events, catering, and daily service with operational excellence.

RESPONSIBILITIES

Area of Responsibility - Essential Functions

• Establish resident and guest service, satisfaction, dignity, and loyalty as a daily priority through personal example, visibility, follow-through, and professional communication.

• Lead culinary operations across assigned AP, EL, and/or IL venues, including restaurant service, dining room support, lounge support, Zinnia Cafe support where applicable, catering, banquets, events, resident programming, daily features, special menus, snacks, and nourishment needs.

• Execute high-quality, fresh, seasonal, and visually appealing food aligned with Holbrook standards, approved menus, resident preferences, dietary requirements, local product sourcing, vendor partnerships, and community expectations.

• Ensure meals are prepared and served according to approved menus, resident preferences, physician orders, diet needs, allergens, texture requirements, portion standards, and company standards.

• Partner with Wellness, nursing, dining leadership, service leadership, sales/community relations, and the General Manager to ensure resident dietary needs, confidentiality, resident rights, and hospitality expectations are protected.

• Maintain accurate diet communication, resident preference systems, tray/service accuracy, nourishment standards, food committee follow-up, resident concern documentation, and timely issue resolution.

• Maintain strong controls over food quality, recipe execution, portioning, presentation, ticket times, production sheets, line checks, waste, ordering, receiving, inventory, labeling, dating, and storage standards.

• Maintain a holistic approach to resident dining, including no added salt, no concentrated sweets, mechanical soft, texture-modified items, hydration, snacks, and resident-specific accommodations as directed.

• Use TOAST POS reporting, approved menu tools, production sheets, ordering systems, spenddown controls, sales data, product mix, ICON dining feedback, resident concerns, and operational feedback to improve execution, forecasting, consistency, and profitability.

• Ensure all hot food, cold food, cooling, reheating, labeling, dating, allergen, infection control, Universal Precautions, and HACCP practices meet or exceed company, ServSafe, and regulatory requirements.

• Maintain strong vendor relationships with an emphasis on quality product, correct item codes, fresh product standards, local produce, high-quality meats/seafood, receiving accuracy, substitutions, credits, and responsible issue resolution.

• Plan and support wine dinners, chef tables, resident tastings, marketing events, banquets, PR events, family events, and community differentiators with creativity and operational discipline.

• Maintain kitchens, storage areas, walk-ins, freezers, prep areas, utility rooms, service lines, equipment, smallwares, and production spaces in inspection-ready condition at all times.

• Attend and participate in leadership meetings, resident food committees, QA meetings, care-related discussions as appropriate, culinary meetings, and community events.

Area of Responsibility - Human Resources

• Recruit, interview, hire, train, schedule, supervise, coach, document, and develop culinary and dietary team members capable of executing at a best-in-class level.

• Set clear expectations for culinary professionalism, attendance, sanitation, organization, communication, productivity, teamwork, resident service, and accountability.

• Train team members on recipe execution, line standards, resident dignity, confidentiality, infection control, diet communication, allergy awareness, texture-modified needs, sanitation, and proper service support.

• Conduct daily lineups, culinary training, station training, menu rollouts, tastings, huddles, sous chef/kitchen leadership meetings, and follow-up coaching.

• Delegate authority appropriately to ensure daily culinary and dietary services continue without interruption during absences, call-outs, vacations, holidays, and special events.

• Address performance concerns promptly and professionally through coaching, documentation, progressive discipline, and partnership with leadership and HR when appropriate.

• Create a positive kitchen culture where team members are trained, respected, held accountable, and motivated to deliver exceptional food, safe service, and resident-focused hospitality.

Area of Responsibility - Administration

• Manage food cost, labor cost, controllable expenses, spenddown, ordering, inventory, transfers, waste, purchasing, credits, and financial documentation within budget expectations.

• Purchase food, supplies, equipment, and smallwares according to budget, approved vendors, quality standards, and company purchasing expectations.

• Review invoices, credits, vendor issues, product substitutions, and purchasing compliance to protect quality, consistency, and profitability.

• Maintain required paperwork, logs, schedules, checklists, training records, temperature records, sanitation records, diet records, production records, resident concern follow-up, and inspection/regulatory readiness documentation.

• Partner with leadership on capital needs, equipment maintenance, preventative maintenance, smallwares, production tools, operational improvements, menu refinements, staffing needs, and resident experience enhancements.