Hybrid Bistro Head Chef presso Graton Resort and Casino

Position Summary:
The Bistro Head Chef will oversee all of the creative development of compelling new menu items and will explore new and exciting culinary techniques and presentations. This position supervises all activity in the restaurant production kitchens and conducts daily quality audits and vendor reviews to ensure all products meet minimum quality standards. The Bistro Head Chef will build a high performance stewarding team and develop annual business plans. The Bistro Head Chef is an ambassador for the organization and will represent Graton's culinary culture as we begin building for the future. This position serves as a role model and mentor to he Sous Chefs and line cooks, and maintains a professional kitchen culture and drives exceptional quality products and guest experiences.

Essential Functions:
1. Responsible for redefining hospitality at Graton Resort & Casino while living, supporting, and promoting our values.
2. Oversee creative development of compelling new menu items and drive menu concept ideations
process and maintain a pipeline of new concepts. Identify new culinary techniques and presentations.
3. Explore new and exciting culinary techniques and presentations; leverages inspiration from industry trends, seasonality, ethnic and international cuisine, searches for opportunities to infuse creativity into the development process, evolves cooking styles throughout the team.
4. Provide strategic direction to develop food items within specific cost parameters to ensure the
achievement of business targets while delivering flavor requirements.
5. Support long-term menu strategy based on brand positioning and business needs.
6. Supervise all activity in the restaurant production kitchens and emphasize focus on Team Member training, mentorship, menu & product development.
7. Partner with Restaurant General Manager and the Marketing Department to ensure all conceptual development meets or exceeds the needs of the project. Project advertising and social media strategies will be collaborative efforts between the Executive Chef, Restaurant General Manager and the Marketing Department.
8. Conduct daily quality audits and vendor reviews to ensure all products meet minimum quality
standards.
9. Own and control process management in the operation. Collaborates with the Restaurant General Manager to implement the basics of Lean Management principles.
10. Plan and create new menu items for core menu, large party group menus, VIP Speakeasy secret
menu.
11. Collaborate with Beverage management to build Food & Craft Beer Experiences, Food & Wine
Experiences and Small Batch Whisky & Food Flights.
12. Collaborate with the property Food & Beverage operations team to communicate and coordinate restaurant operations, promotional material, and event calendar across the entire property.
13. Identify and recruit top culinary talent and provide inspirational leadership. Utilize Recruitment Team to attract top Sous Chefs. Implement the culinary apprenticeship program.
14. Develop annual business plan as it relates to the property goals and financial targets.
15. Work with the procurement team to develop and leverage purchasing and supplier networks. Achieve cost efficiencies while procuring quality ingredients and introducing new food items.
16. Work with Graton farm team to utilize harvested produce into the restaurant food program.
17. Develop a strong foundation for health and sanitation standards. Conduct monthly health inspections with an independent agency.
18. Build a high-performance stewarding team. Provide continuous leadership and process improvement recommendations.
19. Develop SOPs for batch production, line production plating and presentations.
20. Sets and implements kitchen policies and procedures.
21. Seasonal menu development, standardized recipes, and presentations.
22. Conduct regular scheduled meeting to ensure lines of communication are open between management and Team Members.
23. Mentor department managers to develop their skills and leadership abilities. Build bench strength and foster a "promote from within" culture.
24. Use all performance management tools to provide guidance and feedback to the team, and promote a cooperative work culture, maximizing productivity and morale.
25. Ensure excellence in guest satisfaction and employ strategies that support service standards
exceeding our customer expectations.