Kitchen Manager/ head Chef (Toronto) (Ontario)

Kitchen Manager / Head Chef Job Description, May 2026 Job Title: Kitchen Manager / Head Chef Location: Aurora, Ontario Department: Restaurant Kitchen / Heart of House, with support to Market and retail food production Employment Type: Full time, salaried management position Reports To: Chief Executive Officer or designate Works Closely With: General Manager, Front of House leadership, Market/Retail leadership, Purchasing, Finance/Bookkeeping, and Ownership Direct Reports: Heart of House employees, including cooks, prep cooks, dish/utility, bakery/prepared-food production employees, and other assigned kitchen team members Compensation: Annual salary is between $75,000 – 85,000 plus benefits Purpose of the Role: The Kitchen Manager / Head Chef is responsible for leading all aspects of kitchen operations to deliver consistent, high-quality food, protect food safety, minimize waste, control labour and food cost, and support a profitable restaurant and market business. This is a hands‑on salaried management role with primary responsibility for Heart of House leadership, culinary execution, production planning, inventory control, food safety compliance, team scheduling, performance coaching, and coordination with Front of House and Market/Retail operations. Specific Operating Scope Lead daily restaurant kitchen execution, including prep, service readiness, line performance, quality control, and closing standards. Support Market and retail food production, including prepared foods, packaged items, grab‑and‑go products, bakery collaboration, freezer/refrigerated inventory, shelf‑life controls, date coding, and merchandising readiness. Maintain organic, fresh, seasonal, and premium‑positioning standards by working with approved vendors and protecting ingredient integrity from receiving through service. Coordinate kitchen production with business forecasts, reservations, market demand, seasonal needs, events, catering requests, and promotional activity. Promote a culture of respect, accountability, teamwork, safety, cleanliness, learning, and continuous improvement. 1. Guest Experience, Culinary Standards and Service Execution Lead the kitchen team to deliver consistent food quality, taste, temperature, presentation, speed of service, cleanliness, and guest satisfaction. Establish, communicate, and maintain culinary and service standards for all restaurant, market, retail, and prepared‑food offerings. Integrate guest feedback, team feedback, sales data, and product‑quality observations into kitchen improvement plans. Actively support the line, prep stations, production areas, receiving, dish/utility, retail production or other areas when operationally required. Resolve kitchen‑related guest issues quickly and professionally in partnership with the General Manager and Front of House leadership. 2. Financial Performance, Cost Control and Business Discipline Review restaurant and kitchen performance regularly with leadership, including sales, cost of goods sold, labour cost, prime cost, waste, inventory variance, and gross margin. Interpret food cost and labour actuals against budget and recommend corrective actions before month‑end results are finalized. Set and monitor kitchen KPIs, including food cost %, labour %, waste %, inventory accuracy, sales per labour hour, prep completion, product availability, and food safety compliance. Work with ownership, the General Manager and finance/bookkeeping to support accurate coding of food purchases, kitchen supplies, packaging, labour, and retail production costs. Participate in menu pricing, recipe costing, yield testing and margin analysis before new menu items, retail items or specials are launched. Ensure high‑cost proteins, produce, dairy, bakery items, packaging, and specialty ingredients are purchased and used according to approved par levels, recipes, and production plans. 3. Production Planning, Inventory and Purchasing Prepare and maintain weekly prep plans, production sheets, par levels, batch yields, and order guides based on forecasted demand. Place or approve food and beverage orders in accordance with purchasing authority, approved vendors, budget, sales volume, and inventory levels. Conduct regular inventory counts and spot checks; investigate variances, waste, spoilage, overproduction, shortages, and unauthorized substitutions. Ensure first‑in, first‑out rotation, protected receiving practices, proper storage, accurate labelling, date coding, thawing/cooling controls and organized dry, refrigerated, and frozen storage. Coordinate with Market/Retail leadership to maintain product availability, freshness, packaging standards, allergen controls, and sell‑through discipline for retail/prepared‑food items. 4. People Leadership, Scheduling and Performance Lead, coach, and develop Heart of House employees through clear expectations, training, regular feedback, respectful communication, and consistent follow‑up. Schedule kitchen employees based on business forecasts, confirmed bookings, market demand, production needs, labour budgets, training needs, and applicable employment standards. Approve and monitor shift changes, attendance, breaks, overtime requests, and timekeeping accuracy in accordance with policies and Ontario employment standards. Conduct performance reviews and support corrective action or discipline in partnership with leadership and/or HR, where applicable. Build a positive, safe, and accountable team culture that supports retention, cross‑training, productivity, and pride in workmanship. 5. Food Safety, Health and Safety, Sanitation and Compliance Maintain compliance with Ontario food premises requirements, local public health expectations, safe food‑handling procedures, internal sanitation standards and applicable workplace health and safety requirements. Ensure at least one certified food handler or supervisor is present during all operating hours and maintain current certification personally as a condition of the role. Oversee temperature logs, receiving checks, cooling/reheating controls, allergen controls, cross‑contamination prevention, cleaning schedules, pest‑prevention practices, and corrective actions. Implement and enforce safe equipment use, knife safety, chemical safety, WHMIS/SDS requirements, PPE use, incident reporting, hazard identification, and safe lifting practices. Maintain open‑kitchen presentation standards, including organization, cleanliness, professional appearance, visible food safety discipline, and guest‑facing professionalism. 6. Menu Development, Recipe Standards and Retail Integration Work with ownership and senior leadership on menu development, seasonal features, recipe creation, recipe costing, portion standards, and pricing recommendations. Maintain recipe adherence and train employees on standardized methods, portioning, plating, packaging, allergen notes, and quality expectations. Ensure recipes and production specifications are documented and updated when ingredients, suppliers, yields, or pricing change. Support the development of high‑margin, operationally realistic Market/retail products that align with organic and fresh‑food positioning. Monitor product performance and recommend changes to improve quality, guest appeal, sales mix, waste reduction, and contribution margin. Required Expertise and Capabilities Minimum 5 years of food and beverage experience in kitchen management, chef, sous chef, production chef, or supervisory capacity. Demonstrated ability to lead high‑performing kitchen teams in a fast‑paced restaurant, market, prepared‑food, catering, hotel, or retail food environment. Experience managing budgets, food cost, labour cost, inventory, purchasing, production planning, recipe costing, and waste reduction. Current Ontario‑recognized Food Handler Certification required. Working knowledge of Ontario food premises requirements, occupational health, and safety, WHMIS/SDS, allergen controls, sanitation, secure food handling, and kitchen equipment safety. Strong organizational, communication, coaching, conflict‑resolution, and critical thinking skills. Ability to forecast kitchen and production needs, adjust to changing priorities, and execute varied restaurant, market, event, and seasonal menus. Ability to work a flexible schedule, including evenings, weekends, and public holidays, based on business needs. Proficiency with scheduling, inventory software, POS, Excel spreadsheet, or restaurant‑management tools is required. Post‑secondary culinary training and/or Red Seal Trade certificate is required, CCC or equivalent is an asset. Accommodation and Equal Opportunity Statement The company is committed to fair and inclusive hiring. Accommodations are available upon request for candidates participating in the recruitment process. Candidates are encouraged to advise the hiring team of any accommodation needs so that appropriate support can be provided. Job Description Disclaimer This job description is intended to describe the general nature and level of work performed by the Kitchen Manager / Head Chef. It is not an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties, qualifications or working conditions. Duties may be adjusted from time to time based on business needs, provided they remain consistent with the nature of the role and applicable laws and policies. #J-18808-Ljbffr Apply on Kit Job: kitjob.ca/job/2pkocg