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Food Operations Manager Jobs in Virginia (NOW HIRING)

Controls food cost and other controllable costs. * Maintains all financial goals related to ... Works with management staff to improve performance of the unit. * Prepares administrative reports ...

Manager, Food Operations

Chantilly, VA · On-site

$80K - $85K/yr

Controls food cost and other controllable costs. * Maintains all financial goals related to ... Works with management staff to improve performance of the unit. * Prepares administrative reports ...

Manager, Food Operations

Chantilly, VA · On-site

$80K - $85K/yr

Controls food cost and other controllable costs. * Maintains all financial goals related to ... Works with management staff to improve performance of the unit. * Prepares administrative reports ...

$46K - $63K/yr

Additional Considerations Experience in institutional or correctional food service operations, along with knowledge of inventory control, cost management, and menu planning. Certifications in food ...

Massanutten Resort | Great Eastern Purveyors (GEP) Food and Beverage Operations Manager We are seeking a dynamic and experienced Food & Beverage Operations Manager to lead and elevate our restaurant ...

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Showing results 1-20

Food Operations Manager information

See Virginia salary details

$31.7K

$59.2K

$111.5K

How much do food operations manager jobs pay per year?

As of Aug 25, 2026, the average yearly pay for food operations manager in Virginia is $59,185.00, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $46,100.00 and $61,000.00 per year, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What does a food operations manager do?

A Food Operations Manager oversees the daily operations of food service establishments, such as restaurants, cafeterias, or catering companies. Their responsibilities include managing staff, ensuring food safety and quality, handling budgets, and optimizing operational efficiency. They also coordinate with suppliers, monitor inventory, and ensure compliance with health regulations. Ultimately, they work to deliver excellent customer service while maintaining profitability.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as a food operations manager?

To thrive as a Food Operations Manager, you need expertise in food safety, inventory management, budgeting, and staff supervision, often supported by a degree in hospitality or business management. Familiarity with point-of-sale (POS) systems, food safety certifications (such as ServSafe), and scheduling software is typically required. Strong leadership, problem-solving, and communication skills help you motivate teams and resolve operational challenges. These skills ensure efficient operations, regulatory compliance, and high customer satisfaction in a fast-paced food service environment.

What are some common challenges food operations managers face when overseeing multiple locations?

Food Operations Managers who oversee multiple locations often encounter challenges such as maintaining consistent quality standards, ensuring effective communication across teams, and adapting to the unique needs of each site. Balancing inventory, staffing, and compliance with health and safety regulations can also be demanding. Successful managers develop strong organizational systems and foster a culture of accountability to overcome these hurdles and ensure smooth operations.

What is the difference between Food Operations Manager vs Food Service Supervisor?

AspectFood Operations ManagerFood Service Supervisor
CredentialsRelevant certifications (e.g., ServSafe, food safety management)Food safety certifications often required, but less comprehensive
Work EnvironmentOversees multiple locations or departments, strategic planningManages daily operations at a specific location or shift
Employer & Industry UsageUsed in restaurants, catering, hospitality, institutional food servicesCommon in restaurants, cafeterias, catering services
Search & Comparison IntentFocuses on managerial responsibilities, strategic oversightFocuses on operational, staff supervision

The Food Operations Manager typically handles broader strategic planning and oversees multiple units, requiring relevant certifications and experience. The Food Service Supervisor focuses on daily operational management and staff supervision at a specific location. Both roles are essential in the food service industry but differ mainly in scope and responsibilities.

Is a food operations manager a high paying job?

Food operations managers typically earn a competitive salary that varies based on experience, location, and the size of the operation. In general, they earn above average wages compared to many entry-level roles in the food service industry, with higher earnings possible for those managing large or multiple locations. Certifications in management and strong leadership skills can also influence earning potential.

What is a food operations manager?

A food operations manager oversees the daily activities of food service establishments, such as restaurants or cafeterias. They manage staff, ensure food quality and safety standards, control inventory, and optimize operational efficiency, often requiring knowledge of food safety regulations and management skills.

What is the role of a food operations manager in a food operation?

A food operations manager oversees daily food service activities, ensuring quality, safety, and efficiency in food preparation and delivery. They manage staff, control inventory, implement policies, and may use tools like POS systems to optimize operations.

What cities in Virginia are hiring for Food Operations Manager jobs?

Cities in Virginia with the most Food Operations Manager job openings:

Infographic showing various Food Operations Manager job openings in Virginia as of August 2026, with employment types broken down into 1% As Needed, 77% Full Time, 18% Part Time, 1% Temporary, 2% Contract, and 1% Nights. Highlights an 93% Physical, 3% Hybrid, and 4% Remote job distribution, with an average salary of $59,185 per year, or $28.5 per hour.

Manager, Food Operations

gategroup

Dulles, VA

$85K/mo

Full-time

Medical, Dental, Vision, Life, Retirement, PTO

Posted 12 days ago


Job description

We’re looking for motivated, engaged people to help make everyone’s journeys better.

The position is responsible for supervising food production employees in a unionized environment to ensure food specifications, quality assurance of products, sanitation, HACCP and FDA regulations are followed and is responsible for labor and food cost controls.

Annual Hiring Range/Hourly Rate: 

  • $80K - $85K Per Year 

Benefits 

  • Paid time off 
  • 401k, with company match 
  • Company sponsored life insurance 
  • Medical, dental, vision plans 
  • Voluntary short-term/long-term disability insurance 
  • Voluntary life, accident, and hospital plans 
  • Employee Assistance Program 
  • Commuter benefits 
  • Employee Discounts 
  • Weekly pay for union employees 
  • Free hot healthy meals for unit operations roles 

Main Duties and Responsibilities:

  • Ensures quality production standards are followed and maintained.
  • Ensures employees adhere to HACCP, FDA and safety regulations and compliance with company policies and procedures.
  • Controls food cost and other controllable costs.
  • Maintains all financial goals related to productivity, overtime, labor goals and meals per hour.
  • Works with management staff to improve performance of the unit.
  • Prepares administrative reports as required.
  • Responsible for safety, quality and compliance with customer specifications.
  • Ensures specifications, airline diagrams, and sample meals are accurate according to the airline specifications. 
  • Ensures that all products are coded and dated according to Gate Gourmet procedures.  
  • Conducts inventory of products to ensure proper usage and minimization of waste.
  • Completes required requisitions for the Storeroom to ensure adequate supply is maintained.
  • Responsible for maintaining daily temperature logs and other logs and reports as required.
  • Supervises employees on daily operations including:
    • Conducts performance evaluations for employees providing specific and detailed feedback on their management and leadership skills and the attainment of their respective goals and objectives
    • Ensures compliance with company Wage & Hour policy, including ensuring employees get the rest & meal breaks and ensuring company processes are followed.
    • Trains and monitors employees on proper work procedures to ensure maximum productivity with minimum labor and food expenses.
    • Monitors daily manpower planning and schedules employees. 
    • Responsible for employee retention and reducing employee turnover.
    • Responsible for coaching, counseling and preparing corrective actions for employees in compliance with the applicable union/collective bargaining agreement(s).
    • Reviews and ensures employees in chain of command are in correct cost centers and correct job titles.
    • Reviews and ensures union represented employees’ pay rates are correct based on wage scales and seniority.
    • Employee must complete all company required training including but not limited to ServSafe
    • Compliance with all company required policies, procedures and processes including but not limited to required training

Qualifications

Education:

  • High School Diploma or GED required.
  • Associates degree or degree from a 4-year university or college preferred.

Work Experience:

  • Minimum of 3 years supervisory experience working in a high volume, manufacturing, food production, and restaurant or catering environment required.
  • Minimum of 5 years cook or food production or preparation experience required.
  • Current or previous labor relations experience is a plus, but not required.

Technical Skills: (Certification, Licenses and Registration)

  • Must have strong and effective leadership skills, and the ability to successfully manage a staff of 100+ hourly employees.
  • Must be comfortable with all levels of employees and have the ability to drive positive program change.
  • Ability to train others required.
  • Excellent time management skills required.  Ability to handle multiple tasks without losing focus on priorities.
  • Strong organizational, analytical, communication and leadership skills required.
  • Must be innovative and have the ability to make changes to the operation as needed to further improve the work environment and unit performance.
  • Experience with menu design a plus.
  • Basic computer skills required.  Working knowledge of Microsoft Office products preferred.
  • ServSafe Certified preferred.
  • Ability to obtain ServSafe Certification required.

Language / Communication Skills:

  • Must be able to communicate effectively with management team and staff.
  • Bi-lingual in Spanish is a plus.
  • Must have the ability to give negative and positive feedback to employees on a daily basis.

Job Dimensions

Geographic Responsibility: Unit

Type of Employment: Full-time

Travel %: None

Exemption Classification: Exempt

Internal Relationships: all internal departments

External Relationships: customers, suppliers

Work Environment / Requirements of the Job:

  • Regularly, stands, bends, lifts, and moves intermittently during shifts of 10+ hours.
  • In a normal production kitchen facility, there may be physical discomfort due to temperature and noise.
  • Must be able to lift, push, pull and move product, equipment, supplies, etc., in excess of twenty-five (25) pounds.
  • A rotating schedule of over 55 hours per week is typical.

Budget / Revenue Responsibility: (Local Currency) N/A

Organization Structure

Direct Line Manager (Title):  Varies depends on the unit size

Dotted Line Manager (Title, if applicable):  N/A

Number of Direct Reports: 1-5

Number of Dotted Line Reports: N/A

Estimated Total Size of Team: 40+

gategroup Competencies Required to be Successful in the Job:

  • Thinking – Information Search and analysis & problem resolution skills
  • Engaging – Understanding others, Team Leadership and Developing People
  • Inspiring – Influencing and building relationships, Motivating and Inspiring, Communicating effectively
  • Achieving – Delivering business results under pressure, Championing Performance Improvement and Customer Focus

Demonstrated Values to be Successful in the Position

Employees at gategroup are expected to live our Values of Excellence, Integrity, Passion and Accountability. To demonstrate these Values, we expect to observe the following from everyone:

  • We treat each other with respect and we act with integrity
  • We communicate and keep each other informed
  • We put our heads together to problem solve and deliver excellence as a team
  • We have passion for our work and we pay attention to the little details
  • We foster an environment of accountability, take responsibility for our actions and learn from our mistakes
  • We do what we say we will do, when we say we are going to do it
  • We care about our coworkers, always taking an opportunity to make someone’s day better

The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by the individual(s) assigned to this position.  They are not intended to be an exhaustive list of all duties, responsibilities, and skills required.  Management reserves the right to modify, add, or remove duties and to assign other duties as necessary.  In addition, reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of this position.

gategroup is an equal opportunity employer committed to workforce diversity.  All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment and will not be discriminated against on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran status, disability status or other category under applicable law.

For further information regarding Equal Employment Opportunity, copy and paste the following URL into your web browser: http://www.dol.gov/ofccp/regs/compliance/posters/pdf/eeopost.pdf

We anticipate that this job will close on:

08/31/2026 For California Residents, please click here to view our California privacy notice.

If you want to be part of a team that helps make travel and culinary memories, join us!