Kitchen Operations Manager Jobs in Seattle, WA (NOW HIRING)

Sous Chef – Commercial Production

Location: Seattle, WA (Onsite)
Salary: $78,000 - $82,000 per year

About the Company

Our client is a leading provider of airline catering, onboard hospitality, and aviation logistics services, preparing and delivering thousands of chef-crafted meals each day for major airlines. Their operation combines culinary excellence with large-scale food production, requiring exceptional quality, consistency, and execution in a fast-paced environment.

About the Role

We're seeking a Sous Chef – Commercial Production to lead daily food production in a high-volume commercial kitchen. This role is responsible for overseeing a team of 25–50 kitchen production employees, ensuring meals are prepared safely, consistently, and according to strict customer specifications.

This is a leadership-first position. While you'll occasionally assist with hands-on cooking, your primary responsibility is overseeing production, coaching cooks, maintaining quality standards, and ensuring the kitchen operates efficiently. You'll conduct frequent batch tastings, monitor recipe execution, manage inventory and production schedules, and maintain compliance with HACCP and food safety standards.

When the Executive Chef is unavailable, you'll assume responsibility for leading the kitchen operation.

Key Responsibilities

Kitchen Operations

• Lead daily food production in a high-volume commercial kitchen.

• Supervise 25–50 kitchen production employees while ensuring production stays on schedule.

• Ensure cooks have the ingredients, equipment, and support they need to execute daily production.

• Verify recipes are followed exactly to specification and customer requirements.

• Conduct frequent batch tastings and quality checks to maintain consistency and food quality.

• Manage inventory, food ordering, production schedules, and product rotation.

• Monitor food costs, minimize waste, and support overall kitchen efficiency.

• Assist with hands-on cooking when needed while remaining focused on supervising production.

Leadership

• Coach, train, and develop kitchen staff in food preparation, quality standards, and production processes.

• Provide daily leadership, direction, and performance feedback to the culinary team.

• Help organize staffing, workflow, and daily production priorities.

• Assume responsibility for kitchen operations in the absence of the Executive Chef.

Food Safety & Quality

• Ensure compliance with HACCP, sanitation, and food safety regulations.

• Monitor food quality from preparation through final production.

• Conduct quality control checks and ensure all meals meet company and customer standards.

Qualifications

Required

• 3–5 years of leadership experience overseeing kitchen operations in a high-volume commercial kitchen.

• Strong commercial kitchen experience in production-focused, recipe-driven environments where consistency is more important than creative cooking.

• Preferred backgrounds include:

• Senior living communities

• Schools and universities

• Military culinary programs

• Airline catering

• Commissaries

• Large-scale production kitchens

• Previous experience supervising high-volume kitchen or food production teams.

• Strong culinary skills with the ability to evaluate food quality, seasoning, texture, and presentation through regular batch tastings.

• Knowledge of HACCP, food safety, sanitation, and quality control standards.

• Experience managing inventory, food costs, waste reduction, and production planning.

• Strong communication, organizational, and hands-on leadership skills.

• Proficiency with Microsoft Office and basic computer applications.

• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, deadline-driven production environment.

Preferred

• Experience in airline catering, large-scale food manufacturing, commissary kitchens, hospitality, healthcare, or institutional food service.

• Strong financial awareness, cost control, and menu execution experience.

• Experience leading production teams in highly standardized food manufacturing environments.

Schedule

This is a 24/7 production operation, and flexibility is required.

• Must be available to work day, evening, weekend, holiday, and other shifts as operational needs require.

• Schedule may vary based on production demands.

Why Join?

• Competitive salary of $78,000-$82,000

• Medical, dental, and vision benefits

• 401(k)

• Paid Time Off

• Paid Sick Time

• Opportunity to lead a large culinary production team supporting a major aviation services provider.

• Excellent opportunity to grow into senior culinary leadership within a large, multi-site organization.

Important Requirements

Candidates without commercial kitchen leadership experience, strong culinary skills, or knowledge of HACCP and food safety standards are unlikely to be successful. This role requires a leader who excels in high-volume, production-focused kitchens where consistency, execution, and coaching others are the top priorities.