Metropolitan Culinary Arts Institute

Chef Operations Manager

Cookology Culinary School & Metropolitan Culinary Arts Institute

Location: Ballston Quarter, Arlington, VA

Position: Full-time, on-site

Schedule: Wednesday–Sunday, maximum 40 hours per week

Cookology Culinary School and Metropolitan Culinary Arts Institute are seeking a culinary professional for an administrative and operations-focused management position.

This role is ideal for an experienced chef who understands kitchens, recipes, culinary education, and hospitality but is interested in working beyond a traditional chef or instructor position.

The Manager, Operations will support class development, event preparation, marketing, customer service, and day-to-day operations for both Cookology and MCAI.

The ideal candidate is organized, dependable, creative, customer-focused, and capable of taking ownership of projects without continuous supervision.

Key Responsibilities

• Create and develop recreational cooking classes, camps, and private events.
• Prepare detailed class and event sheets for chefs and staff.
• Review recipes for accuracy, efficacy, portioning, equipment needs, and realistic class timing.
• Create classroom and event floor plans, including seating, workstations, equipment placement, and guest flow.
• Confirm that recipes, ingredients, equipment, supplies, staffing, and instructional materials are ready before each class.
• Set up classrooms and assist chefs before, during, and after classes and events.
• Support adult classes, children’s programs, camps, corporate events, and professional culinary programs.
• Create marketing materials, flyers, signage, and promotional content using Canva.
• Provide administrative support to the Owner, General Manager, MCAI Recruiter, instructors, and staff.
• Greet customers, students, parents, and guests with professionalism and enthusiasm.
• Resolve operational and customer concerns with a positive, solutions-oriented approach.
• Manage projects independently, meet deadlines, and communicate clearly with staff.
  

Qualifications

• Professional culinary education or significant culinary-industry experience.
• Strong understanding of recipes, kitchen operations, class timing, and culinary events.
• Excellent organizational, administrative, and customer-service skills.
• Comfortable using Canva, email, spreadsheets, Google Workspace, and Microsoft Office.
• Able to work independently and manage multiple deadlines.
• Confident working with adults, children, parents, chefs, students, and corporate guests.
• Weekend availability is required.
• Background check required due to interaction with minors.
• Ability to stand for extended periods and assist with classroom setup, supplies, and equipment.
  

Schedule

• Wednesday–Friday: 11:00 a.m.–7:00 p.m.
• Saturday: 9:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m.
• Sunday: 11:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m.
• Maximum 40 hours per week
• No remote or hybrid work

Depending on programming and staffing needs, full weekends or individual weekend days may be available at the beginning and end of each month with advance approval.

Compensation and Benefits

• Competitive compensation
• Compensation review after successful completion of the first 90 days
• Annual merit-based bonus opportunities
• Monthly health insurance stipend
• Monthly transportation benefit
• 10 paid vacation days after nine months of employment