Restaurant Sous Chef (The Culinary Floor General)
Hotel Saranac, Curio Collection by Hilton | Saranac Lake, NY
Compensation: $65,000 - $70,000 / year
Perks: Temporary Housing Available (Up to 90 Days) | Relocation Assistance | Hilton Global Travel Benefits ($40/night)
The Vibe
Hotel Saranac is the historic heartbeat of the Adirondacks—a masterfully restored 1920s landmark where rugged wilderness meets sophisticated, upscale hospitality. Our culinary program is prestigious, high-volume, and deeply integrated into the community, spanning our signature restaurant (Campfire), the vibrant Great Hall Lounge, high-end weddings, corporate banquets, and seasonal terrace dining.
We aren't looking for a passive assistant cook who just watches the clock. We are seeking a Culinary Floor General. This is a role for an ambitious, systems-driven leader who thrives on the theater of a busy line, commands respect through hands-on mentorship, and treats kitchen analytics—like labor optimization and inventory precision—as a craft. If you are an elite culinary professional ready to run a world-class kitchen infrastructure and expand your executive hospitality horizon, your stage is ready.
The Role
As the Restaurant Sous Chef, you are the operational backbone and daily engine of our entire culinary department. You bridge the gap between high-level culinary strategy and flawless, shift-by-shift execution. You own the kitchen floor, directly managing day-to-day operations, enforcing rigorous safety standards, and transforming our line cook team into a high-performing unit.
- The Floor General: Direct and synchronize daily culinary execution across all outlets—Campfire, Banquets, The Great Hall Lounge, and Room Service. Empower and utilize kitchen station leads to maintain property-wide efficiency, while leading by example on the line during peak volume to ensure every plate meets premium quality, portion, and presentation standards.
- The Team Architect: Take direct ownership of training, onboarding, and mentoring our existing line cook team. Cultivate a culture focused on professional development, clear communication, and elevated culinary techniques.
- The Schedule Master: Design smart, labor-optimized weekly schedules that respect our team’s execution limits, maintain proper floor coverage, and strictly protect the hotel's budgeted labor metrics.
- The Inventory & Cost Guardian: Take direct ownership of the kitchen’s financial baseline by driving strict food cost controls. You will oversee the daily inventory and ordering process, implementing disciplined line checks, monitoring waste logs, and managing vendor ordering cycles to minimize variance and ensure food cost targets are hit with mathematical precision.
- The Operational Anchor: Enforce a culture of absolute urgency, cleanliness, and discipline. Maintain 100% compliance with local health department codes, corporate sanitation protocols, and property cleanliness standards.
- The FOH Partner: Maintain seamless, professional, and collaborative communication with the front-of-house service team to ensure property-wide alignment and outstanding guest experiences.
What You Bring
- The Professional Pedigree: 3+ years of progressive culinary leadership experience (as a Sous Chef, Kitchen Manager, or Senior Lead Cook) within high-volume, multi-outlet hotels or premium, upscale independent restaurants.
- Systems & Administrative Discipline: Proven experience managing kitchen back-of-house logistics. You must know how to build labor schedules to a strict budget, navigate modern POS/KDS systems (Agilysys experience is a major plus), and execute structured inventory counts.
- People-First Leadership: A natural coach who leads with composure, warmth, and mutual respect under high pressure. You take pride in building a kitchen culture focused on teamwork, accountability, and zero tolerance for toxic environments.
- The Technical Craft: Advanced knowledge of food preparation, catering execution, food safety, and kitchen logistics, with a genuine passion for showcasing premium, locally sourced ingredients.
Why Join Us?
- A Runway for Professional Mastery: We invest heavily in leadership development. This position is built for an ambitious professional looking to master upscale hotel food & beverage analytics, refine back-of-house operational systems, and sharpen the administrative expertise required to lead a high-performing lifestyle culinary operation.
- Invest in You: Comprehensive health, medical, dental, and vision packages, 401(k) matching, and company-paid life insurance.
- Travel the World: Access to Hilton’s exclusive Go Hilton travel program, offering team member room rates starting as low as $40 a night at thousands of properties worldwide.
- Relocation Support: To secure the absolute best talent, we are committed to making your transition into our beautiful, lakeside mountain community seamless. We offer temporary housing for up to 90 days alongside tailored relocation assistance for the right candidate.
Pay: $65,000.00 - $70,000.00 per year
Benefits:
- 401(k) matching
- Dental insurance
- Health insurance
- Paid time off
- Relocation assistance
- Vision insurance
Work Location: In person
