Manager Head Baker - Viennoiserie
The Boy & The Bear is building its own in-house bakery program to support all 8 of our cafés, seven days a week. We are looking for a Head Baker, someone who lives fully inside the craft of croissants, laminated doughs, and danishes.
The Head Baker is responsible for the complete leadership of The Boy & The Bear bakery program.
This position oversees production, staffing, product development, financial performance, inventory, purchasing, quality assurance, and operational execution. The role exists to build and maintain one of the finest artisan bakery programs in the specialty coffee industry.
This is a 100% hands-on, production-driven role. No office. No remote work. You are in the kitchen, every day, leading production with your own hands.
This is the person our entire bakery program depends on.
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Salary Pay:
$75,000 to $85,000 Annually + Quarterly performance bonus capped at 15% of your base Salary.
Status:
Full Time
Non Exempt
Location:
1020 El Centro St, South Pasadena, CA 91030
Benefits:Health insurance
Vision & Dental
401K
Sick PTO
Paid Vacations
Employee Discounts
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ROLE MINDSET:
The Head Baker leads with professionalism, consistency, technical excellence, and accountability.
Every decision should strengthen product quality, operational discipline, and team development while supporting sustainable financial performance.
At The Boy & The Bear, our approach to coffee is rooted in care + intention, professional discipline, and deep respect for craft. This bakery role carries that same philosophy. As the Head Baker,, you bring the same values, mindset, and mission into the baking world that we bring into coffee:
Bake With Purpose:
You understand that every detail matters: climate conditions, fermentation process,
the quality of raw materials, the same way every step of our coffee sourcing, roasting, and brewing matters. You follow structure, technique, and recipe standards while bringing intentional, seasonal creativity to the menu. Nothing is rushed nor accidental. Everything is deliberate, thoughtful, and executed with pride for the product.
Respect for the Process:
You honor the early, quiet hours because this is the time where your craft lives.
The work is physical, technical, and demanding, yet profoundly rewarding when customers notice the difference in quality and detail. You treat every part of the process with respect, knowing that excellence comes from consistency, not shortcuts.
Protect the Craft:
You protect the quality of our pastry program with the same integrity we protect our coffee program = Visual standards, texture, flavor, and delicate intention are non-negotiable.
Reliability as Identity:
Highest reliability is not an expectation, it is part of your identity as a baker. You show up
with commitment, and with the understanding that your work fuels every TB&TB location, every day.
You understand that this bakery will serve thousands of people each week across multiple stores. Your hands shape the experience of every customer, creating a true coffee + bakery experience that reflects the values, warmth, and refinement of The Boy & The Bear.
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WHAT ARE WE LOOKING FOR:
1. Reliability at the highest level:
Your consistency is essential. Our stores, our team, and our customers depend on the products you produce every morning. This role requires to maintain the highest and dependable steady presence.
2. Croissant & Lamination Mastery:
You must have real, proven experience working with:
● Laminated doughs
● Croissant sheeters
● Fermentation & proofing
● Dark, deeply caramelized bakes
● Croissant, Danishes and seasonal variations.
You must be able to deliver the quality, consistency and aesthetic expected of The Boy & The Bear
3. Full Self-Management:
You don’t need supervision. You run production, schedule your prep, and maintain consistency without being asked. Strong discipline, clean workflow, ownership, and pride in your craft are
essential.
4. Financial Responsibility & Operational Sustainability:
This is a craft + financial leadership position. Both matter. You understand the full in-and-out economics of running a bakery program:
● COGs
● Labor hours budgeting
● Yield and waste management
● Daily production efficiencies
● Par levels for all 6 stores
● Seasonal cost fluctuations
You keep the bakery financially healthy, which includes:
● Clear, accurate inventory
● Minimal waste
● Transparent communication on needs
● Maintaining margin-conscious production
● Operating within the financial limits of the program
● COGS + labor within a financially sustainable budget.
Your success in this role depends on building a healthy baking department, a positive, accountable culture, and consistently delivering world-class quality on a sustainable budget.
You will be evaluated monthly and quarterly across clear KPIs:
● Waste %
● Unit yield accuracy
● QC and visual standards
● Production consistency and efficiency
● Labor Budget %
● Inventory accuracy
● Overall Financial success and budget efficiency
● Reliability & accountability
● Team Management and coaching.
Above all:
You are honest, disciplined, and uphold high ethical standards in every part of the job.
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QUALIFICATIONS
Candidates must demonstrate proven and verifiable experience in the following areas:
● 3+ years of proven experience in lamination / viennoiserie
● 3+ years of proven hands-on experience with croissants and danishes
● 3+ years of proven hands-on experience on team leadership.
● 3+ years of proven experience successfully managing a Rustic bakery
● Ability to work early-morning bakery hours
● Ability to lift and move bakery equipment and ingredients
● Reliable transportation
● Portfolio or photos of your laminated dough work
● Strong sense of discipline, ownership, and cleanliness
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ROLE OVERVIEW:
● Manage the entire TB&TB Bakery achieving operational excellence.
● Operate TB&TB's bakery program with financial discipline achieving profitability.
● Prep and stage products for delivery to all stores
● Communicate proactively about inventory, quality, or equipment issues
● Reduce waste and maintain production cost efficiency
● Uphold company's vision, product quality and consistency standards
● Manage, interview and hire your bakery team.
● Train, coach and keep accountability on your bakery team.
● Manage dough, butter, flour, fillings, and inventory timelines
● Prepare, laminate, proof, and bake croissants, danishes, buns and bread daily.
● Operate lamination equipment with expertise
● Execute seasonal specials aligned with TB&TB’s aesthetic
● Document recipes, yields, and daily production logs
● Maintain early-morning production schedule
● Keep a clean, organized, and health-compliant kitchen.
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How to win in you position at TB&TB:
If it’s in your nature to win, to move the needle, raise the bar, and constantly look for better ways to do things you’ll fit right in here with us.
Over the past 12 years, we’ve had the privilege of working with hundreds of people across every role in our company, and the ones who’ve made the greatest impact all share one thing in common: They are natural competitors. They don’t pursue excellence because someone tells them to. They do it because it’s simply who they are. They have an internal drive to improve, solve problems, create exceptional work, and strive to set the standard in our industry, not for recognition, but because that’s their nature.
That’s the kind of team we’re building at The Boy and the Bear. If this sounds like you, we’d love to meet you.
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How to win in you position at TB&TB:
If it’s in your nature to win, to move the needle, raise the bar, and constantly look for better ways to do things you’ll fit right in here with us.
APPLY:
Please send us your resume in PDF email to:
[email protected]
[email protected]
We are an equal-opportunity employer: We celebrate diversity and welcome applicants from all backgrounds, identities, and cultures. What matters most to us are your skills, your integrity, your passion for world class coffee and your alignment company’s beliefs, vision and core values.
Pay: $75,000.00 - $85,000.00 per year
Benefits:
- 401(k)
- Dental insurance
- Employee discount
- Health insurance
- Paid time off
- Store discount
- Vision insurance
Application Question(s):
- Have you personally produced artisan croissants from mixing the dough through lamination, proofing, and baking?
- Are you able to consistently work shifts beginning between 3:00 AM and 10:00 AM?
- Have you worked as the lead baker or head baker responsible for daily production?
- What additional professional information can you share that you believe is relevant to this role that we should consider when reviewing your application?
Experience:
- Head Baker: 3 years (Required)
- Viennoiserie: 3 years (Required)
- Laminated Dough: 3 years (Required)
- Commercial Bakery: 3 years (Required)
- Bakery Management: 3 years (Required)
- Team management: 3 years (Required)
Work Location: In person
