Tous Les Jours Bakery Café – Downers Grove, IL
Company Overview
Tous Les Jours is a French-Asian bakery café offering a unique selection of artisan breads, pastries, cakes, sandwiches, and handcrafted beverages made with premium ingredients. As one of the fastest-growing bakery café brands, Tous Les Jours combines traditional baking techniques with innovative flavors to create an exceptional guest experience.
We are committed to delivering fresh, high-quality products every day while providing outstanding customer service in a clean, welcoming environment.
Job Summary
We are seeking an experienced, hands-on Kitchen Manager to lead the daily production and back-of-house operations at our bakery café.
This position is 80% Kitchen Operations and 20% Store Management. The ideal candidate is an experienced bakery professional who enjoys working alongside the team while leading production, improving efficiency, and maintaining the highest quality standards.
The Kitchen Manager will oversee all daily kitchen operations including production planning, inventory management, ordering, receiving deliveries, scheduling kitchen employees, reducing waste, food safety, and employee development. This position requires previous baking experience and the ability to lead a fast-paced production environment.
This is an early morning position with a typical start time of 4:00 AM. Weekend and holiday availability is required.
Essential ResponsibilitiesKitchen Operations (80%)
- Lead all daily bakery production and kitchen operations to ensure products are prepared efficiently and meet Tous Les Jours quality standards.
- Work alongside the bakery team during daily production while providing hands-on leadership.
- Plan daily production based on historical sales, forecasts, and seasonal demand.
- Continuously improve production efficiency while maintaining exceptional product quality.
- Develop production plans that maximize freshness while minimizing waste.
- Manage kitchen inventory, including ordering, receiving deliveries, product rotation (FIFO), and inventory accuracy.
- Establish and maintain production pars for breads, pastries, cakes, sandwiches, and other bakery products.
- Monitor ingredient usage and control food costs through proper production planning and waste reduction.
- Create weekly schedules for all kitchen employees based on production needs and labor budgets.
- Recruit, train, coach, and develop bakers, cake decorators, and other back-of-house employees.
- Conduct daily quality checks to ensure freshness, consistency, presentation, and compliance with Tous Les Jours brand standards.
- Ensure all products are prepared according to company recipes and specifications.
- Maintain a clean, organized, and food-safe kitchen while ensuring compliance with all local health regulations.
- Train employees on food safety, sanitation, equipment operation, and workplace safety.
- Collaborate with the Tous Les Jours corporate team to implement new products, recipes, and operational procedures.
- Identify opportunities to improve production flow, labor efficiency, and overall kitchen performance.
- Maintain equipment and report maintenance needs promptly.
Store Management (20%)
- Support the General Manager with overall store operations and serve as Manager-on-Duty when necessary.
- Assist with daily opening and closing procedures.
- Help manage store profitability through labor management, inventory control, and operational efficiency.
- Coordinate communication between the front-of-house and kitchen teams to ensure smooth daily operations.
- Assist with interviewing, hiring, onboarding, and training new employees.
- Handle customer concerns professionally and help resolve operational issues.
- Ensure company policies and operational procedures are consistently followed.
- Monitor operational issues and communicate maintenance or facility concerns to the appropriate vendors.
- Complete required reports and administrative duties as assigned.
Qualifications Required
- Minimum 3 years of kitchen management experience in a high-volume bakery, café, restaurant, or food production environment.
- Professional baking experience is required.
- Strong knowledge of bakery production, inventory management, ordering, receiving, and food cost control.
- Experience improving production efficiency and reducing product waste.
- Experience creating employee schedules and managing labor costs.
- Strong leadership skills with experience hiring, coaching, and developing employees.
- Excellent organizational and time management skills.
- Knowledge of food safety regulations and sanitation procedures.
- Ability to work in a fast-paced production environment while maintaining high quality standards.
- Comfortable using Microsoft Office, inventory systems, and POS/reporting systems.
- Ability to lift up to 50 pounds and stand for extended periods.
- Ability to work weekends, holidays, and early morning shifts beginning at 4:00 AM.
Preferred
- Associate's Degree in Culinary Arts, Hospitality Management, or a related field.
- Previous bakery café management experience.
- Experience with production forecasting and inventory planning.
Join us as a Store/Kitchen Manager and be part of a dynamic team dedicated to delivering exceptional baked goods while fostering a positive environment for both customers and staff. Your leadership will drive success in our bakery’s growth and reputation!
If you are passionate about bakery operations, enjoy leading teams, and thrive in a hands-on production environment, we'd love to hear from you.
Pay: $46,000.00 - $50,000.00 per year
Benefits:
- Employee discount
- Opportunities for advancement
- Paid time off
- Store discount
Work Location: In person
