Culinary Director

Description

Position Overview

The Culinary Director leads Just Fare’s catering kitchen and front-of-house (FOH) operations, with accountability for food quality, hospitality, team performance, and financial results. This role connects what happens in our Oakland production kitchen with what guests experience at each client site, ensuring meals are thoughtfully designed, consistently executed, and delivered within budget.

You will lead our culinary and catering FOH managers, strengthen daily operating systems, and evolve our lunch program to offer more variety and choice. You will also develop fresh food product lines for our Snack & Drink (pantry) programs, working with pantry leadership to bring them from concept to reliable production, sourcing, and service.

This role reports to the CEO, with the reporting relationship transitioning to the COO when that position is filled. You will work closely with pantry leadership, Client Experience, Front of House & Logistics, Finance, and People Operations.

About Just Fare

Just Fare is an Oakland-based food company providing workplace catering and pantry services. We bring thoughtful food and hospitality to offices in the Bay Area and across multiple cities, combining our own culinary production with local restaurant and catering partners. We believe food can be a force for social change, and our Community Kitchen helps support people facing food insecurity in the Bay Area.

1% of our revenue supports donated meals made by our charitable arm, Just Fare Community Kitchen. So far, we have delivered over 505,250 meals to communities fighting food insecurity in the Bay Area. 

Tastes good. Does good.

Requirements

Culinary Direction and Menu Development

• Lead menu planning and development across catering programs, balancing flavor, seasonality, variety, dietary needs, and cost.
• Develop a cohesive lunch program with rotating options that give guests meaningful choice and remain manageable to produce and serve.
• Standardize recipes, portions, yields, substitutions, and client customizations so changes carry accurately from ordering through production and service.
• Lead culinary development of restaurant and catering partnerships, including menus, portions, dietary standards, tastings, and quality reviews. Work with Account Management on client requirements, partner onboarding, service coordination, and feedback.

Fresh Product Development for Pantry

• Develop fresh food product lines for Snack & Drink programs, such as refrigerated grab-and-go meals, protein salads, breakfast items, and snacks, based on client needs and feedback.
• Create recipes, portions, packaging, allergen information, and food safety and shelf-life specifications; determine which products to produce in-house or source from local partners.
• Partner with pantry leadership on pricing and cost targets, demand forecasts, delivery and replenishment plans, and pilots; refine products based on sales or consumption, guest feedback, and waste.
• Build repeatable production and sourcing standards so successful products can be offered consistently across accounts and markets.

Kitchen and Front of House Operations

• Lead daily kitchen production and catering FOH service through the Executive Chef and hospitality managers, establishing clear ownership and reliable handoffs.
• Align production plans, staffing, packaging, dispatch readiness, and service schedules with client headcounts and approved changes.
• Set and maintain standards for presentation, setup, replenishment, guest interaction, breakdown, and communication between kitchen and service teams.
• Maintain documented food safety, allergen, sanitation, and time and temperature procedures from receiving through transport and service; verify teams follow them.
• Improve purchasing, inventory, equipment use, kitchen workflow, and waste tracking, and plan production capacity for new accounts and increased volume.

Financial Performance

• Own catering food and kitchen and FOH labor performance against agreed budgets, partnering with Finance to review results and address variances.
• Use recipe costing, purchasing data, production yields, and service feedback to manage portions, waste, overtime, and cost per meal.
• Evaluate the cost and operational impact of new offerings and customizations before committing to them with Sales and Client Experience.

Team Leadership

• Coach culinary and FOH managers, set clear expectations, and build a consistent culture of accountability, respect, and hospitality.
• Partner with People Operations on staffing plans, hiring, onboarding, training, performance reviews, and corrective action.
• Build cross-training and coverage plans that help teams maintain service when staffing or client needs change.

Qualifications 

• Significant culinary leadership experience, typically eight or more years, including management of high-volume catering, commissary, workplace dining, or comparable food operations.
• Experience overseeing both kitchen production and FOH service, including leading managers and hourly teams.
• Demonstrated ability to improve food and labor costs while maintaining quality and hospitality.
• Strong menu and fresh product development, recipe costing, production planning, and food safety knowledge, including refrigerated foods and packaging for off-site service.
• Experience building practical systems in a growing business and managing changes across multiple client programs.
• Clear communication, sound judgment, and proficiency with spreadsheets and shared scheduling and project tools.
• Experience with restaurant partnerships or off-site catering is helpful. Spanish language skills are a plus.

Schedule and Expectations

Based in Oakland, with regular time in the production kitchen and at Bay Area client sites. Hours vary with production and service needs and may include early mornings, occasional evenings, and travel for launches.

Compensation & Benefits 

• $110,000 to 150,000 Annual Salary Range DOE. Competitive wages in an equitable tiered pay structure for all positions.
• Cell Phone Stipend
• Health, dental, and vision insurance - After 90 Days
• Self Managed Vacation, Paid Time Off (PTO) - After 90 Days
• All employees 401K (retirement account) -After 90 days
• Commuter (pre-tax) - After 30 Days
• Meals provided daily onsite at Oakland Commissary Kitchen and at most client sites
• Opportunity to develop your skills, work with amazing people & be a part of a force for social change!