Pastry Chef

JOB OVERVIEW

Exhibits creative baking and decorating talents by personally performing tasks while leading the staff in preparing quality and consistent pastries for all areas. Works to continually improve guest and employee satisfaction while maintaining the operating budget. Leads development and training of team to improve results while maintaining standards. Must ensure sanitation and food standards are achieved.

CANDIDATE PROFILE

Education and Experience

• High school diploma or GED; 4 years experience in the culinary, food and beverage, or related professional area.

OR

• 2-year degree from an accredited university in Culinary Arts, Hotel and Restaurant Management, or related major; 2 years experience in the culinary, food and beverage, or related professional area.

CORE WORK ACTIVITIES

Leading Pastry Culinary Team

• Utilizes interpersonal and communication skills to lead, influence, and encourage others; advocates sound financial/business decision making; demonstrates honesty/integrity; leads by example.
• Supervises and manages employees. Manages all day-to-day operations. Understands employee positions well enough to perform duties in employees' absence.
• Encourages and builds mutual trust, respect, and cooperation among team members.
• Serves as a role model to demonstrate appropriate behaviors.
• Ensures and maintains the productivity level of employees.
• Ensures employees understand expectations and parameters.
• Establishes and maintains open, collaborative relationships with employees and ensures employees do the same within the team.
• Solicits employee feedback, utilizes an "open door" policy and reviews employee satisfaction results to identify and address employee problems or concerns.
• Leads shifts while personally preparing food items and executing requests based on required specifications.
• Supervises and coordinates activities of cooks and workers engaged in food preparation.

Ensuring Culinary Standards and Responsibilities are Met

• Develops, designs, or creates new applications, ideas, relationships, systems, or products, including artistic contributions.
• Recognizes superior quality products, presentations and flavor.
• Maintains food preparation handling and correct storage standards.
• Maintains purchasing, receiving and food storage standards.
• Supports procedures for food & beverage portion and waste controls.
• Follows proper handling and right temperature of all food products.
• Supervises pastry preparation shift operations and ensures compliance with all Food & Beverage policies, standards and procedures.
• Ensures compliance with all applicable laws and regulations.
• Prepares and cooks foods of all types, either on a regular basis or for special guests or functions.
• Checks the quality of raw and cooked food products to ensure that standards are met.
• Assists in determining how food should be presented and creates decorative food displays.

Ensuring Exceptional Customer Service

• Provides services that are above and beyond for customer satisfaction and retention.
• Manages day-to-day operations, ensuring the quality, standards and meeting the expectations of the customers on a daily basis.
• Improves service by communicating and assisting individuals to understand guest needs, providing guidance, feedback, and individual coaching when needed.
• Sets a positive example for guest relations.
• Empowers employees to provide excellent customer service.
• Emphasizes guest satisfaction during all departmental meetings and focuses on continuous improvement.
• Strives to improve service performance.

Maintaining Culinary Goals

• Achieves and exceeds goals including performance goals, budget goals, team goals, etc.
• Develops specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work.
• Trains employees in safety procedures and supervises their ability to follow loss prevention policies to prevent accidents and control costs.
• Purchases appropriate supplies and manage inventories according to budget.

Supports Training and Development Activities 

• Ensures disciplinary procedures and documentation are completed according to Standard and Local Operating Procedures (SOPs and LSOPs) and support the Peer Review Process.
• Participates in training staff on menu items including ingredients, preparation methods and unique tastes.
• Reviews staffing levels to ensure that guest service, operational needs and financial objectives are met.
• Ensures property policies are administered fairly and consistently.
• Assists as needed in the interviewing and hiring of employee team members with appropriate skills.

Additional Responsibilities 

• Provides information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
• Analyzes information and evaluates results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
• Brings issues to the attention of the department manager and Human Resources as necessary.
• Attends and participates in all pertinent meetings.