Chef De Cuisine / Executive Sous - Amara

Job Description:

Amara, located at 670 N Midvale Blvd in Madison, WI, is seeking a Chef De Cuisine to join our team.

Amara is our take on contemporary coastal Italian cuisine featuring sharable small plates and bites, hand-crafted pastas, and entrées showcasing the bounty of Madison Wisconsin. Our wine list will feature cutting edge Italian and Italian-inspired artisan wines farmed by hand and made with classical methods. Our bar will showcase the art of Italian drinking including aperitifs, negronis, cocktails and espresso. Amara will open its doors in the late summer of 2022.

The name Amara derives from the Ancient Greek ‘Amáranthos’, which means ‘everlasting flower’. Amore in Italian, Amará in Spanish, and Amara in Arabic all refer to love. Yet, Amara in Italian means bitter, conjuring some of the hallmarks of Italian cooking and drinking, where herbs, bitter greens, and digestivi are celebrated for their health benefits and healing botanical qualities. Bitter and sweet are often found together, and at the same time, and couldn't be more relevant to us now as we move forward with purpose and intention seeking balance, healing, health, sustainability, and love.

Chef De Cuisine (CDC) -Amara - Madison, WI

The Chef De Cuisine (CDC) will work alongside Chef/Partner Jon Nodler, a James Beard Foundation semi-finalist and Executive chef of Food & Wine Magazine’s “#1 Best New Restaurant” in 2019. Together, you will strive to create and maintain a culture championing knowledge, excellence, fun, service and approachability (internal and external). Orientation to our mission and our customer at all times is key. Your role will be to oversee the food experience we are striving for with our concepting and opening.

The CDC along with the team of on site management, will be responsible for the day-to-day site specific operations of Amara with Chef Jon Nodler and Rule No. One Hospitality, our Madison-based hospitality group playing a supporting role in marketing, programming and strategic operations. The ability to work independently and creatively within this corporate structure is paramount to the success of this role.

Benefits:

Competitive wages
A flexible and predictable schedule that is posted two weeks in advance
50% dining discount for your friends and family
Free and healthy GF Vegetarian or Regular staff meal
Access to Amara's online classroom with training materials, recipes, and checklists. After full orientation, we offer weekly paid training opportunities to taste wine, spirits and food with industry experts
Our mission is centered around treating each other and ourselves well through our love of food, drink, and community
Sustainability must be possible and attainable in our industry!
All employees are offered health, dental and vision insurance
Paid time off
401k contribution
The chance to work in a brand new clean facility with state of the art new equipment
The chance to contribute to one of the most dynamic restaurant groups in the region

Our ideal Chef De Cuisine has:

2-4 years of high level fine dining kitchen management experience. Corporate experience is encouraged with professional use of email communications as well as proficiency in Google Workspace (Gmail, Google Drive, Classroom, Sheets, Docs etc.)

The ability to work in conjunction with the General Manager on supervision of the staff and physical plant. Demonstrates positive communication skills outside of the kitchen and strives to create an inclusive environment through education and training across all departments.

The ability to maintain food quality standards for the restaurant. Oversees, in conjunction with your kitchen MGMT team, all phases of food procurement, production and service including inventory and ordering, storage and rotation, preparation, recipe adherence, plate presentation and service and production time standards.

Superior kitchen administrative and organizational skills. Maintains a strong understanding of sales, food cost (cost of goods sold), labor cost, budgets, and what steps can be taken to manipulate performance to meet target goals. Understands purchasing/purveyor relationships that assist in COGS benefits. Must be able to schedule and oversee staffing levels to maintain proper labor costs and performance.

The ability to oversee cleanliness and organization in accordance with policies set forth for all Rule No. One Hospitality (RNO) kitchens and Health Departments standards. ServSafe certification is required.

A proven history as a leader, a trainer and a coach. Is responsible for overseeing personnel decisions including disciplinary action, hiring and firing. Is able to build and maintain, through training and education, a team by taking complete ownership of the kitchen and by creating an environment that promotes both individual growth and team success.

Experience living and working in a Downtown setting and preferably larger metropolitan cities. Has an understanding of the Madison culinary scene and further building on the impeccable purveyor and farmer relationships, as well as the local professional kitchen & marketing trends.

The ability to problem solve and work well under pressure. Demonstrates a strong track record working with staff and guests to quickly problem solve and meet both guests and staff where they are at with the resources available.

The ability to collaborate with the RNO Culinary Director in recipe writing, development, maintenance and oversight. Keeping the menu and programming looking forward while remaining in line with the brand and marketing initiatives is key to the success of Amara.

The ability to oversee and execute service to the level of standards expected by our hospitality group and our guests. This is a working chef position that, at some points, will require the active participation on the line and in the pass.

The ability to stand for up to 12 hours on end, work in heat and in cold environments, handle sharp hot equipment, and lift heavy objects on a regular basis.

RNO is a mission-driven lifestyle company dedicated to creating spaces for celebrating and treating each other and ourselves well. We seek to provide warm, fun and an endlessly interesting mix of inspired programming that challenges, invigorates and delights our guests by celebrating our craft, who we are, what we do and what we believe. As a community-driven hospitality management organization, we are active in social causes supporting women, Black, LGBTQ+, and Indigenous communities everywhere. Cook It Forward is a non-profit advocacy arm of Rule No One Hospitality, Inc. with a mission to address ongoing inequities in our food systems. We are all working collectively on social entrepreneurship, social equity, and social justice-- one meal at a time.

Our Values:

Inclusivity. We will establish a culturally diverse and inclusive environment, one that specifically supports minorities, all genders, and those historically underrepresented in our industry.
Humility. We are modest about capabilities, admit mistakes, and create the space for others to contribute.
Effective Collaboration. We are a team centered around positivity, that stands for one message which involves empowering others, empathizing with each other, and uplifting others as a collective.
Respect and Justice / Health and Well-Being. All team members need to be treated respectfully and fairly. This pertains to equity in pay, and specific attention to physical/mental health, well-being and safety.
Positivity and Love of Food and Community. Cooking and serving others is a powerful act of caring and love for one another. Let us work together to bring our community together through the power of food and drink

Pay Rate:

$60-65k annual salary, depending on leadership experience, plus benefits

**this position will grow into an Executive Chef role with an increased salary. More details available during the interview process

Amara is an equal opportunity employer, with a mission to support women, Black, LGBTQ+ applicants. As an organization, we support a minimum wage of $16/hour.

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