Nationwide Travel
High-Volume Culinary Operations
Approximately 30 Days On / 14 Days Off
$70,000 Base Salary + Monthly Performance Incentive (Six-Figure Total Compensation Potential)
Lodging Provided During Deployment
This is a nationwide travel position. Candidates may reside anywhere in the United States but must be willing and able to deploy nationwide for extended assignments.
Please Read Before Applying
This is not a traditional local Executive Chef position.
This is a hands-on culinary leadership role supporting large-scale operations throughout the United States. Successful candidates must be comfortable with extended nationwide deployments, working approximately 12-hour shifts while deployed, and living in company-provided lodging. A typical rotation is approximately 30 days on assignment followed by 14 days off, but deployment lengths and time off may vary based on operational and emergency-response needs.
This is also a working chef position. You will lead kitchen operations and culinary teams, but you must be willing and able to work alongside your team and participate directly in food production when needed.
Strong Executive Chef candidates should have:
10+ years of hands-on professional chef experience
Experience leading production of 500+ meals or covers during a single meal service or event
Experience directly managing or supervising 20+ culinary employees
Demonstrated responsibility for food cost and inventory management
Demonstrated responsibility for labor cost, staffing and scheduling
Menu development and execution experience
A stable recent employment history
Experience working in high-volume culinary environments
If your background is primarily administrative foodservice management without significant hands-on chef experience, this position is unlikely to be a fit.
The Opportunity:
Sharp Spoon Network has been retained to recruit traveling Executive Chefs on behalf of a nationally recognized leader in disaster response, remote workforce support and large-scale culinary operations.
Assignments may support data centers, disaster recovery operations, military operations, remote workforce camps and other large-scale culinary projects throughout the United States.
Every deployment presents a different operational environment. Executive Chefs must be adaptable, decisive and comfortable leading teams in fast-paced and sometimes remote conditions.
What You'll Do As a Traveling Executive Chef, responsibilities may include:
Lead high-volume culinary production and kitchen operations
Direct culinary teams that may include 30 or more employees
Maintain food quality and service standards
Manage inventory, ordering and food cost
Manage staffing, scheduling and labor
Execute menus and accommodate operational or client requirements
Train, coach and develop culinary employees
Troubleshoot operational challenges
Maintain food safety and sanitation standards
Ensure large-volume meal production is completed safely and on schedule
Work directly alongside the culinary team when operational needs require it
Typical Assignments Projects may include:
Data center culinary operations
Disaster response and recovery
Military support
Remote workforce camps
Corporate hospitality and special events
Other temporary or large-scale foodservice operations
Assignments vary throughout the year and may occur anywhere in the United States.
Travel and Deployment Requirements Candidates must be comfortable with:
Nationwide travel
A typical rotation of approximately 30 days on assignment followed by 14 days off
Flexibility to accommodate longer deployments, shortened time off, reassignment or emergency-response needs
Approximately 12-hour shifts during deployments
Hotel accommodations when available
Remote projects that may require camp-style housing
Changing locations and operational environments
Company-paid travel and lodging are provided for qualifying deployments.
Minimum Qualifications 10+ years of hands-on professional chef experience
Experience producing at least 500 meals/covers during a single service or event
Experience directly supervising at least 20 culinary employees
High-volume foodservice experience
Food cost and inventory management experience
Labor management, staffing and scheduling experience
Menu development and execution experience
Strong kitchen leadership and communication skills
Valid driver's license
Reliable transportation
At least 21 years of age
Ability to pass required background screening
Ability to pass required drug screening
Ability and willingness to travel nationwide for extended deployments
Preferred Background:
Candidates with high-volume experience in one or more of the following environments are especially encouraged to apply:
Convention hotels and resorts
Banquet and large-scale catering operations
Sports and entertainment venues
Casino culinary operations
Contract or institutional dining
Military foodservice
Offshore or remote-site foodservice
Traveling or task-force culinary operations
Disaster response
Mobile or temporary kitchens
What Makes Someone Successful The strongest candidates are working culinary leaders who are:
Calm under pressure
Comfortable leading from the front
Adaptable in unfamiliar environments
Capable of making independent operational decisions
Strong developers of culinary teams
Comfortable transitioning between leadership and hands-on production
Genuinely interested in a travel-based career
Compensation and Benefits $70,000 base salary
Monthly performance incentive
Opportunity to earn six-figure total annual compensation through base salary and performance incentives
$45 daily per diem while on qualifying deployments
Lodging provided during qualifying deployments
Company-paid travel when applicable
Company laptop, cell phone and corporate credit card
Opportunity for long-term leadership advancement based on performance
About This Opportunity Sharp Spoon Network has been retained to recruit qualified candidates on behalf of our client. Selected candidates will become employees of our client, not Sharp Spoon Network.
Position details, compensation, schedules, assignments, and benefits are provided by the client and may be adjusted during the hiring process based on business needs.