Description
Who We Are & About This Role Since 1946, Blake’s Orchard & Cider Mill has been a cornerstone of Michigan agriculture and agritourism - an 80-year family operation with deep roots in Armada and a genuine growth ambition. We make world-class hard and sweet cider, operate tasting rooms and restaurants across four locations, and host thousands of guests a year. The Head Chef & Kitchen Manager owns the back of house - its people, culinary identity, cost performance, and daily execution. This is a role for a creative, guest-aware culinarian who leads with both passion and precision. You’ll bring fresh ideas to the menu, build a kitchen team that’s proud of the food they put out, and hold an uncompromising standard for quality, safety, and development - day in, day out.
This role is central to delivering a consistent and distinctive guest experience across restaurant service, special events, and seasonal outposts.
If you’ve run a kitchen, led cooks through hard service, and made great food work with the resources you had - we want to hear from you.
Your Role With Blake’s - Key Responsibilities Culinary Vision & Creativity You set the culinary identity. The menu, the standards, the craft - that’s yours to own.
- Drive the culinary identity of the restaurant with a creative, guest-informed perspective on food
- Develop menus, specials, and seasonal offerings in partnership with leadership - with a focus on originality, local and seasonal sourcing, and evolving guest tastes
- Stay current on food trends, regional influences, and emerging techniques that elevate the guest experience
- Lead all food production and kitchen execution to ensure consistency, quality, taste, and presentation
- Standardize recipes, portions, plating, and prep procedures
- Conduct regular line checks and taste tests to maintain quality standards
Guest Connection & Experience Great food is part of a bigger picture. You understand the guest and use that to shape everything that comes out of the kitchen.
- Maintain a strong understanding of who our guests are and what they value - let that shape menus and specials
- Collaborate with front-of-house leadership to ensure seamless communication and a unified guest experience
- Represent the kitchen’s culture and craft with pride - be a visible, positive presence across the broader team
- Incorporate guest feedback into ongoing menu and process improvements
Team Leadership & Culture You recruit, train, coach, and develop. Your job is to build a kitchen people want to work in and grow through.
- Recruit, hire, train, schedule, and develop kitchen staff
- Build a kitchen culture rooted in accountability, teamwork, urgency, and pride in the work
- Invest in mentorship and career development to retain strong talent and grow future leaders
- Conduct performance reviews and corrective action when necessary
- Ensure proper onboarding and training for all new BOH employees
Financial & Operational Performance You’re not just cooking - you’re running a business within a business. Food cost, labor, and efficiency are yours to manage.
- Manage food cost, labor cost, waste control, and inventory accuracy
- Forecast purchasing needs based on business volume and seasonality
- Order food, beverage, and kitchen supplies within budget parameters
- Improve kitchen productivity, prep systems, and ticket times
Safety & Sanitation (Non-Negotiable) Every guest trusts us with their safety. This doesn’t require a credential - it requires someone who takes it seriously every single day.
- Maintain full compliance with health department, food safety, and sanitation standards - no exceptions
- Train staff on rotation, labeling, chemical safety, knife safety, and safe work practices
- Ensure daily and weekly cleaning schedules are completed without fail
Facilities, Equipment & Additional
- Monitor kitchen equipment condition and coordinate repairs and maintenance as needed
- Maintain organized storage, receiving, and product handling procedures
- Lead kitchen execution for special events, festivals, and high-volume seasonal operations - including 6-day weeks during peak September–October season
- Document and continuously improve SOPs for consistency and scalability
- Step into any kitchen function needed during peak business periods - leadership by example
Requirements
What Great Looks Like - Qualifications Backgrounds that succeed here look different: fine dining, volume production, catering, seasonal operations. Credentials matter less than what you’ve built and how you’ve led.
Required
- 5+ years of experience in a senior kitchen management role
- Proven ability to lead and coordinate a kitchen team of 10 or more
- Documented experience with menu development, including seasonal and special menus
- Demonstrated record of running a comparable operation efficiently and profitably
- Strong organizational and systems-thinking skills; you build structure where there isn’t any
- Excellent knowledge of industry trends and guest expectations
- Effective communicator in English - verbal and written - with FOH leadership and vendor partners
- Proficiency in food cost math, pricing, and routine kitchen financials
- Ability to lift and move at least 100 lbs regularly; ability to stand for an entire 8–12 hour shift
- Regular, predictable, full attendance is an essential function of this role
Preferred
- ServSafe certification or equivalent food safety credential
- Culinary degree or formal culinary training
- Experience working in seasonal or event-driven restaurant environments
How You’re Rewarded - Compensation & Benefits Competitive base salary, performance-based incentive, 401(k) with match, full health/dental/vision benefits, PTO, and all the perks of working at one of Michigan’s most beloved farms. Full details shared during the interview process.
Blake’s Orchard & Cider Mill is an equal opportunity employer.