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Director of Culinary- Berkeley Culinary Center

Berkely, IL, USA

Requisition Number

13941

Location

Berkely Il

Job Description

Director of Culinary – Lead with Passion, Drive with Purpose!

Are you a culinary innovator ready to make a real impact in large-scale meal production? Join our team as Director of Culinary and take the lead in developing, optimizing, and scaling high-quality, cost-effective meals across multiple sectors—including education, healthcare, senior services, shelters, retail, and more.At the heart of food and function, your creativity and expertise will help ensure every dish is delicious, efficient, and operationally sound.

What You’ll Do:

Drive the creation and execution of new recipes for our Prepared Meals division—from ideation through industrialization

Collaborate with cross-functional teams including QA, Procurement, Operations, and Finance to manage BOMs, yields, ingredient sourcing, and cost targets

Train and guide culinary and production staff in preparation techniques, equipment usage, and recipe execution

Develop plating guides, training documentation, and gold-standard procedures for consistent quality and presentation

Create and implement quality assurance protocols in partnership with FSQA to maintain product integrity and safety

Monitor the performance of kitchen and production equipment to optimize output and reduce waste

Continuously review and refine recipes for operational efficiency, ingredient consolidation, and cost control

Support focus groups and product testing initiatives to ensure recipes meet client needs and drive adoption

We’re Looking For:

+ 5–10 years of experience in culinary operations or food manufacturing (multi-sector experience preferred)

+ Culinary degree with certification in Culinary Arts

+ Strong understanding of production processes, recipe formulation, and industrial kitchen equipment

+ Proven ability to manage and optimize BOMs, ingredient sourcing, and preparation methods

+ Excellent leadership, communication, and documentation skills

+ Experience with USDA guidelines and food safety regulations a plus

+ Bilingual in Spanish/English preferred for training and documentation

+ A leader who thrives on collaboration, creativity, and continuous improvement

Why Join Us?

+ Competitive salary and leadership growth opportunities

+ Comprehensive benefits: medical, dental, vision, and life insurance

+ Paid Time Off

+ 401K with company match

+ Be part of a purpose-driven company delivering high-quality meals across communities

+ A collaborative culture that values food innovation, operational excellence, and team development

About Us:

At Whitsons, we believe food is more than just fuel—it’s an opportunity to connect, comfort, and care. As our Director of Culinary, you’ll help bring this vision to life by building smart, scalable recipes that meet the highest standards of quality and care.

Salary up to 150K

Requirements

EDUCATION:

+ Culinary degree is essential with certification in Culinary Arts.

CERTIFICATIONS:

+ All Safety, HACCP, customer service training class certifications. Must attend all company sponsored training classes.

+ Local ordinance certification

+ CEC accreditation preferred

COMPUTER SKILLS:

+ Proficient with all computer applications in order to perform duties

EXPERIENCE:

+ 5-10 years of production management experience required.

+ 3-5 years of Food manufacturing experience required; USDA experience preferred

REQUIRED COMPETENCIES:

+ Business Acumen

+ Listening Skills

+ Problem Solving/Logistics/ Time Management

+ Leadership/ Adaptive Change

+ Communication Proficiency

+ Decision Making

+ Financial Management

+ Collaboration Skills

+ Teamwork Oriented

+ Performance Management

Work Schedule

Monday thru Friday

Supervisor

Paul Burnup

Salary Target

150K