Another Top Club Chef Opportunity conducted by DZA, a strategic alliance of DMA
Mountain Lake is a private community in the City of Lake Wales, Florida, near Orlando. The Club requires a high performing, technically diverse pastry professional to lead a small team.
Recognized as one of the “Top Golf Courses” in the US and a top 10 golf course in Florida
Position Specific: The role of the Executive Pastry Chef is to set the standard for pastry/baking staff to maintain high quality and consistent member services. The Chef needs to have a strong passion for the profession and industry knowledge of best practices. The successful candidate will be a motivator committed to professionalism and staff development through hands-on training, coaching, and counseling.
The ideal candidate is a creative, genuine craftsperson who sincerely understands the need for everything to be the best possible, that a simple fresh roll is equally as important as a Wedding Cake. He/she should have a complete understanding of scratch baking and pastry production with proven knowledge of volume banquet production and detailed a la carte dessert service.
Required Focus:
- Develop Diverse and Creative Menus – Evaluate menus and develop the baking/pastry program with evolving menu programming that piques member interest in à la carte dining for each area and ensure items are costed out.
- Team Building – Inspire the team and help build a strong culinary culture driven to excellence and serve as coach and mentor and lead by example. Assist wtih final stages of recruiting, onboarding, training etc.
- Sourcing – Quickly become familiar with all suppliers and receiving process, and onboard with the receiving clerk. Assist with updating order, prep and requisition sheets.
- Learn the Club’s Culture, Systems and Membership – Become familiar with membership usage and business patterns along with leadership expectations from the culinary department as a whole.
Desired Pastry Chef Qualifications:
- Provide visible, highly professional, and positive direction to the team. The goal is to instill and nurture a positive attitude with a professional demeanor, while growing an atmosphere of cooperation and camaraderie amongst the team.
- Responsible for planning, staffing, and execution of all items prepared in the pastry and bake shop.
- Assist in the recruiting, hiring, training, and supervision for daily operations of the pastry team. Review and document performance of the Pastry team.
- Work synergistically with the savory culinary team, ensuring a collective sense of success throughout the Culinary Department.
- Work closely, communicate, and share information efficiently and daily with Executive Chef. Attend committee meetings as directed.
- The Pastry Chef should have a visual/interactive presence with the membership while working at the club. Opportunities should be available during meal periods, monitoring and setting up buffets, checking the product in the pantry store etc. Seeks feedback and input from Members to establish new food items and improve dining perception.
- Develop, recommend and produce daily/weekly dessert features along with custom designing private events and club produced banquet offerings.
- Implement a fresh from scratch bread program, with freshly baked bread daily and a specialty signature bread service for the restaurants and to go orders for members.
- Develop and maintain a unique freshly made ice cream program.
- Regularly update the dessert menu in the outlets and ensure that there is a variety of types of desserts used for member events.
- Plan, coordinate and supervise all things pastry, engineer menu design base upon member desire, cost effectiveness and seasonality.
- Safety standards and procedures are communicated and implemented as needed; ensure all inspections are satisfactory.
- Ensure proper sanitation and maintenance of all kitchen and food equipment. Strictly adhere to the club’s “zero tolerance” policy as to critical violations for health department inspections.
Additional Information:
- There Culinary Team consists of an Executive Chef, an Executive Sous Chef, a Pastry Chef, Chief Steward and Purchasing Manager with entire team, of 20 at peak.
- There are three (3) Kitchens, the Colony House Kitchen, Pool House Kitchen and the 11th tee kitchen. Management rates condition as a 5 out of 5. (The main kitchen, the Colony House kitchen was fully renovated 3 years ago. The Club is actively upgrading the 11th tee kitchen and also assessing and planning an improvement plan for the Pool House Kitchen)
- One (1) Clubhouse for 269 members whose average age is 73.
- The Club operates six months annually with the last meals of the season served April 30th, first meals of new season are Nov. 1st. Special events are typically hosted 15 days prior to season opening and 15 days post-closing.
- The Executive Pastry Chef reports to the Executive Chef and works with the Director of Food & Beverage, Assistant General Manager, Director of Team Member Engagement (HR), Facilities Manager and Director of Catering.
- Nathan Volz, Executive Chef has a remarkable luxury bran background and enters his second season with the Club.
A compensation package that will include base salary and performance bonus. Benefits include medical insurance, life & dental insurance, 401K, vacation and ACF Dues. A relocation allowance is available. Interested individuals should send resumes, a well-conceived cover letter, and supporting information (a digital Portfolio is encouraged) Click Here to upload your information:
Work with Denise Zanchelli and Team DZA, a team of proven culinary professionals to help advance your career.
