Red Road Recovery is looking a Kitchen Manager/Cook to join their Sorrento team!
If you are someone that believes healing starts with a good meal, we want to hear from you!
Position Summary
The Cook is responsible for the planning, preparation, and delivery of nutritious, appealing, and culturally appropriate meals for residents of an inpatient addiction recovery centre. The Cook oversees daily kitchen operations, grocery purchasing, inventory management, food safety, menu planning, and kitchen budgeting.
The Head Cook contributes to a safe, respectful, recovery-oriented environment by ensuring residents receive consistent, nutritious meals that support their overall health and well-being.
Key Responsibilities
Food Preparation and Meal Service
- Plan and prepare daily meals, snacks, and special meals in accordance with approved menus and nutritional requirements.
- Prepare nutritious, balanced, appealing, and cost-effective meals for residents and staff as applicable.
- Accommodate approved dietary requirements, food allergies, intolerances, cultural preferences, and special dietary needs.
- Ensure meals are prepared and served according to established schedules.
- Maintain appropriate portion sizes and presentation standards.
- Provide variety in menus while considering seasonal availability, nutritional value, resident preferences, and budgetary requirements.
Kitchen Operations
- Oversee the day-to-day operation of the kitchen.
- Establish daily kitchen priorities and ensure food preparation and cleaning duties are completed.
- Maintain high standards of cleanliness, sanitation, organization, and food safety.
- Follow all applicable food-safety legislation, regulations, and organizational policies.
- Monitor food temperatures, storage conditions, labelling, expiry dates, and inventory rotation.
- Ensure appropriate cleaning and sanitizing of kitchen equipment, utensils, food-preparation areas, and storage areas.
- Identify equipment maintenance or replacement needs and report them to management.
- Minimize food waste through effective planning, portion control, inventory management, and appropriate food storage.
Grocery Ordering and Inventory Management
- Plan and coordinate the purchasing of groceries, food products, kitchen supplies, and other required ingredients.
- Prepare regular grocery orders based on menus, resident numbers, inventory levels, and anticipated needs.
- Purchase food and supplies from approved vendors and retailers in accordance with organizational purchasing procedures.
- Receive and inspect grocery and food deliveries for quality, quantity, freshness, and accuracy.
- Maintain accurate inventory records and monitor stock levels.
- Identify opportunities to reduce food waste and obtain cost-effective products without compromising quality or nutrition.
- Maintain appropriate levels of emergency and staple food supplies.
Kitchen Budget Management
- Develop, monitor, and manage the kitchen and food-services budget in collaboration with management.
- Establish grocery and food-purchasing priorities based on the approved operating budget.
- Track grocery expenditures and maintain accurate purchasing records.
- Monitor weekly and monthly food costs and identify variances from the approved budget.
- Provide regular budget and expenditure information to management as required.
- Make purchasing decisions that balance nutritional quality, resident needs, food quality, and cost effectiveness.
- Identify opportunities for savings, including seasonal purchasing, bulk purchasing, menu planning, and reduction of food waste.
- Ensure purchases are made in accordance with organizational purchasing policies and approval requirements.
- Maintain receipts, invoices, purchase records, and other documentation as required.
Menu Planning
- Develop and maintain nutritious, varied, and cost-effective rotating menus.
- Incorporate healthy, balanced meals that support residents' overall well-being.
- Consider dietary restrictions, allergies, cultural preferences, and resident feedback when developing menus.
- Adjust menus based on seasonal food availability, budget considerations, inventory, and operational requirements.
- Work collaboratively with management and relevant clinical or support staff regarding special dietary requirements.
Resident-Centred Practice
- Treat all residents with dignity, respect, patience, and professionalism.
- Maintain appropriate professional boundaries with residents.
- Contribute to a calm, supportive, inclusive, and recovery-oriented environment.
- Respond appropriately to resident feedback or concerns regarding meals and dietary needs.
- Recognize that residents may have diverse relationships with food and health and maintain a respectful, non-judgmental approach.
- Report significant dietary, safety, or resident concerns to the appropriate staff member.
Teamwork
- Work collaboratively with residential, clinical, administrative, and housekeeping staff.
- Participate in staff meetings and contribute to the continuous improvement of food-services operations.
Education and Qualifications
Required
- Formal education in culinary arts, professional cooking, food services, hospitality, nutrition, or a related field, such as a recognized culinary certificate, diploma, or equivalent formal training.
- Current food-safety certification appropriate to the jurisdiction.
- Demonstrated knowledge of food handling, sanitation, allergen management, and safe kitchen practices.
- Previous professional experience in a commercial, institutional, healthcare, residential, or community-services kitchen.
- Experience with grocery purchasing, inventory management, and food-cost control.
- Experience preparing meals for groups or institutional/residential settings.
Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities
The successful candidate will demonstrate:
- Strong culinary and food-preparation skills.
- Knowledge of nutrition, healthy meal planning, and special dietary requirements.
- Strong budgeting, purchasing, and inventory-management skills.
- Ability to accurately monitor and manage food expenditures.
- Excellent organizational and time-management skills.
- Strong attention to detail.
- Ability to plan meals and grocery purchases for varying numbers of residents.
- Ability to work independently and make sound operational decisions.
- Strong communication and interpersonal skills.
- Ability to supervise and support kitchen staff effectively.
- Ability to maintain professional boundaries and confidentiality.
- A respectful, non-stigmatizing, and compassionate approach when working with individuals in addiction recovery.
- Ability to remain calm and organized in a busy residential environment.
Privacy Statement
Red Road Recovery is committed to protecting the personal information of all applicants in accordance with the Personal Information Protection Act (PIPA). Any personal data collected during the application process will be used solely for recruitment purposes and handled securely and confidentially. For more details, please refer to our Privacy Policy.
Be Part of Something Extraordinary ! Red Road Recovery...Reach out today!
Pay: $28.00-$32.00 per hour
Benefits:
- Casual dress
- Dental care
- Disability insurance
- Discounted or free food
- Extended health care
- Life insurance
- On-site parking
- Paid time off
- Vision care
Work Location: In person
