Director of Culinary Services

About the role

The Director of Culinary Services oversees the culinary strategies, initiatives, and daily activities at Arvum Senior Living communities. Reporting to the Executive Director and Hospitality Manager, this role is responsible for managing the kitchen staff, ensuring food safety and quality, and collaborating with other departments to meet the needs of residents.

Responsibilities

• Assist in planning, preparation, and execution of special events, banquets, and theme meals.
• Uses innovation, imagination, originality, and talent to produce menus and recipes that utilize the highest quality ingredients allowed within the overall food and labor budget of the community.
• Understand and maintain monthly and annual budgets for Food & Beverage department, including documentation of monthly spend on food, supplies, and Back of the house labor.
• Review and adjust menus to accommodate seasonal ingredients, recipe improvements, supply chain shortages, rebated and contracted products and cost of goods increases.
• Responsible for ensuring that purchasing standards are maintained and that approved vendors are always used. Maintain strong and positive relationships with all vendors.
• Accurately report and submit monthly inventory of food & beverage supplies.
• Interview, hire and train staff for culinary and back of the house positions. May assist with interviews for front of the house positions as well.
• Responsibly manage and supervise all culinary and back of the house staff including scheduling, assignment, direction, performance review, hiring and corrective action consistent with company policy.
• Work with the Executive Director, Hospitality Manager and community Department Heads to obtain and maintain department customer satisfaction and department of health survey levels at or above designated scores.
• Ensure preventive maintenance programs are conducted for kitchen equipment and that all staff uses and maintains equipment properly to avoid damage and costly repair.
• Ensures any dietary needs and restrictions are met.
• Confirm food policies and procedures are being practiced by kitchen staff including, personal hygiene, safe food storage and handling procedures.
• Manages control of food preparation with particular attention to potential overproduction and waste.
• Oversee maintenance and production of accurate daily records.
• Provide ongoing training at regular intervals to kitchen staff in the areas of food preparation and quality service and ensure that plating and presentation meet DSL standards for quality and appearance.
• In collaboration with the Hospitality Manager, ensures that the front of house and back of the house staff work closely together to deliver a food product that exceeds the residents' and/or guest's expectation.
• In collaboration with the Hospitality Manager, works with BOH & FOH staff to ensure that they have a clear understanding of how to provide outstanding customer service.
• Work closely with Marketing and Activities personnel to ensure all resident special needs are met as well as to coordinate planning of unique events.
• In unison with the Hospitality Manager and Executive Director, meet regularly with residents and family members to confirm that high satisfaction levels are being delivered.
• Advise community leadership of any concerns regarding residents.
• Assist Kitchen and Restaurant staff with back and front of the house operations as needed. This includes the ability to work all stations in the kitchen and/or dining room if needed.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university in Culinary Arts preferred, or an associate degree and equivalent combination of minimum five years’ work experience as an Executive Chef.
• Minimum of five years’ experience as an Executive Chef within the hospitality industry.
• Current ServSafe Certification.

Why Join Us

Discovery Senior Living Earned Coveted Great Place to Work Certification for 2025-2026!

A large part of what makes Discovery different from other companies in this industry is our willingness to embrace change. At Discovery Senior Living, we are constantly challenging how we are doing things to ensure the lifestyle we are offering our residents is absolutely the greatest value proposition in the marketplace. It’s just as important to us that the environment and culture for our team members are constantly refreshed. In addition, embracing and even encouraging change brings a never-ending supply of new energy to our business and our culture. That energy translates to other far-reaching positive impacts on our residents as well as our team members.

Our Culture & Values

So often, what brings people together is deeply rooted in who we are and what we stand for. And at Discovery Senior Living, we’re unified by certain, core values, which we call our “Pillars of Excellence.” They make up the fabric of our company, and include TEAMWORK, INTEGRITY, PERFORMANCE, ACCOUNTABILITY, COMPASSION, HARD WORK and CREATIVITY.

Benefits You’ll Enjoy

• Competitive pay with early access to earned wages
• Flexible scheduling
• Health, dental, vision, life, and disability insurance
• Paid time off and holidays
• A 401(k) with employer match
• Paid training and growth opportunities
• Uniforms (where applicable)
• Additional perks such as an Employee Assistance Program (EAP), volunteer time off, and wellness-related benefits

Equal Opportunity Employer

We are proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all team members.

A Note to Applicants

This job description outlines the general nature and level of responsibilities for this role and is not an exhaustive list of all duties. Qualified individuals with disabilities, as defined by the ADA, must be able to perform the essential job functions with or without reasonable accommodation, as determined on a case-by-case basis.

Agency Policy

We do not accept unsolicited resumes from staffing agencies. Please refrain from contacting hiring managers directly.

Employment Scam Warning

We only post jobs on our official careers site and accept applications through that platform. We do not conduct interviews via text or social media or ask for personal or banking information.

Regulatory Compliance & Background Screening

Discovery Senior Living complies with all applicable federal, state, and local employment laws and regulatory requirements governing hiring practices, background screening, and workforce eligibility. Employment may be contingent upon successful completion of state-mandated and/or federally required background screenings, which may include criminal history checks, fingerprint-based screening, Level 2 background screening, registry verification, and other screenings required for healthcare and senior living roles with direct or indirect resident access.