Overview

Accomplished Executive Chef and Culinary Operations Leader with over 18 years of experience leading high-performing culinary teams across fine dining restaurants, luxury resorts, private clubs, and multi-concept hospitality groups. Skilled in menu development, kitchen operations, team leadership, cost control, vendor management, and elevated guest experience. Known for building disciplined, creative, and service-minded kitchen cultures while maintaining strong financial performance and consistently high culinary standards.

Experienced in opening new concepts, refining existing operations, developing seasonal menus, mentoring sous chefs and culinary teams, and partnering closely with ownership, front-of-house leadership, and beverage teams to create memorable dining experiences.

Core Competencies & Experience

Culinary Leadership & Menu Development
Led culinary direction for upscale restaurant and hospitality environments, including seasonal menu creation, tasting menu development, banquet programming, private dining, and elevated à la carte service.
Developed menus rooted in ingredient quality, regional sourcing, operational efficiency, and strong brand alignment.

Oversaw recipe development, plating standards, kitchen systems, and culinary training to ensure consistency across service periods.

Kitchen Operations & Team Management

Managed culinary teams ranging from 20 to 75 employees across back-of-house leadership, line cooks, prep teams, pastry, stewarding, and banquet production.

Built strong kitchen cultures focused on accountability, communication, respect, and high standards under pressure.

Hired, trained, mentored, and promoted culinary talent while improving team retention and service execution.

Fine Dining, Resort & Private Club Experience

Directed culinary programs for fine dining restaurants, luxury resort outlets, private club dining rooms, chef’s tables, and high-end event operations.

Partnered with general managers, food and beverage directors, and ownership teams to align culinary strategy with business goals and guest expectations.

Maintained elevated standards for presentation, flavor, timing, cleanliness, and service coordination.

Financial Management & Cost Control

Managed food cost, labor cost, purchasing, inventory, vendor relationships, and menu pricing strategy.

Improved profitability through smarter purchasing practices, waste reduction, portion control, labor planning, and menu engineering.

Balanced creativity with operational discipline to support both guest satisfaction and business performance.

Openings, Relaunches & Concept Development

Supported new restaurant openings, resort outlet refreshes, and culinary program repositioning projects.

Created kitchen workflows, equipment lists, vendor programs, opening menus, staffing plans, training materials, and service standards.

Helped establish culinary identity for concepts ranging from refined American dining to coastal, Mediterranean, and wine-driven menus.

Vendor, Farm & Beverage Collaboration

Built relationships with local farms, fisheries, specialty purveyors, wine teams, and beverage leaders to create cohesive food and beverage experiences.

Collaborated on pairing dinners, tasting events, private member experiences, chef-led activations, and seasonal programming.

Compliance, Safety & Quality Standards

Maintained strong standards for food safety, sanitation, ordering, receiving, storage, prep, and kitchen cleanliness.

Oversaw health department readiness, HACCP practices, allergy protocols, and team training around safe food handling.

Ensured consistency and quality control across daily service, events, and special programming.

Key Achievements

Led culinary operations for a luxury resort with multiple dining outlets, private events, and seasonal banquet programming.

Reduced food cost by 7% through improved purchasing, inventory controls, vendor negotiations, and menu engineering.

Opened two upscale restaurant concepts from pre-opening through launch, including menu development, staffing, training, and kitchen systems.

Built and mentored a culinary team that improved service consistency, reduced turnover, and strengthened guest satisfaction scores.

Created wine-focused tasting menus and private dining experiences that became recurring revenue drivers for the property.

Certifications & Training

ServSafe Manager Certified

Advanced culinary training in modern American, French, Mediterranean, and regional seasonal cuisine

Experienced with inventory, scheduling, POS, purchasing, and recipe costing systems

Strong knowledge of kitchen financials, labor planning, vendor management, and menu profitability

Associate Degree in Culinary Arts