Pastry Sous Chef

Pastry Sous Chef

Position Summary

The Pastry Sous Chef leads day-to-day pastry production in Ophelia's main kitchen, ensuring every item meets our quality and consistency standards before it reaches a guest. This role supervises and trains Pastry Cooks/Bakers, manages production schedules, and partners closely with Ophelia's leadership team on recipes, inventory, and output planning. It's a hands-on leadership role suited to someone who can both bake at a high level and guide a team to do the same, every day. As a manager at Ophelia, the Pastry Sous Chef is expected to model integrity, accountability, and positive leadership in everything they do.

Key Responsibilities

• Oversee daily pastry production, ensuring recipes and standards are followed consistently across the team
• Protect consistency and quality by checking finished products and holding the line on recipes, presentation, and food safety standards, even when the shift is slammed
• Supervise, train, and mentor Pastry Cooks/Bakers and new kitchen team members on technique, recipes, and station procedures, growing people and not just output
• Build and manage daily/weekly production schedules to meet demand
• Partner with ownership on ingredient ordering, inventory levels, and vendor needs
• Support recipe development, standardization, and documentation as the menu evolves
• Step in on the production line during high-volume periods or staffing gaps
• Enforce food safety, sanitation, and proper storage/rotation practices across the kitchen
• Communicate proactively with ownership about production issues, inventory needs, staffing gaps, and customer feedback before they become problems, with no surprises
• Represent the business with integrity by supporting management decisions in front of the team and bringing any concerns directly to ownership rather than to staff
• Lead by example and set the tone for each shift, holding yourself to the same standards of punctuality, cleanliness, work ethic, and attitude expected of the team, and bringing positive energy when things get busy or stressful
• Make mistakes safe to learn from by correcting issues calmly and respectfully, never belittling or embarrassing anyone in front of others, and take immediate ownership of your own mistakes with no blame-shifting and a plan to fix them
• Stay open to change by giving new ideas, processes, and systems a real chance as Ophelia grows

Other Duties as Assigned

This job description reflects the primary responsibilities of the role but is not exhaustive. Team members may be asked to take on additional tasks or duties as needed to support day-to-day operations, special events, catering, pop-ups, or other business needs.

Qualifications & Skills

• 3-5 years of professional pastry/baking experience, including some experience training or leading others
• Strong baking fundamentals with the ability to troubleshoot recipes and production issues
• Comfortable managing production schedules and priorities in a fast-paced kitchen
• Strong food safety knowledge, including rotation, storage, and sanitation practices; food handler certification (e.g., ServSafe) preferred
• Clear communication and leadership skills, with the ability to train, motivate, and give respectful feedback to a team
• Strong character: integrity, accountability, a positive attitude, and openness to new ideas and ways of working
• Highly organized and detail-oriented, with a consistent, dependable work ethic
• Culinary or pastry arts training a plus, but not required with equivalent experience
• Must be legally authorized to work in the United States; Ophelia does not provide visa sponsorship for this position

Physical Requirements & Work Environment

• Ability to stand for extended periods in a kitchen/production environment
• Ability to lift and carry ingredients, trays, and equipment (up to ~50 lbs)
• Comfortable working near ovens, proofers, and other heat sources

Weekend & Schedule Availability

Ophelia operates as a mobile bakery with peak demand on weekends and around morning service hours. This role may require availability to work weekends (Saturday and Sunday) as part of the schedule, along with flexibility for early morning shifts, holidays, and occasional schedule changes based on business needs (special events, catering, pop-ups).