Founding Chef (Co-founder Track)

Mogra | Indian tapas & wine bar | New York City

Location: New York City; home-kitchen R&D and pop-up tastings (no venue yet)
Compensation: $75–$100 per hour during a two-tasting paid trial (~4 weeks), based on experience; path to equity after
Commitment: Two-tasting paid trial (~4 weeks), two days per week
Apply: [email protected]

BUILD MOGRA WITH US

Mogra is an Indian tapas and wine bar being built by two founders, Rhea and Soni, in New York City. We turn Indian flavors and memories into contemporary small plates, paired with a thoughtful wine program and warm, personal hospitality.

Our first seated tasting on October 30, 2026 showed the concept works. Several dishes were room favorites, and a waitlist for future tastings is already open. The dish guests loved most was also our most Indian and most heavily spiced, which tells us exactly where to push.

We’re looking for a third founder: a chef who brings their own dishes and point of view, builds on what’s already working, and wants to own Mogra’s food as much as we do. This is a chance to co-found a restaurant, not staff one.

WHAT “FOUNDING” MEANS HERE

You’d join as an equal voice in building the business, not as a hire who executes someone else’s menu.

• You own the kitchen. The food, the recipes, the kitchen systems and, later, the kitchen team are yours to shape.
• You have a real say in the business. Menu direction, pricing, the service model, suppliers, hiring and the eventual venue are decided by the founders together, and that includes you.
• You build from zero. There’s no kitchen manual, no ops team and no venue yet. Whatever needs doing that week, from sourcing to scrubbing down, we all do it.
• You share the upside. If the trial works for everyone, we’ll offer a path to equity.

We want to be honest about the stage we’re at. Mogra runs out of home kitchens and pop-up tastings today, and there’s no full-time salary yet. If you’d rather have a defined job with a set scope, this probably isn’t the right fit. If you’ve wanted to build your own place and would rather do it with partners, keep reading.

THE PATH TO PARTNERSHIP

We start with a two-tasting paid trial (~4 weeks), so both sides can find out what building together is really like before committing.

1. Paid trial: Two days per week at $75–$100 per hour, based on experience. You’ll do real work: R&D sessions, recipe testing and cooking at two Mogra tastings.
2. Mutual decision: At the end of the trial, the founders and the founding chef decide together whether to keep building Mogra as partners.
3. Path to equity: If we move forward, we’ll offer a path to equity. Ownership terms are worked out together and agreed in writing.

The trial is as much about you evaluating us as it is about us evaluating you.

WHAT YOU’LL OWN

Food and menu

• Bring your own dishes and ideas, and develop new Indian-influenced small plates alongside ours, built to drink with wine.
• Lead recipe testing for flavor, texture, seasonality, portion size and presentation.
• Push dishes further using guest feedback while keeping Mogra’s culinary identity sharp.
• Document recipes, yields, ingredient costs, prep methods and plating standards so dishes cook the same every time.

Taking R&D into service

• Scale test batches into service quantities, with measured yields.
• Solve holding, temperature and timing so every plate leaves the kitchen as intended.
• Run the kitchen side of seated tastings: ten guests, with courses landing about 10 minutes apart or less.
• Set prep plans and kitchen-to-floor communication that keep pacing tight.

The kitchen and the business

• Do the full range of hands-on work: sourcing, prep, cooking, plating and cleanup with our support.
• Build purchasing, inventory, waste control, food safety and allergen procedures.
• Help shape food cost, pricing, margins, the labor model and supplier relationships with your co-founders.
• Help plan the future kitchen, and hire and train the team that will run it.

Hospitality

• Help decide how dishes are explained, presented and served.
• Be guest-facing at tastings and events, and turn what you hear into a better experience.

WHO WE’RE LOOKING FOR

Required

• Professional kitchen experience, including cooking during live restaurant service.
• Guest-facing restaurant service experience.
• Strong fundamentals, an attentive palate, and consistent execution at volume.
• A palate that already fits Mogra: bold, layered and confidently spiced.
• Your own dishes and a clear culinary point of view.
• A founder’s mindset: you take initiative, take ownership of results, and are ready to do the unglamorous work of building a hospitality business.
• A collaborative, reliable partner who wants a lasting partnership.

Strongly preferred

• Menu development experience, including recipe testing, standardization and costing.
• Experience with restaurant openings, pop-ups, supper clubs or independent hospitality businesses.
• Small plates, wine service or food-and-wine pairing.
• Live-fire or tandoor cooking.
• Experience training colleagues or setting up kitchen and service procedures.

Formal culinary training is welcome, but demonstrated ability matters most.

HOW TO APPLY

Send your résumé or a summary of your experience to [email protected], with a short note covering:

• Your professional kitchen and guest-facing service experience.
• A dish you’d want to put on Mogra’s menu, and why.
• A dish or menu you developed: what you contributed and what changed through testing.
• Why you want to co-found a restaurant, and what you’d want to own at Mogra.
• Your availability for a two-tasting paid trial (~4 weeks) at two days per week.

Sample menus, photos or other examples of your work are welcome.

Mogra welcomes applicants from all backgrounds.

Full job description (PDF): https://drive.google.com/file/d/1g6pfuGEOuahPKiJ0WxZxk8QntKJVCeD8/view
Concept deck for Founding Chef: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Bkl3Y2GwfldydhTDI7eN_CKEfAlxkrmP/view