About Smashies Smashies is a new chef-driven smash burger brand opening its first location at SPARK Social San José, a new outdoor food, drinks, and events destination in downtown San José next to SAP Center. We take the smash burger seriously: quality beef, scratch-made sauces, great buns, and thoughtful sides, served with quick-service speed. This is elevated fast casual built for Silicon Valley tastes. We're building everything from scratch: the menu, the kitchen, the crew, and the systems. We plan to grow beyond this first location. We're looking for a founding head chef who can make the food memorable and the operation repeatable. What You'll Do Create an elevated but focused menu with ownership: signature burgers, scratch sauces, sides, and rotating specials that feel special without slowing the line Source high-quality ingredients: build the beef blend and choose the buns, cheese, and produce vendors, balancing quality with food cost Turn every recipe into precise specs and build guides so the food tastes chef-made no matter who's cooking Hire, train, and lead a brand-new kitchen crew, including team members with little or no kitchen experience Build the training program: station checklists, food safety procedures, and quality standards a new hire can learn quickly Set up the kitchen: equipment layout, prep flow, par levels, ordering, and vendor relationships Run the line during service and hit speed-of-service targets during high-volume rushes around games, concerts, and events Own food cost, labor, waste tracking, and health department compliance Help build the systems and standards we'll use to open future locations What We're Looking For 7+ years of professional kitchen experience, with at least 3 years in a leadership role (Head Chef, Chef de Cuisine, Kitchen Manager, or Culinary Manager) Background in chef-driven or scratch-cooking restaurants Experience in elevated fast casual or high-volume quick service, with a proven ability to keep quality high at speed Has opened at least one new restaurant, location, or concept, including kitchen setup and crew training Strong palate and sourcing instincts, especially for beef, sauces, and specials Strong flat-top and griddle skills Proven ability to train entry-level cooks and build a consistent, reliable team Comfortable with food costing, inventory, ordering, and scheduling California Food Protection Manager Certification (ServSafe Manager or equivalent), or able to get it before opening Available to work nights, weekends, and event days Nice to Have Experience building an elevated fast-casual concept, especially burgers or sandwiches Experience helping a brand grow from one location to several Bilingual in English and Spanish Experience with POS and kitchen display systems (Toast, Square, etc.) Why Join Smashies Be the founding culinary leader of a new brand, with real ownership of the menu and kitchen Grow with the company as we expand, with a path to [Director of Culinary / Culinary Operations] [Bonus / profit share / equity details] [Health insurance, paid time off, employee meals, other benefits] Work in a high-energy, high-traffic location with built-in crowds from SPARK Social and SAP Center How to Apply Apply through Indeed with your résumé. We'd also love to see: A short note about a menu you built or a concept you helped open 2-3 photos of food you've created

Pay:

$75,000.00 - $150,000.00 per year

Benefits:

Food provided Paid time off

Work Location:

In person