Job Description

About us

Local Kitchens is a fast-casual restaurant brand transforming the industry by pioneering a new category of dining. Through collaborations with award-winning chefs and culinary influencers, we offer a menu of exclusive, globally-inspired dishes featuring bold flavors and high-quality ingredients—all in a dining experience that’s both convenient and affordable. Founded in 2020 by former DoorDash co-founders Jon Goldsmith and Andrew Munday, Local Kitchens was built on a mission to bring communities together through food. Since then, the brand has grown to 13 locations across the Bay Area, with plans to expand into Southern California this spring. 

Annual Pay Cap: $90,000

Key Responsibilities

About the Role

We are seeking an R&D Chef to lead menu innovation and recipe development for our expanding culinary operations. This role is perfect for a chef who thrives on creativity, understands fast-casual dining, and can translate bold flavors into scalable, executable dishes across multiple locations.

Key Responsibilities

• Menu & Recipe Development – Create and test innovative menu items that align with our brand identity and customer preferences.
• Executive Tastings – Organize and lead tastings for our executive team, presenting new dishes with clear culinary rationale.
• Multi-Unit Recipe Standardization – Write, document, and refine recipes to ensure consistency across multiple locations.
• Cuisine Expertise – Be well-versed in diverse cuisines and global flavors, understanding how to adapt them for a fast-casual concept.
• Training & Implementation – Train kitchen teams on new recipes, techniques, and execution standards to ensure quality and consistency.
• Ingredient Sourcing & Costing – Collaborate with the Supply Chain team to source quality ingredients while optimizing food costs.
• Operational Feasibility – Work closely with Operations to ensure new dishes can be executed efficiently at scale.
• Culinary Leadership – Bring a strong culinary point of view and passion for making food that is not only delicious but also operationally sound

What We're Looking For

• 3+ years of experience in restaurant R&D, menu development, or a similar role.
• Professional kitchen experience, preferably in fast-casual, QSR, or multi-unit operations.
• Deep understanding of recipe writing, food costing, and operational execution at scale.
• Strong training and leadership skills, with the ability to guide kitchen teams through new menu rollouts.
• Passion for bold flavors, high-quality ingredients, and innovative cooking techniques.
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills.
• Culinary degree or equivalent hands-on experience preferred.

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