Title:  Amtrak Culinary Development - Executive Chef

Job Description

Aramark is seeking a highly experienced Senior Executive Chef / Culinary Development Chef to lead menu innovation, culinary strategy, and large-scale recipe development supporting Amtrak Food & Beverage operations.

This role is ideal for a culinary leader with strong experience in high-volume food production, culinary development, multi-unit foodservice operations, transportation dining, hospitality, or institutional dining environments. The position plays a key role in developing scalable culinary programs that balance operational execution, guest experience, food quality, and financial performance.

The Senior Executive Chef partners closely with Operations, Supply Chain, Procurement, Marketing, Culinary teams, external chefs, and client stakeholders to create innovative menu solutions that can successfully execute across regional and national operations.

This is a highly collaborative, client-facing leadership role requiring creativity, operational discipline, and the ability to scale culinary concepts for large-volume service environments.

Please note:  This role requires approximately 50% travel throughout the Northeast region

What We’re Looking For

• Strong culinary leadership experience in high-volume foodservice environments
• Expertise in menu development, recipe scaling, and culinary innovation
• Experience supporting multi-unit operations, transportation dining, hospitality, airline catering, commissary, or institutional foodservice environments preferred
• Strong understanding of food costing, labor analysis, yield management, and operational execution
• Ability to balance culinary creativity with operational practicality
• Strong presentation, communication, and client-facing skills
• Highly organized with the ability to manage multiple projects and timelines simultaneously

Job Responsibilities

Culinary Innovation & Menu Development

• Lead culinary innovation and menu strategy for Amtrak Food & Beverage operations
• Develop new menu concepts, recipes, and product offerings for large-scale production environments
• Create scalable recipes and operational standards that support consistency across multiple service locations
• Evaluate food trends, consumer preferences, and regional culinary opportunities
• Support seasonal menu updates, product launches, and culinary refresh initiatives

Operational & Production Support

• Ensure recipe scalability, operational feasibility, portion consistency, and cost efficiency
• Partner with field operations teams to support successful culinary implementation
• Conduct tastings, operational reviews, and culinary evaluations across locations
• Support labor optimization, yield management, and food cost controls
• Maintain standardized recipes, procedures, and production documentation within culinary systems

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Collaborate with Culinary, Operations, Supply Chain, Procurement, Marketing, and external vendor partners
• Present culinary concepts and tasting outcomes to senior leadership and client stakeholders
• Support supplier partnerships, product evaluations, and sourcing initiatives
• Participate in workshops, food trend research, and culinary innovation sessions

Training & Field Engagement

• Support culinary training initiatives for field teams and onboard service crews
• Provide rollout support for new menu items and operational culinary programs
• Travel throughout the Northeast Corridor and nationally as needed to support field engagement and operational execution

At Aramark, developing new skills and doing what it takes to get the job done make a positive impact for our employees and for our customers. In order to meet our commitments, job duties may change or new ones may be assigned without formal notice.

Qualifications

• AOS Culinary Degree required
• Bachelor’s degree preferred
• 7+ years of progressive culinary leadership experience required
• Experience in recipe development and large-scale production environments required
• Experience with airline, transportation, hospitality, or flight kitchen operations is a plus
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office and recipe/production management systems preferred
• Strong collaboration and leadership skills required

About Aramark

Our Mission

Rooted in service and united by our purpose, we strive to do great things for each other, our partners, our communities, and our planet.

At Aramark, we believe that every employee should enjoy equal employment opportunity and be free to participate in all aspects of the company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex, gender, pregnancy, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information, military status, protected veteran status or other characteristics protected by applicable law.

About Aramark

The people of Aramark proudly serve millions of guests every day through food and facilities in 15 countries around the world. Rooted in service and united by our purpose, we strive to do great things for each other, our partners, our communities, and our planet. We believe a career should develop your talents, fuel your passions, and empower your professional growth. So, no matter what you're pursuing - a new challenge, a sense of belonging, or just a great place to work - our focus is helping you reach your full potential. Learn more about working here at http://www.aramarkcareers.com or connect with us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.