Lead the kitchen at one of Old City’s long-standing neighborhood pubs known for New Orleans-inspired cuisine, strong bar business, live events, and steady year-round volume.
Khyber Pass Pub is hiring a hands-on Head Chef to lead daily BOH operations, maintain consistency during active service, and strengthen kitchen organization, food quality, and team execution.
This role is best suited for a chef who enjoys balancing structure, repetitive systems, and fast-paced operational problem-solving inside a busy independent restaurant environment.
Location
Philadelphia, PA 19106
Compensation
• $65,000–$70,000 annual salary
• Potential annual bonus up to 8%
• Paid on regular company payroll schedule
Benefits
• Medical benefits
• 401(k)
• Paid time off
• Paid sick days
• Bonus pay
• Flexible scheduling support
• Company dining perks
• Employee discounts
• Employee referral program
Schedule
• Full-time
• Approximately 50 hours per week
• Nights, weekends, holidays, and event support required
About the Role
This is a hands-on leadership role inside a busy neighborhood pub with an established food and beverage operation, active bar business, and regular private events.
The Head Chef will oversee kitchen operations, food and labor controls, inventory systems, staff development, prep organization, service execution, and menu consistency while remaining active in daily operations.
The kitchen requires someone comfortable leading both repetitive task-oriented systems and the constant pace changes that come with restaurant service, events, staffing adjustments, and volume fluctuations.
We are looking for a chef who can:
• Lead calmly during busy service periods
• Maintain organization and accountability inside the kitchen
• Support consistency across prep, line execution, and food quality
• Balance creativity with operational discipline
• Communicate clearly with ownership and staff
• Help strengthen kitchen structure and daily execution
About the Restaurant
Khyber Pass Pub is a long-established Old City neighborhood bar known for its New Orleans-inspired food, elevated bar program, and strong local following.
The kitchen focuses on Southern, Cajun, and Creole cuisine, including vegan options, inside a fast-paced pub environment with consistent food and beverage volume.
The bar program includes 22 rotating craft drafts, craft bottles, wine, classic cocktails, and an extensive brown spirits selection. The property also features a large upstairs event and entertainment space used for live music, private events, art shows, and community gatherings.
Khyber Pass combines the energy of a neighborhood pub with a more elevated culinary and beverage program, creating an environment that requires strong operational leadership, consistency, adaptability, and strong team communication.
Responsibilities
• Lead daily BOH operations and kitchen execution
• Manage food cost and labor cost controls
• Oversee ordering, receiving, inventory, and vendor relationships
• Train, coach, and motivate kitchen staff
• Maintain recipe consistency and kitchen organization
• Support scheduling and payroll oversight
• Ensure food safety and sanitation compliance
• Assist with menu development and culinary creativity
• Lead active service execution during busy shifts
• Support operational consistency across restaurant and event service
Qualifications
• 3+ years of Executive Chef or Kitchen Manager experience preferred
• Strong knowledge of Southern, Cajun, and Creole cuisine required
• Charcuterie knowledge preferred
• Experience managing high-volume restaurant kitchens
• Strong food cost and labor management skills
• Experience with Toast back-end systems preferred
• Experience with Restaurant365, RASI, XtraChef, Ctuit, or similar systems preferred
• Experience training and leading teams of 20+ employees
• Ability to follow written recipes and operational systems
• Ability to stand for extended periods, bend, lift, and move up to 50 lbs.
• Strong communication, organization, and leadership skills
Restaurant Systems
• Toast POS
• Restaurant365/RASI/XtraChef/Ctuit or similar accounting systems
• Inventory and purchasing systems
Accessibility
• Easily accessible by public transportation
How to Apply
Please submit your resume with full contact information and two professional references. Supervisor email addresses are required. Qualified candidates will be contacted directly.
Recruiting exclusively for independent restaurants nationwide since 2003. Mis en Place connects operators with pre-vetted, industry-experienced talent—from hourly staff to salaried leadership. Our hands-on approach improves candidate quality, shortens time-to-hire, and reduces recruiting costs for operators who value results over noise.
As a national boutique recruiting firm dedicated solely to independent restaurants, we source and screen experienced culinary, FOH, BOH, and leadership talent across the U.S.
We specialize in hospitality recruiting, restaurant hiring, culinary staffing, talent sourcing, and candidate screening. Our services and pricing are tailored specifically for restaurants—not for general staffing or corporate models.
We personally engage with qualified applicants to ensure genuine interest, higher retention, faster hiring, and lower cost-per-hire—helping restaurants build high-performance teams that strengthen culture, consistency, and long-term success.
