Michael Fernandez
Seattle,WA
Summary
Detail-oriented team player with strong organizational skills. Ability to handle multiple projects simultaneously with a high degree of accuracy.
Overview
23
23
years of professional experience
Work History
Kitchen Manager
ALACART LLC
06.2022 - 05.2023
- Created and deployed successful strategies to boost restaurant performance, streamline food prep processes and reduce waste
- Scheduled and received food and beverage deliveries, adhering to food cost and budget
- Delegated food preparation duties down to cooks and followed up with cooks to verify proper preparation and production of meals
- Reviewed and analyzed kitchen performance to verify gaps and observe continuous improvement
- Developed and maintained professional relationships with suppliers to acquire high-quality ingredients and products with reasonable prices
Kitchen Manager
Skillet Counter
10.2021 - 05.2022
- Scheduled and received food and beverage deliveries, adhering to food cost and budget.
- Delegated food preparation duties down to cooks and followed up with cooks to verify proper preparation and production of meals.
- Checked and tested foods to verify quality and temperature.
- Delivered in-depth training to workers in food preparation and customer-facing roles to promote strong team performance.
- Created and deployed successful strategies to boost restaurant performance, streamline food prep processes and reduce waste.
- Identified team weak points and implemented corrective actions to resolve concerns.
- Followed standardized recipes set by Chef for production of breakfast, lunch and dinner meals.
- Spearheaded regular maintenance and repair operations to keep building and equipment in peak condition.
- Maintained kitchen cleanliness and sanitation through correct procedures and scheduled cleaning of surfaces and equipment.
- Trained staff on proper cooking procedures as well as safety regulations and productivity strategies.
- Motivated staff to perform at peak efficiency and quality.
- Oversaw food preparation and monitored safety protocols.
- Kept facility compliant with health codes, sanitation requirements and license regulations, alleviating potentially heavy fines.
- Verified prepared food met standards for quality and quantity before serving to customers.
- Maintained effective supply levels by monitoring and reordering food stock and dry goods.
- Handled escalated customer concerns with speed and knowledgeable support to achieve optimal satisfaction and maintain long-term loyalty.
- Purchased food and cultivated strong vendor relationships.
- Maximized quality assurance by completing frequent line checks.
- Helped general management develop prices based on inventory costs and portion sizes.
- HIT MARKS MONTHLY FOR 24%FOOD COST AND 24.5% LABOR COSTS
- DURING BUSY $7,000 IN BUSINESS KEPT THE AVERAGE TICKET TIME TO UNDER 6 MINUTES
Line Cook
SKILLET COUNTER
09.2018 - 03.2021
- Prepared multiple orders simultaneously during peak periods with high accuracy rate, maximizing customer satisfaction and repeat business.
- Set up and prepared cooking supplies and workstations during opening and closing to maximize productivity.
- Created identical dishes numerous times daily with consistent care, attention to detail and quality.
- Changed and sanitized cutting boards, benches and surfaces between tasks to avoid cross-contamination.
- Maintained well-stocked stations with supplies and spices for maximum productivity.
- Prepared food items such as meats, poultry and fish for frying purposes.
- Wrapped up and stored unused food in appropriate containers and placed in refrigerator to avoid spoilage.
- Instructed new staff in proper food preparation, storage, use of kitchen equipment and sanitation.
- Grilled meats and seafood to customer specifications.
- Took food orders from cashiers and cooked items quickly to complete order items together and serve hot.
- Checked each food item for freshness and provided feedback to kitchen supervisor for removal.
- Unloaded food supplies from distributor trucks to efficiently organize inventory.
- Handled portion control activities according to specified instructions provided by chef.
- Collaborated with servers to collect information about specific customer desires and dietary needs.
- Set up work stations and prepped veg and meats for dishes to increase productivity during busy mealtimes.
- Engaged with customers, offering menu information, providing suggestions and showing genuine appreciation for business.
- Maintained high food quality standards by checking delivery contents to verify product quality and quantity.
Personal Chef
Self-employed
10.2007 - 01.2010
- Developed menus, controlled food costs and oversaw quality, sanitation and safety processes.
- Planned menus that incorporated healthy, fresh food sourced from local farmers and stores.
- Studied cultures and cuisines of various areas around world in effort to prepare authentic dishes.
- Met with client and discussed preferred meals, dietary restrictions and food allergies.
- Shopped at specialty grocery stores to obtain ingredients needed for food preparation.
- Generated invoice to request payment for services provided in client home or specifically requested location.
- Maintained food inventories to support efficient cost management.
- Designed and prepared all menu items for private home/office setting.
- Recorded favorite meals of clients and worked continuously on new recipes.
- Labeled food to include reheating and safe storage and handling instructions.
- Cooked meals in timely fashion and served at residences or delivered to requested locations.
- Prepared meals using braising, roasting, frying and sautéing techniques.
- Developed recipes to offer meal options for variety of tastes and special diets for pro athlete's
- Prepared and served meals for small dinner parties and large events and complied with diet requests and special accommodations.
- CLIENT LIST: AHMAD RASHAAD,SAMUEL L JACKSON, RAY RICE, EVAN LONGORIA, CJ MYLES, LADARIUS WEBB, AND MORE
Sous Chef
FINCH TAVERN
01.2004 - 09.2007
- Acted as head chef when required to maintain continuity of service and quality.
- Planned and directed high-volume food preparation in fast-paced environment.
- Mentored kitchen staff to prepare each for demanding roles.
- Initiated training for new team members on culinary techniques to improve productivity and increase kitchen workflows.
- Plated every dish with attractive flair to meet strict restaurant standards and maintain stellar business reputation.
- Prevented cross-contamination from utensils, surfaces and pans when cooking and plating meals for food allergy sufferers.
- Collaborated with staff members to create meals for large banquets.
- Established and updated staff schedules and assignments to optimize coverage of peak times.
- Obtained fresh, local ingredients to lower grocery costs.
- Collaborated with vendors to source desired recipe ingredients while maintaining tight cost controls.
- Cultivated positive relationships with vendors to source best ingredients at best prices.
- Trained and managed kitchen personnel and supervised related culinary activity.
- Inspected kitchens to observe food preparation quality and service, food appearance and cleanliness of production and service areas.
- Oversaw scheduling, inventory management and supply ordering to maintain fully stocked kitchen.
- Maintained high food quality standards by checking delivery contents to verify product quality and quantity.
- Monitored and controlled overhead and production costs with responsibility for profit and loss.
- Reduced food costs 24.5% by using seasonal ingredients, setting standards for portion size and minimizing waste.
- Introduced new market items and spearheaded production of highly popular Saturday lunch.
- Implemented successful cross-marketing strategies such as food and wine pairings.
Lead Line Cook
Armonk Country Kitchen
01.2000 - 11.2003
- Created identical dishes numerous times daily with consistent care, attention to detail and quality.
- Maintained well-stocked stations with supplies and spices for maximum productivity.
- Upheld optimal staff and customer protections by monitoring food handling, cleaning and sanitation protocols.
- Unloaded food supplies from distributor trucks to efficiently organize inventory.
- Followed restaurant stock management schedule to monitor product freshness and rotate out old products.
- Produced high volume covers per day and maintained near-perfect customer satisfaction scores.
- Wrapped up and stored unused food in appropriate containers and placed in refrigerator to avoid spoilage.
- Developed process that reduced waste and improved supply turnover.
- Grilled meats and seafood to customer specifications.
- Set up and prepared cooking supplies and workstations during opening and closing to maximize productivity.
- Took food orders from cashiers and cooked items quickly to complete order items together and serve hot.
- Checked each food item for freshness and provided feedback to kitchen supervisor for removal.
- Prepared multiple orders simultaneously during peak periods with high accuracy rate, maximizing customer satisfaction and repeat business.
- Prepared food items such as meats, poultry and fish for frying purposes.
- Instructed new staff in proper food preparation, storage, use of kitchen equipment and sanitation.
- Transitioned between breakfast and lunch service.
- Handled portion control activities according to specified instructions provided by chef.
- Prepared average of 200 orders each shift.
- Prepared food items such as meats, poultry, and fish for frying purposes
- Prepared ingredients ahead of time to promote efficiency in dish garnishing
- Collaborated with servers to collect information about specific customer desires and dietary needs
- Prepared multiple orders simultaneously during peak periods with high accuracy rate, maximizing customer satisfaction, and repeat business
- Set up and prepared cooking supplies and workstations during opening and closing to maximize productivity
- Produced high volume covers per day and maintained near-perfect customer satisfaction scores
- Grilled meats and seafood to customer specifications
- Unloaded food supplies from distributor trucks to efficiently organize inventory
- Upheld optimal staff and customer protections by monitoring food handling, cleaning, and sanitation protocols
- Handled portion control activities according to specified instructions provided by chef
- Instructed new staff in proper food preparation, storage, use of kitchen equipment and sanitation
- Created identical dishes numerous times daily with consistent care, attention to detail, and quality
- Changed and sanitized cutting boards, benches, and surfaces between tasks to avoid cross-contamination
- Wrapped up and stored unused food in appropriate containers and placed in refrigerator to avoid spoilage
- Followed restaurant stock management schedule to monitor product freshness and rotate out old products
- Maintained well-stocked stations with supplies and spices for maximum productivity
- Prepared and cooked full course meals based on restaurant recipes and specifications
- Checked food temperature regularly to verify proper cooking and safety
- Operated varied kitchen equipment, observing operation guidelines to avoid accidents and prevent malfunctions
- Plated and presented all dishes to match established restaurant standards
- Produced adequate amounts of mise en place to make meal preparation easier
Education
GED -
John Jay High School
Katonah, NY06.1996
No Degree - Culinary Arts
French Culinary Institute
New York, NY08.
No Degree - Culinary Arts
French Culinary Institute
New York, NY08.2012
Skills
- Cook Foods
- Kitchen Equipment Operation
- Meal Monitoring
- Food Plating and Presentation
- Health Code Compliance
- Room Preparation
- Supervising Residents
- Order Accuracy
- Team Leadership
- Vendor Relationship Management
- Developing Special Dishes and Recipes
- Inventory Control
- High-Volume Dining
- Sanitation
- Performance Improvement
- Delegating Assignments and Tasks
- Employee Performance Evaluations
- Food Item Purchasing
- Purchasing Strategies
- Catering Services
- Schedule Crew Members
- Employee Scheduling
- Maintain Food Safety
- Cost Control
- Policy and Procedure Enforcement
- Supply Ordering and Management
- Waste Reduction
- Productivity Improvements
- Control Inventory Costs
- Budget Management
- Staff Management
- Portion and Cost Control
- Inventory Coordination
- First Aid Knowledge
- Portioning Understanding
- Order Delivery Practices
- Kitchen Scheduling
- Portion Standards
- Attention to Detail
- Shift Scheduling
- Anticipating Problems
- Servsafe Certification
- Verbal and Written Communication
- Menu Pricing and Writing
- Recruitment and Hiring
- Station Preparation
- Food Preparation Management
- Staff Training
- Training
- Multitasking and Organization
- Serve Customers
- Labor and Overhead Cost Estimation
- Cost Estimation
- Expediting Orders
- Managing Deliveries
- Cleaning and Sanitation
- Workflow Optimization
- Safe Food Handling
- Portion Sizes
- New Employee Recruitment
- Food Preparation and Safety
- Customer Service
- Recipes and menu planning
- High-volume dining
- First aid knowledge
- Budgeting
- Verbal and written communication
- Order delivery practices
- Marketing and sales
- Order accuracy
- Scheduling
- Food plating and presentation
- Performance improvement
- Operations management
- Menu development
- Strategic planning
- Safe food handling
- Recruitment
- Workflow planning
- Cost controls
- Food preparation and safety
- Kitchen equipment operation and maintenance
- Kitchen staff coordination
- Motivational style
Timeline
Kitchen Manager
ALACART LLC
06.2022 - 05.2023
Kitchen Manager
Skillet Counter
10.2021 - 05.2022
Line Cook
SKILLET COUNTER
09.2018 - 03.2021
Personal Chef
Self-employed
10.2007 - 01.2010
Sous Chef
FINCH TAVERN
01.2004 - 09.2007
Lead Line Cook
Armonk Country Kitchen
01.2000 - 11.2003
GED -
John Jay High School
No Degree - Culinary Arts
French Culinary Institute
No Degree - Culinary Arts
French Culinary Institute