Head Chef

Head Chef

Overview of the Lodge

The Unalakleet River Lodge is a lodge located on the banks of the Unalakleet River in Unalakleet, Alaska. The River Lodge hosts 14 guests per week for 8 weeks, providing comfortable accommodations, fine dining and premier fishing. The lodge has been in operation for 50 years and prides itself on quality service, building community and providing guests with a once in a lifetime experience. Because of our remoteness, our staff need to be organized, motivated, flexible, resourceful, and practice time management. Preparation is key to providing a consistent experience week after week. This job is perfect for someone who has a passion for creating a unique culinary experience for guests, enjoys nature and the remoteness of lodge living and thrives on working with a motivated team. The fishing we can not always guarantee but we can provide exceptional dining and accommodations.

Job Description

As Head Chefyour job is to provide a delicious and unique culinary experience for up to 14 guests per week. Your role is to oversee and manage the kitchen in coordination with our general manager, ordering all of our food products and creating an exclusive menu for our lodge. The Head Chef with support from our Sous Chef will be in charge of all guest meals, which includes: breakfast, lunch, hors d'oeuvres (during cocktail hour) and three course dinner. The Head Chef will coordinate with Sous Chef, server, and dishwasher on daily duties and/or needs to keep the kitchen running smoothly. You will work closely with lodge owners on menu, food orders, and inventory. Being remote and seasonal, requires set-up and shut down procedures. Kitchen staff will be in charge of getting the kitchen cleaned and prepped for the season as well as shutting down and prepping the kitchen for winter.

Season Dates

-Tentative Start and End Date: June 23rd - Sept 9th, 2026

-Our general season runs from June 21st - Sept 14th but can change according to Mother Nature and the salmon. The first week of guests is July 12th and the season is 8 weeks long.

Work Schedule:

Work hours will vary on a daily basis depending on the number of guests and how you use your time to complete tasks. There will be times throughout the day where you get breaks (you can work with kitchen staff/lodge staff to determine the best times to take breaks). Breaks will happen throughout the week, in the evenings and on the weekends. Guests leave Saturday morning and new guests arrive Sunday afternoon. The fishing guides cook dinner on Saturday nights (when it's just staff at the lodge) so that kitchen staff get a night off. There are some weekend opportunities to go to town or go fishing with your time off. Please note that most of your time will be spent at the lodge.

Compensation

• Competitive Pay (starting $5,000 per month) + weekly tips
• Paid once a month (direct deposit)
• Private Cabin with private bathroom
• All meals provided
• Ability to fish and take home salmon filets
• Airfare to and from Unalakleet, AK (from within the continental US)

Key Responsibilities:

• Menu Development: Create innovative and seasonal menus that showcase your skills while incorporating fine dining and staying within a budget. Create menus for Breakfast, Lunch, hors d'oeuvres, and Dinners for guests and utilize spreadsheets for menu and ordering lists. Also be able to adapt menus to cater to the lodge's guests and any special dietary requirements.
• Kitchen Supervision: Oversee aspects of the kitchen operation in coordination with the general manager, including potential training, and scheduling of kitchen personnel. Ensure a safe and efficient working environment.
• Food Preparation: Direct the culinary team in preparing dishes, ensuring consistency, quality, and adherence to established recipes and plating standards.
• Inventory Management: Manage food inventory, ordering, and stock control to minimize waste and maintain cost-effective practices.
• Quality Control: Implement rigorous quality control measures to guarantee that all dishes meet the lodge's high standards and guest expectations.
• Budgeting: Work within budget constraints while maintaining the quality and variety of the menu offerings.
• Safety and Hygiene: Uphold strict food safety and sanitation standards, following health department guidelines and ensuring kitchen cleanliness.
• Creativity: Stay updated on food trends and incorporate innovative culinary techniques and presentations to continually elevate the dining experience.
• Collaboration: Coordinate with other lodge departments to plan and execute special events and theme nights, including celebrating our 50th anniversary this year
• Guest Relations: Interact with guests, accommodating special requests, and addressing any concerns or feedback regarding the dining experience.

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Menu Info

Our menu changes year to year. We work closely with our kitchen team to develop a menu that plays to the chefs strengths and also creates the warm, comforting and elevated dining experience we want guests to have. Prior to the season we plan out the full menu with our chefs and are always eager to hear new and creative ideas

The Head Chef supports the Sous Chef if needed, but mainly focuses on the guest cocktail hour and dinner. The Sous Chef handles breakfast for both crew and guests and dinner for crew. Head Chef and Sous Chef will collaborate on hot lunches for guests.

Breakfast 6AM & 7AM: (Sous) Made to order breakfast + breakfast special of the day for Guests and Staff (Sous)

Lunch 12PM: (Head and Sous on hot lunch days) To-go lunch (for guests eating from the boat) is usually a sandwich/chips/cookies or hot lunch at the lodge

Ex: Hot soup, pressed sandwich, pasta dish, etc.

Cocktail Hour 6:30PM: (Head) 3 different hors d'oeuvres each night put out for folks to graze.

Ex: Salmon cakes, tartare, mini corndogs, mini Banh Mi sliders etc.

Crew Dinner 5:30PM: (Sous) This is served family style and we have a steam tray-

Ex: Pasta and salad, make your own burritos with all the fixins', protein and side, fried rice with chicken

Guest Dinner 7:30PM: (Head) All Plated- First course, Main dish, dessert.

Ex: Short Rib, Elk Steaks, *Salmon dish.

We prefer to bake bread and make the pasta from scratch. All of the desserts must be made in house as well.

*We like to emphasize using salmon in our menus, since we fish for it every day We want to see our chefs showcase their creativity by utilizing this ingredient

Specific Job Requirements

• Valid U.S. driver's license
• Must be able to lift at least 50lbs
• CPR certification (preferred but not required)
• Willing to get a Alaska Food Worker Card prior to arrival (Employer will provide the training online)
• Flexibility and adaptability to work in a remote location

Culinary:

• 5+ years Head Chef experience
• Proven culinary experience as a Head Chef or Executive Chef in a fine dining or high-end restaurant setting
• Creativity and a willingness to experiment with new dishes and presentations
• 10 + years in restaurant/service industry
• Extreme passion for food and flavor
• Diverse culinary background
• ServSafe certification or equivalent food safety training (preferred but not required)

Kitchen Supervising:

• Coordinating with URL's general manager to maintain organization with kitchen staff, ordering, budget, and menu planning
• Strong leadership and communication skills to lead and inspire the kitchen team
• Create daily prep lists and cooking schedule with sous chef and GM
• Knowledge of inventory to manage food ordering with GM
• Organizational and multitasking abilities to oversee daily kitchen operations
• Must have knowledge of and implementation of food safety regulations and procedures

How to Apply:

Please apply through our . If you have any questions or trouble with the form, please email or . Once you apply, we will do our best to reach out within 24-48 hours.

Job Type: Temporary

Pay: $5,000.00 per month

Work Location: In person