Job description
Join a premier artisanal bakery in Portland, Oregon, as a Head Pastry Baker. This leadership role blends culinary excellence with team mentorship, aimed at delivering exquisite pastries, breads, and desserts for our growing local and regional customer base. If you are passionate about innovation, quality, and elevating product standards, this is the opportunity to showcase your craft and guide a talented team.
We offer a dynamic, fast-paced environment with a focus on technique, seasonality, and sustainability. You will influence recipe development, production planning, and on-site training while upholding rigorous food safety standards and exceptional customer experience.
Key attributes we value: creativity, precision, collaborative leadership, and a relentless commitment to quality. If you thrive in a market where baking artistry meets operational excellence, we want to hear from you.
Responsibility
- Lead daily production for breads, pastries, and specialty cakes, ensuring on-time delivery and consistent quality across all SKUs.
- Develop, test, and refine recipes; scale batches for production while maintaining flavor, texture, and presentation standards.
- Manage and mentor the pastry team: schedule shifts, provide training, and conduct performance feedback.
- Ensure strict adherence to food safety, HACCP, and sanitation protocols; maintain accurate records and inspections.
- Oversee inventory management, ordering, waste reduction, and cost controls without compromising quality.
- Maintain and optimize bakery equipment, perform routine maintenance, and coordinate repairs when needed.
- Collaborate with operations and marketing teams to plan seasonal menus and promotional displays.
- Uphold brand standards in product appearance, packaging, and customer experience at all touchpoints.
Qualification
- 5+ years of professional bakery or pastry experience; prior leadership or head baker roles preferred.
- Expert knowledge of yeasted doughs, laminated doughs, cakes, fillings, and dessert decoration; strong flavor profiling sense.
- Proven ability to train, manage, and motivate a baking team; excellent communication skills.
- Strong attention to detail, excellent time management, and capability to work early mornings, weekends, and holidays as needed.
- Food safety certification (ServSafe or local equivalent) and working knowledge of HACCP principles.
- Experience with recipe costing, portion control, and inventory software; ability to manage production planning.
- Creative portfolio or samples of pastry work; culinary degree preferred but not required with strong experience.
- Excellent problem-solving, collaboration, and customer-focused mindset.