General Manager — Café Operations

Job overview

The General Manager role is onsite in downtown Chicago, IL, and pays $75,000–$85,000 per year, with bonus potential of 5% of salary. The manager leads Food for Thought’s café operations and works with the Chef Manager and Catering Manager on menu execution and conference center events. The role oversees daily food and beverage operations, team development, inventory, guest experience, and financial performance. It supports customer satisfaction and employee retention while ensuring menu initiatives, service standards, and budgets are carried out.

What you'll do

• Measure customer satisfaction and resolve issues
• manage the team and support retention
• develop career paths and training schedules
• coordinate menu and promotional rollouts with the Chef Manager
• liaise with the client
• maintain café, Toast, and 365 SOPs and HACCP standards
• manage food, labor, and direct costs against budgets
• oversee café operations.

What we're looking for

Skills & competencies

general manager

chicago il

food for thought

café operations

food and beverage

team leadership

inventory control

guest experience

haccp

day shifts

weekends needed

$75k–$85k/year

5% bonus potential

Work arrangement

• Weekend coverage required

Benefits & perks

• Paid time off
• health, dental, and vision insurance
• flexible spending accounts
• life insurance
• AD&D and critical illness insurance
• employee assistance program
• parental leave
• 401(k)
• employee meal plan and discounts.

Why this role

The posting lists day shifts and weekends needed, a quarterly bonus opportunity, and responsibility for both front-of-house and back-of-house teams.

About the employer

Food for Thought is hiring for this role. Industry: Full-Service Restaurants. Sector: 72.