Sous Chef - World Expo 2027 - Belgrade - US National Only

Job Purpose

The Sous Chef is the Executive Chef's second-in-command, running the kitchen day-to-day and stepping up in the Executive Chef's absence. The post holder drives production, quality and food safety on the line, leads the brigade during service and helps deliver VIP and event menus to the pavilion's standards.

Location: Belgrade, Serbia

Contract Type: Fixed-term contract — 4 months

Key Responsibilities

Kitchen operations

•     Run daily kitchen production and service; expedite the pass and keep quality and timing on standard.

•     Deputise fully for the Executive Chef, taking charge of the kitchen when required.

•     Ensure mise-en-place, station readiness and consistent execution of recipes and specifications.

Food safety and quality

•     Enforce HACCP, hygiene, temperature control, allergen management and traceability on every shift.

•     Work strictly within Serbian food-safety law (HACCP mandatory) and any Expo organiser food-safety regime, including local sourcing constraints (US-origin meat and dairy are effectively restricted), cold-chain control, allergen management and Serbian-language labelling.

•     Conduct line checks, tastings and quality control throughout service.

Team and cost

•     Lead, train and supervise chefs de partie, commis and porters; manage the line during peak trading.

•     Support food-cost control through portioning, yield and waste discipline.

•     Oversee receiving, storage and stock rotation to standard.

Expo, VIP & Protocol Responsibilities

•     Help deliver bespoke VIP, diplomatic and national-day menus to specification, including dietary and allergen requirements.

•     Maintain the highest food-safety and quality standards for high-profile guests.

•     Sustain production quality and pace through Expo surge days and extended hours.

•     Uphold discretion and professionalism around VIP events.

Requirements

Required Skills, Knowledge & Abilities

•     Strong senior-chef / sous-chef experience in busy, quality kitchens.

•     Confident line leadership and expediting.

•     Thorough food-safety and HACCP knowledge.

•     Ability to train and drive a brigade.

•     Adaptable to constrained sourcing.

Qualifications & Experience

•     United States citizenship (mandatory for this role).

•     Culinary qualification; food-safety / HACCP certification.

•     Minimum 5 years in professional kitchens with at least 2 at sous-chef level.

•     High-volume or events experience preferred.

Acknowledgement

This job description reflects the principal duties of the role and is not exhaustive. Duties may be adjusted to meet the operational needs of the USA Pavilion at World Expo 2027. The post holder is expected to carry out reasonable additional tasks as required by the management team.