Qualifications & Experience:
· Minimum 7–10 years of progressive culinary leadership experience, including at least 5 years as Executive Chef or in a comparable senior culinary role.
· Demonstrated success in luxury resorts, fine dining restaurants, wellness retreats, or high-end all-inclusive environments.
· Strong, proven experience in plant-based cuisine is essential, including the ability to create depth of flavor, texture, comfort, indulgence, and variety using plants as the foundation.
· Culinary degree, advanced culinary certification, or equivalent professional training preferred.
· Solid knowledge of nutrition-forward cooking, fermentation, natural ingredients, allergen management, food safety, and wellness dining trends.
· Experience leading large multicultural kitchen teams, including recruitment, onboarding, training, coaching, scheduling, performance management, and succession planning.
· Strong financial acumen, including budgeting, forecasting, food cost management, labor planning, purchasing, and profitability analysis.
· Fluent English and Spanish required




· Food handling and health & safety certifications are required or obtained in accordance with local regulations.
Key Responsibilities:
· Lead the complete culinary operation across Palmaïa's plant-forward restaurants, wellness-focused concepts, in suite service, events, beach service, and team member dining.
· Create extraordinary menus that are delicious, beautiful, nutritionally thoughtful, and aligned with Palmaïa's holistic wellness philosophy.
· Champion plant-based and plant-forward cuisine as a space for innovation, flavor, texture, and sensory discovery, while ensuring optional non-vegan offerings are executed with the same excellence and integrity.
· Develop seasonal, ingredient-led menus that prioritize fresh produce, organic and regenerative sourcing where possible, house-made preparations, fermentation, natural sweetness from whole foods, and a strict avoidance of refined sugars, proc

📌 EXECUTIVE CHEF (Playa del Carmen)
🏢 Palmaïa - The house of AïA
📍 Playa del Carmen