JOIN OUR TEAM
Cuyama Buckhorn is a timeless roadside inn & restaurant located on State Route 166 in the heart of Cuyama Valley, where community, locally-inspired food, and artistry flourish.
We are pleased to announce our resort reveal! Our resort retreat now boasts a full service, farm-to-table restaurant and bar, a craft coffee shop, and a market featuring house-made and local products. Wanderlust seekers can also enjoy a glistening pool to splash into under the warm California sun, a spacious jacuzzi to warm up in on cool desert nights, a barrel sauna with sunset views, outdoor fire pits and games to bring together friends new and old, as well as plenty of event spaces to celebrate the beauty of this unmatched haven.
We can’t wait to have you join our growing team to help create a warm and welcoming home away from home for locals and travelers, alike!
RESTAURANT & BAR
Food & Beverage Manager
The Buckhorn Restaurant & Bar was originally established in 1952 as a roadside stop for weary travelers to enjoy a meal in good company. More than 60 years later, The Buckhorn has become a historic establishment nestled in the Hidden Valley of Enchantment, welcoming boutique resort guests, travelers popping in off of Historic Route 166 and the local community, for unexpected farm-to-table comfort food and drinks that everyone can celebrate.
We’re looking for a driven and passionate food and beverage professional to help lead our F&B team. The Food & Beverage Manager will oversee daily food and beverage operations for The Buckhorn Restaurant & Bar and be in charge of creating and maintaining the standards set forth for the resort’s restaurant & bar programs.
The ideal candidate is someone who is excited to live in a rural tight-knit community, surrounded by local farms and ranches and vast untouched natural landscape, and is ready to relocate to help be a part of an incredibly unique and ongoing project. Someone who loves the outdoors, agriculture, nature activities and embraces a remote lifestyle would fit well in Cuyama, as our valley is filled with amazing natural landmarks including, Carrizo Plain National Monument, Los Padres National Forest, amazing campgrounds and stargazing, as well as plenty of incredible local agriculture partners.
***Housing will be provided for this position.
ABOUT US
Cuyama Buckhorn is a timeless roadside resort in the heart of Santa Barbara County’s high desert.
The iconic property, originally built in 1952, has been re-imagined as an elevated retreat nestled in The Hidden Valley of Enchantment. It rests at the intersection of 4 counties, on the other side of The Los Padres National Forest from Santa Barbara proper; and is just two hours or less from Los Angeles, Bakersfield, and Paso Robles.
Cuyama Buckhorn offers an intimate getaway filled with thoughtfully crafted meals, a bar where conversation flows effortlessly, 21 newly refined rooms with stylistic nods to the past, and 2 acres of artfully designed outdoor space. The Enchanted Valley sits amidst star-filled night skies for some of the best stargazing in California and pastoral golden mountains boasting hiking trails, breathtaking wildflowers, and wilderness. The food, design, and creative spirit of Cuyama Buckhorn is inspired by the rich history of the local community and the bounty of Cuyama Valley.
This resort retreat boasts a full service, farm-to-table restaurant and bar, a craft coffee shop, and a market featuring house-made and local products. Wanderlust seekers can also enjoy a glistening pool to splash into under the warm California sun, a spacious jacuzzi to warm up in on cool desert nights, a barrel sauna with sunset views, outdoor fire pits and games to bring together friends new and old, as well as plenty of event spaces to celebrate the beauty of this unmatched haven.
F&B PROGRAM MISSION
We believe that what we eat and how we choose to eat matters. By learning where our food comes from and how it’s grown, consciously making our food choices, and investing in the localization of our food, we are able to create a more sustainable future for our local land, community, and the greater world. We draw on and collaborate with our community and like-minded organizations in order to model this ideal, bring awareness to the importance of localizing food systems, and to help complete this dependent circle in our own region.
We work to highlight the products and goods originating from our valley and our neighboring cities in every area of our property, from our food and beverage offerings in the bar and restaurant, to the mini bar trays in our guest rooms, to the retail products and farm fresh produce and groceries in our market.
RESPONSIBILITIES
- Manage, train, evaluate, lead, motivate, coach, and discipline all front of house employees to ensure that established and core standards are met
- Ability to work closely with the Executive Chef and Sous Chef to design an effective seasonal cocktail menu and wine list while ensuring excellent product quality at a fair price
- Maintain front of house labor and beverage costs
- Attend regular operational meetings to ensure effective coordination and cooperation between departments
- Observe physical condition of bar and equipment at Cuyama Buckhorn and make recommendations for corrections and improvements as needed
- Ensure compliance with health, safety, sanitation and alcohol awareness standards and certifications for all front of house staff
- Maintain a positive, upbeat role, promote and exemplify Cuyama Buckhorn’s values and represent departmental objectives and interests to internal and external customers/partners
- Follow up on complaints, questions, and concerns; respond to internal/external customer needs in a friendly, timely and efficient manner
- Develop and promote teamwork and cooperation among co-workers
- Comply with established safe work practices and attend all safety-related training provided or made available by the Cuyama Buckhorn
- Communicate with ownership on a regular basis to keep ownership updated on staff, business, timelines, issues, guest relations and overall operations
- Manage overall operations of the bar, including day-to-day on-site operations of bar
- Work with ownership and management to curate larger food and beverage objectives for The Buckhorn and work with team to ensure objectives are met
- Come up with creative initiatives to drive revenue for The Buckhorn and work with the management team to implement these initiatives
- Create a training plan for front of house staff and oversee/ensure that ongoing training continues, to get to the next level of service standards
- Work with management team to create systems, SOPs and overall operating procedures for all departments
- Maintain, grow and create new and positive relationships with guests, staff, potential clients, owners, suppliers, partners and members of the local community
- Add, manage and expand operating procedures, amenities and services for the resort
- Be available to work a few bartending shifts, also available off-hours when necessary and be willing and able to work weekends and holidays
- Work with management team to successfully implement events and ongoing programming
- Assist in development, establishment and vision for larger hospitality brand
- Offer and create classes for guests such as cocktail making, whiskey and tequila tastings
- Work with local purveyors to offer special events and coordinate tastings for guests
- Work with group sales on all events, remote bars and offerings
- Create monthly inventories and weekly orders according to consumption and budget
QUALIFICATIONS
- 3-4 years in a food and beverage leadership role, preferably in a bar setting
- Passion or interest in the boutique hospitality sector
- Strong understanding and experience in managing hospitality budgets and financials
- A people person, with strong communication skills, who is able to build a collaborative team and trusting relationships
- Strong leadership skills, management skills, customer relations skills, training skills, and project management skills
- Collaborative personality with the ability and desire to successfully lead a team
- The successful candidate will need to live/relocate to Cuyama, CA. Housing will be provided as part of the compensation package
DESIRABLE
- Part of a growing team of a restaurant, hotel, or resort, or the creation of a hospitality brand
- Bartending experience
- Ability to communicate in Spanish
- Up-to-date certifications in liquor and food service
EOE STATEMENT
We are an equal employment opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status or any other characteristic protected by law.
Job Type: Full-Time