Executive Chef Colorado Dude Ranch

Location: Fort Collins, CO

Salary: 62k/year - 70k/year

Posted Date: 05.15.2026

Employment Type: Permanent

Job ID: 3600786

Job Description

Head Chef — Boutique Ranch and Corporate Retreats | Fort Collins, CO


Time to Cowboy Up!

Salary up to $30/hour Year-round position

Free on-ranch housing: Private bedroom, plus all meals

Ranch access on days off: Riding, hiking, jacuzzi, disc golf, shooting range, and more


Gecko Hospitality is seeking a Head Chef to lead a culinary program guests remember, before they remember the ride. This isn’t a ranch cook job, it’s an executive chef role with the soul of the mountains.


The Role

Chef is responsible for the entire food program at the ranch. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner, every plate fresh, from scratch, every shift. No boxes. No cans. No reheat line. Real food, made well, made fresh. You’ll design seasonal menus, lead the kitchen team, and make dinner the place nobody wants to leave. All meals served family style, made to impress the guests and staff alike.


Design & execute menus tasting like the land, warm, elevated, story-driven

Lead, train, and mentor kitchen staff. Character first, skill trained

Run a tight kitchen: food safety, ordering, inventory, waste, prep

Handle dietary needs without drama. Dial in every detail


Proven experience running culinary ops: costing, ordering, team leadership

Obsessed with food safety, temps, labels, rotation, handling. Every shift

All-hands mindset, ability to work long days at altitude


It’s all about our guests

Drug-free, tobacco-free workplace. Cell phones away in front of guests.

Clear is kind, we say the thing, directly and warmly.

Unreasonable Hospitality to all. What can we do better, every time?


To be successful

You actually want to live in the mountains.

You truly believe in cooking from scratch

You own the kitchen, ordering, inventory, menus and presentation

You treat the staff with the same level of compassion and hospitality as you treat guests.


To Apply  Email resume to debbie.kelleher@geckohospitality.com




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