Director of Design
Reports To: VP, Design & Construction
FLSA Status: Exempt
Cost Center: 9511
Location: Dallas, TX or Remote, USA
Salary Range: $117,000–$190,000 (Compensation is based on a variety of factors, including relevant experience, skills, qualifications, and geographic location.)
Position Summary
Mendocino Farms is seeking a Director of Design to lead the evolution and delivery of our restaurant experience across new restaurants, remodels, refreshes, and strategic initiatives.
This leader will own Mendo’s design function: the restaurant prototype, design standards, internal and external design resources, and the systems that turn brand strategy into distinctive, functional, and scalable restaurants. You will partner closely with Operations, Culinary, Facilities, Construction, Real Estate, and Marketing to create environments that strengthen the guest experience while supporting efficient operations, disciplined investment, and growth.
This is an opportunity for a creative and operationally minded leader who can set a compelling design point of view, build a high-performing team and consultant network, and make practical decisions that balance quality, durability, speed, cost, and long-term unit performance as Mendocino Farms expands its restaurant footprint.
Core Responsibilities
Lead the Design Function
Team Leadership: Lead, coach, and develop internal designers and external design resources; set clear expectations, effective working rhythms, and a high bar for quality and accountability.
Resource Alignment: Align internal and external design resources to the development pipeline, identifying when specialized expertise is needed.
Senior Design Leadership: Serve as the senior design leader for complex, high-visibility, or high-risk projects and decisions.
Own the Brand Environment and Design Standards
Prototype & Standards Ownership: Own and evolve Mendo’s restaurant prototype, design standards, material palettes, finishes, furniture, fixtures, lighting, equipment integration, and reusable design details.
Brand Consistency: Ensure every restaurant delivers a recognizable Mendo experience while adapting appropriately to site conditions, market needs, and business priorities.
Brand Evolution: Use operating feedback, field learning, and market insight to keep the brand environment relevant, differentiated, and scalable.
Creative Point of View: Set and elevate Mendo’s creative design point of view, translating brand strategy into memorable, functional restaurant environments that feel distinctive across markets and formats.
Improve Restaurant Operations Through Design
Operational Design Standards: Maintain and evolve design standards that prioritize guest flow, ordering and pickup, digital and delivery activity, seating, accessibility, storage, serviceability, and day-to-day operations.
Kitchen & BOH Planning: Partner with Operations, Culinary, Facilities, Construction, and equipment vendors to improve kitchen planning, back-of-house flow, equipment integration, team ergonomics, throughput, food safety, and maintainability.
Post-Opening Learning: Incorporate post-opening learning into future layouts, prototypes, and specifications.
Drive Quality, Clarity, and Design Delivery
Design Delivery: Oversee design delivery for new restaurants, remodels, and refresh programs from feasibility test fits and concepts through permit-ready documentation and design-related construction support.
QA/QC & Phase Gates: Establish practical design QA/QC and phase-gate practices that produce complete, coordinated, code-aware, and timely deliverables.
Cross-Functional Reviews: Lead cross-functional reviews using clear agendas, advance pre-reads, recommendations, concise decision requests, and thoroughly documented follow-through.
Stakeholder Direction: Translate stakeholder input into clear direction for internal teams and consultants, surfacing risks and tradeoffs early.
Constructability: Partner with Construction to protect design intent,…