Design & Construction Project Manager

Job Description
Build the best restaurants in the best restaurant city in the world.
COCOZZA is looking for a Project Manager who thrives in complex environments, communicates with clarity, and brings a hospitality mindset to design and construction. Our projects are NYC restaurants and bars, and each one requires collaboration, precision and a commitment to protecting our clients' capital and timeline.
As a Project Manager at COCOZZA, you will run projects through our proprietary Budget/Lease/Design/Build system—the most reliable way to deliver restaurants that open on time, on budget and fully ready for service. Your job is to bring order upstream, eliminate surprises, and guide clients, designers and trade partners through a coordinated and transparent process.
If you are proactive, solutions oriented and committed to being both effective and enjoyable to work with, you will excel here.
Responsibilities
Lead projects from early design coordination through punch list and opening
Drive proactive communication across clients, architects, engineers, landlords and subcontractors
Manage schedules, budgets, procurement and resource allocation using our standardized workflows
Identify design conflicts early and work with the team to resolve them before construction begins
Supervise on-site personnel and maintain high safety and quality standards
Prepare weekly updates, progress reports and actionable next steps for all stakeholders
Cultivate positive, respectful and productive relationships with the full project team
Facilitate inspections, permitting activities and required filings
Negotiate trade pricing with fairness, transparency and responsibility to the client
Ensure the finished product matches design intent and COCOZZA quality standards
Represent COCOZZA with professionalism, warmth and a hospitality mindset
Bring your absolute best effort to deliver projects that operators can open with confidence
Qualifications
3 to 7 years experience in construction project management, ideally with restaurant or retail work
Strong understanding of construction sequencing, MEP coordination and NYC building processes
Familiarity with construction management software and digital workflows
High-level written and verbal communication skills
Ability to anticipate problems and solve them proactively
Skilled at negotiating, holding people accountable and maintaining trust
Comfortable managing multiple complex projects at once
A reputation for being dependable, detail oriented and genuinely likable
Experience with restaurant operations is a plus but not required
Who Thrives At COCOZZA
People who take ownership rather than wait for direction
People who collaborate with hospitality, even under stress
People who want to work inside a system that values planning and clarity
People who push for excellence and do not settle for “good enough”
If you want to develop mastery in the most operator-focused construction methodology in the industry and help build the restaurants that shape New York City's dining culture, we'd love to meet you.
Company Description
COCOZZA is the restaurant construction company built to solve the biggest problem in the industry: most restaurants fail before they ever open. Our proprietary Budget/Lease/Design/Build process is the most reliable, efficient and operator-focused way to build restaurants in New York City. We believe it is the best method available, and we hire people who want to master it.
We build restaurants the way great hospitality teams operate: with clarity, preparation and genuine care. We take ownership early, eliminate surprises, and protect the capital and timeline of every operator we serve. That standard requires discipline, coordination and a mindset of hospitality with our clients, designers, landlords and trade partners.
Our focus is restaurants and bars across Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens. From our NoMad office, we operate a center of process excellence where project teams, architects and clients collaborate using modern software, upstream planning and a proven system that keeps projects aligned from concept through opening. Team members learn a methodology that removes chaos from construction and elevates the role of the Project Manager into a true strategic partner for chefs and operators.
COCOZZA is the employer of choice for construction professionals who want:
A clear path for growth into senior, principal and leadership roles
Training in a proprietary process that outperforms traditional construction
A collaborative environment where hospitality is a daily practice
A diverse, inclusive workplace where people support one another and take pride in their craft
The opportunity to help build the best restaurants in the best restaurant city in the world
If you take ownership, communicate clearly, bring a positive and solutions-oriented attitude, and want to be part of a high-performing team, you will thrive here. Apply today and help us raise the standard for how restaurants get built in New York City.
COCOZZA is the restaurant construction company built to solve the biggest problem in the industry: most restaurants fail before they ever open. Our proprietary Budget/Lease/Design/Build process is the most reliable, efficient and operator-focused way to build restaurants in New York City. We believe it is the best method available, and we hire people who want to master it. We build restaurants the way great hospitality teams operate: with clarity, preparation and genuine care. We take ownership early, eliminate surprises, and protect the capital and timeline of every operator we serve. That standard requires discipline, coordination and a mindset of hospitality with our clients, designers, landlords and trade partners. Our focus is restaurants and bars across Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens. From our NoMad office, we operate a center of process excellence where project teams, architects and clients collaborate using modern software, upstream planning and a proven system that keeps projects aligned from concept through opening. Team members learn a methodology that removes chaos from construction and elevates the role of the Project Manager into a true strategic partner for chefs and operators. COCOZZA is the employer of choice for construction professionals who want: A clear path for growth into senior, principal and leadership roles Training in a proprietary process that outperforms traditional construction A collaborative environment where hospitality is a daily practice A diverse, inclusive workplace where people support one another and take pride in their craft The opportunity to help build the best restaurants in the best restaurant city in the world If you take ownership, communicate clearly, bring a positive and solutions-oriented attitude, and want to be part of a high-performing team, you will thrive here. Apply today and help us raise the standard for how restaurants get built in New York City.