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Join a growing hospitality group as Chef Director and lead kitchen operations excellence across two leading UK premium casual dining brands!
Are you passionate about authentic Italian cuisine and ready to drive kitchen excellence at a national level? We're seeking a dynamic and experienced Chef Director to oversee kitchen operations across two leading UK premium casual dining brands.
You will play a key role in shaping the culinary culture, enhancing food quality, and leading a team of talented chefs and kitchen operations teams. This is a new role and a unique opportunity to make an impact in a fast-growing company.
Reporting to the Operations Director and collaborating with key Group stakeholders (e.g., Group Executive Chef, Group Sales & Marketing Director, and Senior Executive Team), this role will lead on ensuring the consistent delivery of food excellence, directing Kitchen Operations recruitment, L&D and retention, and being a key stakeholder and collaborator in the managing of existing/new supplier relationships, compliance and kitchen systems.
This is a national role and ideally the successful candidate will be located in the Midlands and/or with the ability to travel flexibly across all locations from North to South
Key Responsibilities:
- Lead kitchen operations and drive quality product delivery and efficiency.
- Shape and maintain a culture of excellence, focusing on chef engagement, training, and welfare.
- Oversee supplier relationships, cost management, and compliance.
- Manage kitchen projects, from equipment sourcing to menu development.
- Lead recruitment, training, and retention strategies to ensure top-tier talent.
What Were Looking For:
- At least 3-5 years in a similar national or group Kitchen Operations leadership capacity within quality dining and hospitality environments
- A true passion for (and ideally in-depth knowledge and experience in) authentic Italian cuisine, ingredients, cooking methods and food culture.
- In-depth experience in premium casual Kitchen Operations systems and processes.
- Excellent ability to work with Chef teams, third parties, co-manage projects, and communicate effectively with directors and operational teams.
- Proven experience managing group and large-scale change projects.
- Strong understanding of pricing, costing, GP modelling, and financial analysis.
- Experience in managing contracts, supplier negotiations and ensuring cost control.
- Strong understanding of food safety and compliance standards.
- Demonstrated ability to implement training and development programs.
- Strong project management skills with the ability to oversee multiple initiatives simultaneously.
