Head Chef

Job Description

OPPORTUNITY: An exciting opportunity for a Head Chef to join the founders of a new and ambitious wine bar and restaurant in West London. We are looking for a confident, highly organised and creative chef to join the opening leadership team to play a pivotal role in the creation, launch and growth of the business over the coming years. We are looking for someone who truly understands what ingredient-led cooking means and who can go beyond the usual suppliers to build relationships with farmers and producers. 

• An exciting new wine bar and restaurant concept like no other in London
• Location: West London
• Size: 44 covers inside + 24 covers outside + additional street dining and drinking 
• Food: 
  • Southern European inspired – snacks, small plates, fresh pasta, grill, desserts. 
  • Ingredient-led menu led by close relationships with carefully chosen farms
  • Targeting accolades, Michelin guide, National Restaurant Awards etc
• WINE: 
  • A list of rare wines that brings together classic estates alongside independent new age winemakers led by award-winning sommelier Alex Price
• INSPIRATION: Goodbye Horses, St Eia (Cornwall), Noble Rot
• VIBE: something new and fresh for West London; a rich, community led, creative space showcasing exceptional wines and ingredient-led cooking; vibrant atmosphere with carefully curated cultural events including music, poetry and events; street dining and drinking in Spring/Summer

ROLE SUMMARY:

The Head Chef will be responsible for running kitchen operations and will treat the kitchen as their own business including team culture, operations and financial performance. 

Job Requirements

WHO WE ARE LOOKING FOR:

• Southern European Ingredient-Led Cooking
  • Someone who intimately understand ingredient-led Italian and/or southern French cooking
  • Someone who loves making fresh pasta
  • Someone who is passionate about sourcing, sustainability and quality farming who can connect and build relationships with growers/farmers
• Operations and Organisation
  • Experience in high-calibre kitchens with strong operational standards and systems and calm under pressure
  • Working alongside Group Exec Chef Alex Busca in maintaining the highest of standards in paperwork, systems
  • Highly organised individual with excellent planning skills
  • Excellent Food Hygiene and Safety knowledge and standards
• Managing and Developing a Team
  • A confident leader to run a small and dedicated team of 4-6 chefs
  • Experience successfully managing a team and driving culture, performance, learning and development – this is not a skill that can be taught easily, we are looking for a natural strong leader 
• Creativity
  • We are looking for a creative chef with a strong palate with experience with working with founders and Exec chefs on menu development
  • Someone who understands the value of working with other strong chefs on menu development and that the results are always better when working collaboratively 
• Financial Acumen
  • Someone who is confident and good with numbers including food costs, GP, portion control, yield, waste control, staff costs and overall P&L
• Personal Growth
  • We want to work with someone who is ambitious and always eager to learn and grow

Compensation and Bonus Performance Objectives

• £52k base salary, 48 hours per week
• £8k per annum bonus
  • Senior leadership bonuses are assessed and paid quarterly and require all four performance objectives to be met. 
  • At other venues in the group performance bonuses have been paid 90% of the time
• Specific performance objectives will be disclosed at the interview stage.  

WHAT WE OFFER: 

• Mentorship under Exec Chef
• Established Head Office support functions to ensure you always have the tools to succeed in your role, including but not limited to:
  • Finance team
  • In-house content creation and marketing
  • Head of People to support on recruitment, induction training and ongoing learning and development
• Friendly and motivating work environment
• Great mentorship, ongoing training, regular reviews
• 28 days holiday per year
• 25-50% discounts at all group venues

If this sounds like you, please apply — we’d love to chat.

Job Location

West London
London NW6