Bristol - Head Chef - Neapolitan Pizza

Mission Mars; West of England; On-site; GBP 38,000 - 47,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Worldwide pizza trips

Up to 32% annual bonus

Tips & Tronc paid monthly

50% discount across Mission Mars sites

Free guestlist entry to Albert Hall, M

Complimentary food & drink after every

Real progression opportunities

Industry‑leading training & dev

Festa di Natale & Barbecue Estivo

Birthday card & gift

World Class recognition by Best Brands

Job summary

Mission Mars is seeking a Head Pizzaiolo in Bristol to lead the kitchen and uphold our Neapolitan pizza standards. You will take ownership of the kitchen, lead a growing team and ensure exceptional guest experiences across busy services.

We offer a strong salary, quarterly bonuses and generous benefits as part of a fast‑growing hospitality group. If you’re passionate about pizza, leadership and high performance, we’d love to hear from you.

Qualifications

• Proven experience as a Head Pizzaiolo, Senior Pizzaiolo or Senior Sous Chef in a high-volume kitchen.
• Deep technical knowledge of authentic Neapolitan pizza.
• Experience leading, motivating and developing a busy kitchen team.
• Strong commercial awareness, including labour and waste management.
• Excellent food safety and allergen knowledge.
• The ability to stay calm, organised and confident when the pressure is ON.
• A genuine passion for great food, great people and great hospitality.

Responsibilities

• Own the pizza: maintaining Rudy's Neapolitan standards and ensuring every pizza leaving the kitchen is up to scratch.
• Lead the kitchen team across all levels, inspiring, coaching and developing staff.
• Run prep, service, post-service and everything in between.
• Drive performance: managing labour, reducing waste and keeping the kitchen commercially sharp.
• Keep things stocked: ownership of stock control, ordering and kitchen organisation.
• Grow your people: running reviews, delivering training and helping your team progress.
• Keep standards sky-high: ensuring food safety, allergen management and compliance.
• Lead together: work closely with the General Manager to align kitchen and floor operations.

Skills

Head Pizzaiolo experience

Neapolitan pizza knowledge

Team leadership

Labour management

Food safety & allergen knowledge

Staying calm under pressure

Job description

Head Pizzaiolo – Bristol

NEAPOLITAN PIZZA EXPERIENCE ESSENTIAL

Location: Bristol

Salary: £42,300 per annum + Tips & Tronc + up to 32% bonus per annum, paid quarterly (OTE up to £55k+)

Contract: Full time

Ready to take the lead?

At Rudy’s, pizza isn’t just what we do. It’s what we obsess over.

From perfectly fermented dough to that 60-second bake, every pizza that leaves our kitchen has to be proper. And as our Head Pizzaiolo, you’ll be the person making sure it is — every single time. You’ll take the reins of the whole kitchen operation, leading your team, protecting our Neapolitan standards and creating a kitchen culture people genuinely want to be part of.

This is a role for someone who knows their pizza, loves leading people and thrives in a busy kitchen where the pace is high, the standards are higher and no two services are ever quite the same. If you're ready to put your stamp on one of the UK's most respected pizza brands, we'd love to hear from you.

So, who are Rudy's?

Born in Manchester in 2015, Rudy's started with a simple idea: make proper Neapolitan pizza and do it really, really well.

Fast forward to today and we're now 39 sites strong across the UK — but our obsession hasn't changed.

We make our dough fresh every day. We use the best Italian ingredients. We bake our pizzas in around 60 seconds. And, most importantly, we put our people at the heart of everything we do.

We're growing fast, but we're not interested in losing what makes Rudy's, Rudy's.

That's where you come in.

What will you be getting stuck into?

As Head Pizzaiolo, you'll have full ownership of your kitchen — from the people and the pizza to the performance and the culture.

You’ll be:

• Owning the pizza: Maintaining Rudy's Neapolitan standards and making sure every pizza leaving the kitchen is up to scratch
• Leading the team: Inspiring, coaching and developing your kitchen team across all levels
• Running the show: Taking charge of prep, service, post-service and everything in between
• Driving performance: Managing labour effectively, reducing waste and keeping the kitchen commercially sharp
• Keeping things stocked: Taking ownership of stock control, ordering and kitchen organisation
• Growing your people: Running reviews, delivering training and helping your team progress
• Keeping standards sky-high: Ensuring food safety, allergen management and compliance are always on point
• Leading together: Working closely with the General Manager to make sure the kitchen and floor are firing on all cylinders

What makes a great Head Pizzaiolo at Rudy's?

We're looking for someone who can bring serious pizza knowledge and serious leadership skills.

You’ll need:

• Proven experience as a Head Pizzaiolo, Senior Pizzaiolo or Senior Sous Chef in a high-volume kitchen
• Deep technical knowledge of authentic Neapolitan pizza
• Experience leading, motivating and developing a busy kitchen team
• Strong commercial awareness, including labour and waste management
• Excellent food safety and allergen knowledge
• The ability to stay calm, organised and confident when the pressure is ON
• A genuine passion for great food, great people and great hospitality

Most importantly? You need to care. About the pizza. About your team. About the guest experience. About doing things properly.

What's in it for you?

We like to look after our people. And we like to have a bit of fun while we're at it.

• Worldwide pizza trips – Naples, New York and wherever our pizza obsession takes us next
• Up to 32% annual bonus, paid quarterly
• Tips & Tronc paid monthly
• 50% discount across all Mission Mars venues – including for friends & family
• Free guestlist entry to Albert Hall, Manchester
• Complimentary food & drink after every shift
• Real progression opportunities across a growing hospitality group
• Industry-leading training & development programmes
• Festa di Natale & Barbecue Estivo – because no one does a team celebration quite like us
• Birthday card & gift – we believe birthdays should be celebrated properly
• Work for a 'World Class' business, as recognised by Best Companies

Still wondering what it's like?

Don’t just take our word for it. This is what our teams have to say:

“Great place and people to work with, I’ve made so many new friends.”

“I really enjoy Rudy’s – the atmosphere, my colleagues and the customers are incredibly friendly.”

“I love Mission Mars and Rudy’s – how you train and encourage development. I feel at home here and love my job.”

“Rudy’s has been such a breath of fresh air for me.”

Think you've got what it takes?

If you're a Neapolitan pizza expert, a natural leader and someone who wants to make their mark, we want to hear from you.

Come and lead the kitchen. Develop your team. Make seriously good pizza.

At Mission Mars, we're committed to an inclusive and accessible recruitment process for everyone. If you need any reasonable adjustments at any stage of your application or interview, please let us know at [e-mail].