Executive Chef - London

ESS; Greater London; On-site; GBP 67,500 - 82,500; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Contributory pension scheme

Career Pathways and MyLearning programmes

Digital GP access

Exclusive travel discounts

Grocery discounts

Cinema ticket discounts

Cash rewards for spending

Wellness and mindfulness classes

Job summary

ESS is seeking an exceptional Executive Chef to lead a high-profile, multi-site operation in London and Glasgow. This role offers the opportunity to shape premium staff dining, hospitality, and events within a dynamic food culture.

Key responsibilities include overseeing operations at two London sites and supporting culinary talent. The ideal candidate should have proven experience in multi-site operations, with a passion for innovation and excellence. Benefits include a contributory pension scheme, career growth opportunities, and exclusive travel discounts.

Qualifications

• Proven experience operating at Executive Chef or senior multi-site Head Chef level.
• Passion for menu innovation and food trends.
• Calm, professional, and measured leadership approach.

Responsibilities

• Oversee two London sites, delivering staff dining and hospitality.
• Lead and inspire Head Chefs across operations.
• Drive a culture of excellence and culinary standards.

Skills

Leadership presence

Menu innovation

Communication skills

Event catering operations

Team development

Job description

Executive Chef - London

We are seeking an exceptional Executive Chef to lead a high‑profile, multi‑site operation across London and Glasgow. Based primarily across two London locations, this role offers the opportunity to shape premium staff dining, hospitality and events within a progressive and innovative food culture. We are offering 75,000 + bonus.

Main Responsibilities

• Oversee two busy London sites delivering staff dining, hospitality and events, alongside an executive site in Mayfair and a site in Glasgow.
• Lead and inspire Head Chefs across staff dining, hospitality and events operations.
• Drive a culture of excellence across all kitchens, ensuring consistent high food quality, presentation and service standards.
• Create engaging and exciting dining experiences through innovative menu development, pop‑up events and modern food concepts.
• Increase customer engagement and participation by developing fresh ideas that make the offer stand out.
• Collaborate closely across staff dining and hospitality teams to create stronger alignment and operational consistency.
• Support and develop senior culinary talent, coaching the team to evolve performance, standards and ways of working.
• Maintain exceptional compliance, operational standards and team performance across all locations.

What We're Looking For

• Proven experience operating at Executive Chef or senior multi‑site Head Chef level.
• Strong leadership presence with a calm, professional and measured approach.
• Passion for menu innovation, food trends and creating exciting dining concepts.
• Experience leading hospitality and event catering operations.
• A collaborative mindset with excellent communication and relationship‑building skills.
• Genuine passion for developing teams and elevating culinary talent.
• High standards, commercial awareness and the ability to influence positive change.

If you are driven by excellence, creativity and people development, we would love to hear from you!

Benefits

• Contributory pension scheme.
• Grow your career with our Career Pathways and MyLearning programmes.
• Quick access for you and your immediate family to a Digital GP, and wider healthcare benefits.
• Exclusive travel discounts with TUI, Expedia, Booking.com and many more.
• Save money on your food shop with discounts on Tesco, Sainsbury's, Morrisons and many more.
• Up to 44% off cinema tickets.
• Receive cash rewards every time you spend and use them on a wide range of brands.
• Unwind with free wellness, mindfulness and exercise classes.
• You can share all discounts and offers with your friends and families.

Compass Group UK&I is committed to fostering an environment where every individual can truly be themselves at work and has equal opportunities to advance in their careers. We strive to build a culture that respects and celebrates the unique talents, beliefs, backgrounds, and abilities of all our team members. You can feel valued, empowered to reach your full potential, and to thrive - because diversity is our strength!