Food And Beverage Operations Manager

Royal Horticultural Society; Manchester; On-site; GBP 30,000 - 40,000; Full time

Job summary

The Royal Horticultural Society is seeking a Food and Beverage Operations Manager to oversee catering at RHS Garden Bridgewater, near Manchester. The role offers a unique opportunity to enhance visitor experiences and drive commercial success through innovative food and beverage offerings, leadership, and exceptional customer service.

Benefits

25 days annual holiday plus Bank Holidays

Evening hours for events covered on a rota basis

Qualifications

• Hands-on experience leading a busy, high-volume catering operation.
• Proven skills in team building and performance management.
• Strong understanding of Health & Safety policies.

Responsibilities

• Lead and inspire the catering team for excellent visitor experience.
• Manage catering budget and drive financial performance.
• Collaborate with events team for exceptional catering.

Skills

Leadership

Commercial Awareness

Customer Service

Creativity

Education

Experience in high-volume catering operations

Job description

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Royal Horticultural Society provided pay range

This range is provided by Royal Horticultural Society. Your actual pay will be based on your skills and experience — talk with your recruiter to learn more.

Base pay range

Job Title: Food and Beverage (F&B) Operations Manager

Hours: 37.5

Contract: Permanent

Closing Date: 15/07/25

The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), the UK’s leading gardening charity, is on the lookout for an experienced F&B Operations Manager to take the reins at the iconic RHS Garden Bridgewater, located a stone’s throw from Manchester.

This is a unique opportunity for an ambitious and experienced hospitality professional with a strong food and beverage background to elevate the visitor experience, lead a passionate team, and drive commercial success in a beautifully curated setting.

The F&B offer at RHS Garden Bridgewater includes:

• A bright and busy Café with 230 indoor covers and up to 200 outdoors – a favourite for everything from a coffee and cake to hearty, seasonal lunches.
• A stone baked Pizza café (The stables), opened in 2023 offering our visitors the best Pizzas and sides for mile around.
• A recently converted vintage van offering Ice creams, cakes and coffees close the children’s play area.
• A Shepherd’s Hut grab-and-go outlet right in the heart of the garden – perfect for snacks and refreshments on the move.
• And there’s plenty of scope to grow and evolve our offer as the garden continues to bloom.

The best part? No two days are the same! Working as our F&B Operations Manager, you will:

• Lead, support, and inspire our catering team to deliver a great experience every day across a busy 7-day operation.
• Ensure all aspects of the catering operation meet statutory and legislative requirements – with safety, hygiene, and best practice always front of mind.
• Take ownership of the catering budget and drive strong financial performance through smart management and commercial awareness.
• Create a high-quality, seasonal food offer by working closely with our Garden Manager to make the most of the fresh produce from our Kitchen Garden.
• Set the tone for excellent customer service, making sure every visitor feels welcomed and well looked after.
• Bring fresh ideas to the table – driving innovation, spotting opportunities, and helping the business grow and evolve.
• Collaborate with our Events Team to deliver exceptional catering for all occasions, balancing top-tier customer care with strong sales performance.
• Ensure that everything we do in catering reflects our values – from sustainability to showcasing our horticultural heritage.

We’re looking for someone who:

• Has hands-on experience leading a busy, high-volume catering operation – ideally in a vibrant, visitor-focused setting.
• Is comfortable working independently and remotely from their line manager, but with the ability to balance that remote relationship with clear collaboration and communication.
• Brings a creative approach to developing and enhancing new services or facilities that delight customers.
• Holds a strong track record in building, leading, and supporting great teams – from recruitment and training to development and performance management.
• Is confident in working with Health & Safety policies and a proactive attitude toward creating a safe and positive workplace.
• Has a sharp commercial mindset, with experience driving sales, exceeding targets, and developing smart strategies.

There are some real benefits to joining the F&B Team at RHS

We are a relatively small central team with high turnover and higher ambition! This means that there is real freedom to develop and evolve the offer. All of our gardens are different, but benefit from a collaborative working structure.

Our usual trading hours will be during the daytime, but there will be a need for some occasional evening hours to cover events. Weekends are a critical part of our operation, and therefore there will be regular weekend work, but this will be on a rota basis. 25 days holiday (plus Bank Holidays), and of course you will also be based in one of the most beautiful landscapes in the UK, and a critical part of the commercial team raising funds for our charitable purpose.

A full list of the benefits of working for the RHS are here: https://www.rhs.org.uk/about-us/work-with-us/benefits

More about the RHS

To work for the RHS is to join a thriving charity, whose mission is to be there for everyone on their lifelong adventure with gardening. Everything we do is built on the transformational power of gardening – and the benefits it brings to people, places and our planet.

And we couldn’t do this without our people. We’re proud of the knowledge, enthusiasm and ideas that each one of our team members brings. From working across our social media channels, to volunteering in the RHS Gardens, from serving customers in our garden centres to running national marketing campaigns, we believe that every member of the RHS team should have the opportunity to make a difference.

Safeguarding and Inclusion

The RHS is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and adults at risk and expects all personnel to share in this commitment. We are an inclusive employer and welcome applicants from all backgrounds.

Please note: We may review applications as soon as we receive then so if you see a vacancy that you are interested in, please apply straight away as the vacancy will be closed as soon as we hire the right candidate. Should you require any additional support with making your application please contact Sharon Ellis [e-mail]

Seniority level

• Seniority level

  Not Applicable

Employment type

• Employment type

  Full-time

Job function

• Job function

  Management

• Industries

  Civic and Social Organizations

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