Food & beverage supervisor

Port Lympne Hotel and Reserve & Howletts Wild Animal Parks; Hythe; On-site; GBP 15,000 - 21,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

TRONC (Service Charge)

28 days annual leave

Training and development opportunities

Company Pension

Discounts on park facilities

Job summary

Port Lympne Hotel & Reserve is seeking a Food & Beverage Supervisor to lead restaurant, bar and afternoon tea operations across our historic hotel and multiple venues, including Garden Room Restaurant, Babydolls Italian & Bear Lodge, and our Weddings & Events team.

You will supervise, train and maintain high service standards while delivering memorable guest experiences in a friendly, energetic hospitality environment. Flexible hours and permanent contracts are available.

Qualifications

• Experience supervising hospitality teams in a fast-paced environment.

Responsibilities

• Oversee restaurant, bar and afternoon tea operations.
• Lead service during shifts and maintain high standards.
• Train and develop the team for consistent guest experiences.
• Support weddings, conferences and events from setup to service.

Skills

Supervisory experience

Hospitality operations

Customer service

Job description

Closing date: 6 November 2026

£12.81 per hour, Plus Service Charge and Desirable benefits

Flexible Hour, Permanent Contracts Available

Are you wild about creating memorable experiences?

Do you want to work in a place where you can hear calls from troops of howler monkeys, or the roars from a pride of lions?

Port Lympne Hotel & Reserve are looking a Food & Beverage Supervisor to join our team within the beautiful, historic hotel and Garden Room Restaurant, our Babydolls Italian & Bear Lodge Restaurant, and our Wedding & Events Team. The role will see you working in picturesque, historic surroundings, within a friendly, vibrant team.

This role will primarily focus on overseeing restaurant, bar, and afternoon tea operations, leading the team during service and ensuring guests receive a professional, efficient, and memorable experience at every touchpoint. You will support with team supervision, training, and maintaining high operational standards, whilst helping drive a positive and collaborative working environment.

Alongside core restaurant operations, you may also assist with the delivery of weddings, private functions, conferences, and other events, helping ensure these run seamlessly from setup through to service.

Who Are We Looking For

We are looking for an experienced and motivated Food & Beverage Supervisor to help lead our talented hospitality team and deliver exceptional guest experiences across our unique food and beverage operations. The successful candidate will have previous supervisory experience within hospitality, with the confidence to lead, motivate, and support a team in a fast-paced environment while maintaining consistently high service standards. You will play a key role in the day-to-day running of restaurant and afternoon tea service, ensuring smooth operations and an outstanding experience for every guest.

You’ll be highly organised, customer-focused, and able to remain calm and professional under pressure, with the flexibility to work a variety of shifts including evenings, weekends, and bank holidays. Whilst this role is primarily focused on restaurant operations, you may also support the delivery of weddings, conferences, and other events, making this an exciting opportunity for someone looking to develop within a dynamic and varied hospitality environment.

Contract Details

This is a flexible hour’s position, working on a rota basis. Guaranteed share of service charge in addition to hourly rate. Shifts may include day shifts, evenings, weekends, school holidays and bank holidays and will vary in hours depending on the number of bookings. A reliable form of transport would be essential due to the remote location of Port Lympne Hotel & Reserve. All applicants must have the right to work in the UK.

The location:

Port Lympne Hotel & Reserve is a world-renowned wild animal park set within 600 acres of Kentish savannah. The Reserve is home to some of the world’s most rare and endangered animals and offers luxury short breaks accommodation, free roaming animal safaris, once-in-a-lifetime animal encounters and exquisite dining experiences. Most importantly, every one of our employees is part of real conservation in action and their efforts have contributed to animals such as black rhino and western lowland gorillas being returned to their natural habitats in collaboration with our partners at The Aspinall Foundation.

Why You Should Join Us

We’re on a mission to create memorable experiences that matter, and our Core Values ‘One Team’, Customer’ and ‘Pride’ are what drive us each day to become part of something extraordinary. As well as walking to work surrounded by the calls of Howler monkeys and the roars from our pride of Lions, you will join a supportive team who are passionate about their place of work. Be part of the Port Lympne and Howletts family and join our pride.

You can also expect a host of other roarsome benefits including:

• TRONC (Service Charge)
• 28 days annual leave inclusive of bank holidays, rising with length of service. (Pro-rata to start date and working hours).
• Comprehensive training and development opportunities, including workshops and e-learning.
• Enhanced Sickness, Maternity and Paternity Policies.
• Unlimited free entry for you and a person of your choice into both of our parks as well as friends and family tickets.
• Exceptional discounts on food, retail and accommodation at our parks.
• Numerous retail discounts and access to a 24-hour counselling line through our Healthy Extras Scheme.
• Company Pension
• And many more length or service-related rewards and Benefits.

Your adventure awaits

#joinourpride