Head Chef

Confidential; Chipping Barnet; On-site; GBP 55,000 - 75,000; Full time

Job summary

Confidential in North London is seeking an experienced Head Chef to take full responsibility for a busy, established restaurant. You will lead a high-volume kitchen, ensuring food quality and standards while delivering fast-paced service.

Role requires managing people, service, standards and commercial performance, with strong leadership and a focus on training and progression for kitchen teams. This is a full-time opportunity in a growing hospitality business.

Qualifications

• Significant experience as Head Chef or Senior position in a high-volume restaurant.
• Proven ability to lead kitchen teams to deliver quality at pace.

Responsibilities

• Lead and develop the entire kitchen team.
• Run consistently busy, high-volume services.
• Maintain food quality, presentation and portion control.
• Recruitment, onboarding and training of kitchen staff.
• Develop Sous Chefs and junior chefs for future leadership.
• Manage kitchen rotas, labour planning and productivity.
• Control food cost, GP, purchasing, stock and wastage.
• Prepare for forecasted trade and ensure adequate preparation levels.
• Develop menus, specials and new dishes.
• Maintain recipe, specification and plating standards.
• Manage supplier relationships, orders and product quality.
• Ensure food safety, hygiene and allergen compliance.
• Oversee kitchen equipment, maintenance and cleanliness.
• Develop and improve kitchen systems and procedures.
• Create a professional kitchen culture with clear standards.

Skills

High-volume leadership

People management

Food cost management

Menu development

Staff training

Job description

Head Chef – High-Volume Restaurant, North London

We are looking for an experienced Head Chef to take full responsibility for the kitchen of a busy, established restaurant in North London.

This is a genuinely high-volume operation, serving approximately 4,000 covers per week, and high-volume experience is essential. We need someone who has already operated at this level and understands how to maintain food quality, consistency and kitchen standards while delivering fast-paced services day after day.

This is not simply a cooking role. We are looking for someone capable of leading the entire kitchen operation — people, service, standards and commercial performance.

The Role

As Head Chef, you will have overall responsibility for the kitchen and will work closely with the General Manager and senior management team.

Your responsibilities will include:

• Leading, managing and developing the entire kitchen team
• Running consistently busy, high-volume services
• Ensuring food quality, presentation and portion control remain consistent at all volumes
• Recruitment, onboarding and training of kitchen staff
• Developing Sous Chefs, junior chefs and future kitchen leaders
• Kitchen rotas, labour planning and productivity
• Food cost, GP, purchasing, stock control and wastage
• Ensuring appropriate preparation levels for forecasted trade
• Menu development, specials and new dishes
• Maintaining recipe, specification and plating standards
• Supplier management, ordering and product quality
• Food safety, hygiene and allergen compliance
• Kitchen equipment, maintenance and cleanliness
• Developing and improving kitchen systems and procedures
• Creating a professional kitchen culture with clear standards and accountability

Who We’re Looking For

You will already have significant experience as a Head Chef, Senior Head Chef or highly experienced Executive/Senior Sous Chef within a high-volume restaurant environment.

We are particularly interested in candidates who can demonstrate experience managing kitchens producing several thousand covers per week.

You should be comfortable planning for extremely busy services — anticipating staffing, preparation, stock requirements and operational bottlenecks before they become problems.

You will also need strong commercial awareness. You should understand food cost, GP, labour, purchasing, waste and productivity, and be comfortable taking responsibility for the financial performance of the kitchen as well as the food.

Most importantly, we’re looking for a strong leader. Someone who can set clear expectations, develop people, hold standards and build a kitchen team capable of consistently performing at a high level.

The Opportunity

The restaurant is part of a growing hospitality business, and this role offers considerably more than simply running day-to-day kitchen service.

We are investing in stronger operating systems, training and career development across the business and are looking for a Head Chef who wants to help build and develop the kitchen operation as the business grows.

For the right person, there will be opportunities to develop alongside the company as it expands.

Location: North London

Position: Head Chef

Employment: Full-time

High-volume restaurant experience is essential