Head Chef

Harri; Greater London; On-site; GBP 42,000 - 62,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Free meals

20% staff discount

30% discount on overnight stays

Enhanced pension scheme

28 days holiday per year

Share save scheme

Job summary

The Royal Oak, a famous Bethnal Green pub, is seeking a Head Chef to shape a dynamic kitchen and write your own seasonal menus using local produce. You’ll lead a hands-on team in a bustling East London setting, creating bold dishes while maintaining high standards across dining and bar service.

You’ll have autonomy to craft menus, access to apprenticeship schemes, regular culinary masterclasses, and supplier-led culinary trips to inspire your cooking.

Qualifications

• This role requires someone who can inspire a team and lead by example while developing fresh seasonal menus.
• Demonstrates passion for leading and developing a team with clear communication.
• Responsible for kitchen staffing rota, training and health and safety at all times.
• Creativity to design and deliver new dishes and daily specials.
• Strong planning and organisational skills to control GP and labour.

Skills

Team leadership

Menu development

Communication

Health & safety

Rota management

Creativity

Operational planning

Sales growth

Job description

Head Chef

About us:

Located smack in the centre of the exuberant Columbia Road, The Royal Oak is Bethnal Green’s best-loved pub. With its bustling flower market on Sunday, it’s everyone’s favourite place to duck into to escape the big crowds.
Do we seem familiar? Thanks to the cool, worn-out features dating back to 1923, this cool East London boozer has been used as a filming location for a number of TV series and movie scenes so you may know us from both Kray twins films or the 90’s sitcom Goodnight Sweetheart!
The original interior and our awesome team both add to the homely feel, making us your snug neighbourhood hangout and family go-to. While the downstairs bar is a hive of activity, the upstairs offers the best Sunday roast in Shoreditch and only the best of British classics. Expect no-nonsense pub grub and an impressive selection on the beer front.
As for our amazing team, we pride ourselves on giving the best service, whether the customer is eating in our stunning dining room upstairs or propping themselves up at the bar enjoying our great selections of craft beers, real ale, fine wines or cocktails. The team are part of the pub and is what makes the Oak so special.

Being a Head Chef at Young's:

We believe every pub should be different. This means that you'll be writing your own recipes that match the food vision of your business using fresh seasonal ingredients. The food vision could be all about showcasing local produce, country pub classics, seafood, small plates and sharers, dry-aged meat - each pub is different and its up to you as head chef to put your own creative stamp on that vision. We work with fresh, seasonal produce, so the menu should constantly evolve to showcase these fantastic ingredients when they are at their best. Premium fresh food crafted by skilled chefs in Premium Pubs .

What we offer our Head Chefs:

• Head Chefs get to have full autonomy to create your own menus and specials
• Access to our Apprenticeship Scheme and Development Programmes
• Access to regular culinary masterclasses covering topics such as Game, Butchery and Shellfish
• Access to inspirational food trips with our top quality suppliers
• Regular Chef Forums with other Head Chefs to inspire and develop
• Free meals
• 20% discount in all Young's Pubs and 30% discount on overnight stays in our Pubs with Rooms
• Share save Scheme
• Enhanced Company Pension Scheme
• 28 Days Holiday per year

What we look for in a Head Chef:

This role requires someone that can inspire a team, to bring out the potential and lead by example whilst being able to develop, cost and produce fresh seasonal menus for the variety of revenue streams within the business.

• Have experience championing excellent service through quality food either as a Head Chef or in the position of Sous Chef
• Demonstrate a passion for leading and developing a team
• Be an active hands‑on team player with excellent communication skills
• Be responsible and able to manage the kitchen staff rota, training and all health and safety effectively at all times
• Be able to demonstrate your creativity and ability to design and deliver new dishes for our menus and daily specials
• Demonstrate great planning and organisational skills, necessary to maintain effective controls with regard to both GP and labour
• Have a pro‑active approach to driving sales and delivering growth, through engagement with both kitchen and front of house teams