Head Chef

Young's Pubs; Tonbridge; On-site; GBP 41,000 - 50,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Free meals

Discount at Young's Pubs

30% discount on overnight stays

Enhanced Company Pension

28 Days Holiday per year

Share save Scheme

Development Programmes

Job summary

The Carpenters Arms in Tonbridge, Kent is seeking an experienced Head Chef to lead the kitchen, shape menus and deliver high‑quality seasonal dishes using fresh produce. You’ll manage the kitchen team, develop daily specials, drive consistency and guest satisfaction across revenue streams, and have real input into the development of our food offering with supplier partnerships.

Salary starts at £45,000 with tips and service charge; typical earnings around £52,500, with overtime and a 4‑day week

Qualifications

• Experience championing excellent service through quality food as Head Chef or Sous Chef.
• Passion for leading and developing a team.
• Hands-on team player with strong communication.
• Manage kitchen rota, training, and health and safety.
• Creativity to design and deliver new dishes.
• Strong planning and organisational skills for GP and labour.
• Pro-active approach to driving sales and growth.

Responsibilities

• Inspire and lead the kitchen team by example.
• Develop, cost and produce fresh seasonal menus.
• Oversee multiple revenue streams within the business.
• Maintain high standards of quality and consistency.

Skills

Menu Development

Food Safety

Food Preparation

Job description

HEAD CHEF

£45,000 + TIPS & SERVICE CHARGE Typical earnings of £52,000 + overtime

The Carpenters Arms | Countryside Pub | Tonbridge, Kent

Set amongst the beautiful farmland surrounding Tonbridge, The Carpenters Arms is a charming countryside pub with 9 cosy hotel rooms, a welcoming atmosphere and a real passion for good food!

We’re looking for a creative and passionate Head Chef to join our team and help us continue to develop our food offering.

Our approach to food is simple: good ingredients, properly cooked, delicious food and no unnecessary fuss.

We love classic pub favorites, seasonal dishes, daily specials and, of course, a cracking Sunday roast with all the trimmings. We also run regular themed food events, bringing a little excitement to the pub and giving our chefs the chance to have some more fun with food.

As Head Chef, you’ll have the opportunity to shape our menus, develop daily specials and introduce seasonal dishes, working with the best ingredients available.

We’re looking for someone who enjoys being creative but also understands the importance of consistency, quality and delivering food that our guests genuinely want to come back for.

You’ll lead the kitchen team, help develop our food offering and play an important part in creating the experience our guests enjoy.

Our philosophy is simply we CARE:

Community

• Attention to detail
• Reliable
• Engaging

This forms the foundation for every thing we do!

We believe hard work should be rewarded

Alongside your £45,000 base salary:

• Service charge and tips typically add around £7,500 per year
• Typical total earnings of approximately £52,500
• Overtime is paid on top of contracted hours
• We encourage a 4-day working week for our chefs wherever possible
• You’ll have genuine input into the development of our food offering and team

And we’re serious about work-life balance. We want our chefs to enjoy their time at work without feeling that the kitchen has to take over their whole life.

Who are we looking for?

We’re looking for an experienced Head Chef or an ambitious Sous Chef ready to take the next step who:

• Has a genuine passion for good food
• Takes pride in quality and attention to detail
• Enjoys developing dishes and working with seasonal ingredients
• Can lead and motivate a kitchen team
• Is organised, reliable and hands-on

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

Skills

• Menu Development
• Food Safety
• Food Preparation