Head Chef, Birnam

The Gleneagles Hotel; Auchterarder; Remote; GBP 54,000 - 59,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

30 days holiday

Golf membership

Pension scheme

Life insurance

Training & development

Job summary

The Gleneagles Hotel is seeking an outstanding Head Chef for The Birnam, overseeing The Birnam, Garden Café and Spa Café. This is a senior leadership role with responsibility for culinary vision, guest experience, and commercial success.

You will lead a high-performing team, balance creative menus with cost control, and collaborate with procurement and finance to maximise revenue while maintaining exceptional quality standards. Scotland’s renowned hospitality context informs your approach.

Qualifications

• Proven ability to lead high-performing culinary teams.
• Strong leadership and decision-making under pressure.
• Financial awareness including labour and food costs.

Responsibilities

• Shape and evolve the culinary vision for The Birnam, Garden Café and Spa Café.
• Create seasonally inspired menus reflecting Scottish produce and guest expectations.
• Lead development and delivery of a proactive menu calendar and tastings.
• Monitor costs, labour, waste and profitability while upholding quality.
• Collaborate with Purchasing and Finance to drive efficiencies and margins.
• Develop talent, coach teams and foster a culture of excellence.

Skills

Leadership

Culinary leadership

Budget management

Quality focus

Job description

COME AND JOIN US . . .

We are currently seeking an outstanding, highly skilled Head Chef, The Birnam, with exceptional leadership skills to join our Culinary team.

This is one of the most commercially significant leadership roles within our Culinary operationrunning three separate outlets.

The on target earning potential for this role is £59,019 / per annum - comprising a base salary of £54,019, plus a qualified estimate of £5,000 in gratuities and service charge.* As a member of the Gleneagles team, you will also enjoy a fantastic range of perks, benefits and rewards.

ABOUT THE BIRNAM

Relaxed, vibrant and deeply rooted in the very best of Scotland's natural larder, The Birnam celebrates seasonal ingredients, bold flavours and warm hospitality. Offering an all-day dining experience for hotel guests, members and local visitors alike, The Birnam is a bustling and dynamic operation at the heart of the resort. In addition to leading The Birnam restaurant, this role also oversees the culinary delivery for both the Garden Café and Spa Café, ensuring consistently exceptional food quality and guest experience.

ABOUT GLENEAGLES

One of the world's most iconic luxury hotels and country retreats, Gleneagles has been making memories for a century. Crowned 'Employer of the Year' at the 2024 Cateys and Number One Resort in the UK & Ireland by readers of the Travel + Leisure 2025 World's Best Awards, everything we do is about surpassing expectations and creating unrivalled adventures for our guests.

WORKING AT GLENEAGLES

We're devoted to making our people feel as valued as our guests. In this way, we strive to support the whole 'you' – not just the professional part but the personal part too. People join our team for all sorts of reasons. Some work here permanently to develop a career, some work seasonally, while others have a schedule to fit around their personal commitments. However long you plan to stay with us and whatever hours you'd prefer to work, we're open to flexible working requests and offer hours, shift patterns and contract @types to suit everyone.

Location; Auchterarder, just off the A9. Gleneagles is also within easy reach of a number of Scottish towns and cities: Edinburgh City Centre (1 hour), Glasgow or Dundee (50 minutes), Stirling and Perth (25 minutes).

Here's a bit more detail on what we see you doing in this role:

• As a key member of our senior Culinary team, you'll shape and evolve the culinary vision for The Birnam, Garden Café and Spa Café, ensuring every offering reflects the quality, creativity and innovation synonymous with Gleneagles
• Creating memorable, seasonally inspired menus that celebrate world-class Scottish produce, balancing guest expectations, emerging trends and commercial performance
• Leading the development and delivery of an engaging menu calendar, presenting concepts through inspiring tastings and ensuring the wider team possesses exceptional product knowledge
• Taking ownership of the commercial success of the outlets, monitoring labour, food costs, waste, menu engineering and profitability, identifying opportunities to maximise revenue whilst maintaining exceptional quality standards
• Working closely with our Purchasing and Finance teams to drive efficiencies, optimise margins and ensure strong budgetary performance across all areas of the business
• Building outstanding relationships with Front of House teams, creating a culture of collaboration, shared accountability and a genuine passion for exceptional guest experiences
• Leading the Brigade from the front, developing talent at every level and fostering a culture of innovation, continuous improvement and excellence
• Working hand-in-hand with our Culinary Development Partner and supporting our Culinary Academy through engagement, training, development and recruitment initiatives
• Operating as a highly collaborative and hands‑on leader, both within your own kitchens and across the wider Culinary Brigade and business
• Maintaining a positive, solutions-focused approach, ensuring consistently high standards and exceptional attention to detail
• Interacting with our guests, always warm, professional, helpful and doing everything you can to exceed their expectations; playing your part in making their stay with us luxurious in every way

The kind of person we're looking for:

• You have fantastic success leading high-performing culinary teams within a quality-driven restaurant, hotel or resort environment
• An exceptional chef with a passion for food, creativity and continuous learning, you’re always striving to refine and evolve your craft
• You have strong commercial acumen with experience managing food and labour costs, stock control, forecasting, menu profitability and driving financial performance without compromising on quality
• A confident and capable leader, you understand how to balance operational demands, guest expectations and business objectives in a fast-paced environment; you’re also comfortable making decisions, solving problems and adapting quickly to changing priorities
• You’re naturally curious and forward‑thinking, with a keen interest in industry trends and a desire to continually enhance the guest experience
• An inspirational people leader, you enjoy coaching, mentoring and developing individuals and teams to achieve their full potential
• Highly motivated and possessing an immense sense of pride in your work; you're passionate about delivering the high standards for our guests in line with the Gleneagles brand
• You have a positive “can do” attitude to solving problems in a professional and courteous manner
• A strong team player with great communication skills and an enthusiastic approach; you're well organised and punctual with an eagle eye for detail
• You want to be part of a team that works hard, supports each other and above all has fun along the way

What’s in it for you:

Time to let your hair down

• 30 days holiday (including bank holidays) that increases with service
• Seasonal parties and local social events
• 50% discount on Food & Beverage, Country Pursuits, Spa and Hair Salon (Mon-Thurs) and the Golf Driving Range
• Golf Membership (with access to all 3 championship courses) for £50.00 per annum

Treats in your pocket

• Flexi points into your Perkbox wallet to spend as you choose. The points can be spent immediately, or you can save them up over a number of months, for perks that cost that little bit more. All this gives you greater choice, so you can pick the things that mean the most to you!
• Eligible employees can access the Octopus EV Car Scheme, offering the opportunity to drive a brand‑new electric vehicle
• Free ‘pay day’ lunch and monthly drinks offers
• A generous ‘refer a friend’ scheme

Be our guest

• Stay with us as a guest at Gleneagles or Gleneagles Townhouse for up to 2 nights per year at £95.00 per night – a benefit available upon completion of 12 months service
• Friends & Family discounted rate of £225 - £275 B&B per night at Gleneagles
• Enjoy discounted rooms and restaurants rates with up to 50% off across the wider Ennismore brands and hotels, located across some spectacular locations, including London, Paris, Rome, Dubai, Doha, Rio, NY, Chicago and LA...to name just a few
• Subsidised, single occupancy, en‑suite accommodation available on our grounds

Investment in your future

• Pension scheme, including an enhanced option for eligible employees
• Life Insurance
• Employee Assistance Programme, offering support and confidential advice for you and your family when you need it most
• Ongoing investment in your personal development with access to internal and external training qualifications and programmes
• Internal career opportunities across a wider range of specialisms and departments

Supporting your wellbeing

• Access to a range of discounted health assessments through Nuffield Health for eligible employees, supporting a proactive approach to wellbeing
• Employee Assistance Programme, offering support and confidential advice for you and your family when you need it most
• Monthly recognition programme
• Volunteering day every year with a charitable partner of your choice
• Gleneagles Cycle Scheme, helping you spread the cost of the bike you really want while reducing your carbon footprint

*About gratuities & service charge:

• Gratuities (tips) and service charge (an additional charge added to our room rates and services across the hotel that is passed directly to our employees) are paid on a pro‑rata basis regardless of your role.
• It is estimated that in 2026, our full‑time employees can expect to receive around £5,000 in addition to their annual salary