Restaurant Head Chef

Crafted at Powdermills; Battle; On-site; GBP 45,000 - 50,000; Full time

Job summary

A new hotel company is seeking a Restaurant Head Chef to lead their kitchen team in delivering a bold, ingredient-led menu that reflects their values. The ideal candidate will manage daily kitchen operations while fostering a positive and ambitious kitchen culture. Responsibilities include collaborating with other departments and championing sustainability. This hands-on role requires proven experience in hospitality and strong leadership skills. The offered salary is £45,000.00-£50,000.00 per year.

Benefits

Canteen

Company events

Company pension

Employee discount

Free parking

Health & wellbeing programme

On-site parking

Qualifications

• Proven experience leading a kitchen team in a hospitality setting.
• Strong leadership skills with the ability to motivate and develop others.
• Solid knowledge of food safety and sustainability best practices.

Responsibilities

• Lead the kitchen team in delivering a seasonal, produce-driven menu.
• Manage daily kitchen operations, including health & safety compliance.
• Work closely with HR and Restaurant Manager for smooth coordination.
• Champion sustainability and local sourcing for supplier relationships.
• Develop and train junior chefs, fostering a positive kitchen culture.

Skills

Leadership

Kitchen operations knowledge

Food safety

Collaboration

Mentoring

Cost management

Job description

Overview

As Restaurant Head Chef, you'll lead the kitchen team in delivering a bold, ingredient-led menu that reflects our values - thoughtful sourcing, generous hospitality, and a real sense of place. You will shape a food offering that balances consistency with creativity, run a tight ship day-to-day, and nurture a positive, ambitious kitchen culture. This is a hands-on role for a chef who leads from the front and wants to be part of building something special from the ground up.

Responsibilities

• Lead and inspire the kitchen team in delivering a seasonal, produce-driven menu aligned with the Crafted ethos.
• Manage daily kitchen operations, including prep, service, rota planning, ordering, stock control, and health & safety compliance.
• Work closely with the Exec Chef and Restaurant Manager to ensure smooth coordination between kitchen and front of house.
• Champion sustainability and local sourcing wherever possible, building strong supplier relationships.
• Develop and train junior chefs, setting a tone of mutual respect, professionalism, and growth.
• Uphold high standards of cleanliness, organisation and attention to detail throughout all service periods.

Qualifications

• Proven experience leading a kitchen team, ideally in a boutique hotel, restaurant, or lifestyle-focused hospitality setting.
• A track record of delivering quality, consistency, and creative input under pressure.
• Strong leadership skills with the ability to motivate, mentor and develop others.
• A collaborative, low-ego approach to working with front of house, suppliers and leadership.
• Solid knowledge of kitchen operations, food safety, cost management and sustainability best practice.
• A genuine love of food, hospitality, and creating memorable guest experiences.

About Crafted

Crafted is a series of life-friendly hotels and spaces where guests can be themselves and fill up on the good stuff: nature, food, wellbeing, craft, people and play. We hope to open several hotels in the coming years, with our first coming in summer 2025: Crafted at Powdermills, East Sussex. More specifics will follow as planning and pieces fall into place.

Crafted's culture will be inclusive and agile but with ambitious goals and a start-up mentality. We hire people with personality who have a desire to continuously learn. Each person should bring themselves to work to shape our culture and keep us real, interesting, and original. To create a comfortable environment for all, guest and staff, we prioritise teamwork over titles: no one\'s too important to lend a hand, or too new to have a good opinion. Three values we\'ll expect you to live by: Enjoy it, Own it, Improve it. Positive ESG principles are integrated across these values.

Benefits

• Canteen
• Company events
• Company pension
• Employee discount
• Free parking
• Health & wellbeing programme
• On-site parking

Details

• Job Types: Full-time, Permanent
• Pay: £45,000.00-£50,000.00 per year
• Schedule: Day shift; Holidays; Monday to Friday; Night shift; Weekend availability
• Work Location: In person