Sous Chef - Nantwich

Lounge Café Bars; Nantwich; On-site; GBP 25,000 - 30,000; Full time

Job summary

A popular café chain in Nantwich seeks a skilled Sous Chef to support the Head Chef and lead the kitchen team. This role involves ensuring high kitchen standards, managing shifts effectively, and engaging with staff. The ideal candidate has strong kitchen skills, extensive experience with fresh ingredients, and is driven to deliver excellent food quality. Competitive perks include overtime pay, staff discounts, and opportunities for personal development.

Benefits

Overtime pay for every hour worked over contracted hours

Staff food on every shift

50% off food and drinks from day one

Paid breaks

28 days holiday pro rata

Enhanced maternity and paternity pay

Opportunity for personal development and career progression

Achievable bonuses

Tips shared equally across the team

Christmas and Boxing Day off

Qualifications

• Experience as a Sous Chef, Junior Sous Chef, or Assistant Kitchen Manager.
• Ability to work with fresh ingredients and demonstrate good kitchen skills.
• Proven ability to lead a high-performing kitchen team.

Responsibilities

• Support the Head Chef and lead the kitchen team.
• Ensure the kitchen runs effectively and safely.
• Maintain high kitchen standards regarding hygiene and safety.

Skills

Chef/kitchen skills

Strong communication skills

Leadership and team management

Knowledge of KPIs

Job description

Sous Chef - Nantwich

You love real cooking. We love real cooking. Customers love real cooking. It's a no-brainer so you wonder why so many other places don't do it. We do it, and you'll be doing it with us—fresh, customer-led, and with high-quality ingredients.

As Sous Chef, you'll be the Head Chef's go-to for support, leading and engaging the kitchen team to deliver 14 great shifts week in, week out.

You'll be leading shifts, making sure the kitchen runs effectively and safely.

You're as relentless as us about the detail, so you'll be all over things like stocks, Health & Safety and Hygiene, manning the pass to ensure our food goes out on-spec and on-time, and always upholding 5 kitchen standards.

The Good Stuff

• Overtime pay for every hour worked over contracted hours!
• Staff food on every shift
• 50% off food and drinks (including alcohol) from day one at all three of our brands - Lounge, Cosy Club and Brightside
• Paid breaks
• 28 days holiday (inclusive of Bank Holidays) pro rata
• Enhanced maternity and paternity pay after 2 years service
• The most talked-about staff party in hospitality - Loungefest!
• Competitions and incentives (like jetting off on an all expenses paid trip with one of our suppliers)
• Company pension scheme
• Long service awards
• Power over your pay with Wagestream
• Emotional and practical support via the Licensed Trade Charity
• Great opportunity for personal development and career progression in a fast growing business
• Achievable bonuses
• Tips shared equally across the team, based on hours worked
• Christmas and Boxing Day off!

Like a chef's bonnet

What you'll bring

• You are probably an existing Sous Chef, or perhaps a Junior Sous Chef / Assistant Kitchen Manager that is looking to take the next step in their career.
• You will have experience of working with fresh ingredients and be able to demonstrate good chef/kitchen skills (food prep hot and cold, cleaning, knife skills, good hygiene practices)
• Your work ethic is rolling your sleeves up and getting stuck in and leading from the front; playing an active role in delivering excellent kitchen and food standards as part of a high performing team.
• Extremely driven and relentless at deconstructing the can't mentality.
• Familiar with KPIs and making decisions in the absence of the Head Chef considering labour; stock; food safety requirements plus others.
• Epic communication skills with the ability to manage stakeholders and build rapport and trust (that would be with our Ops Chefs and Ops Managers).
• Strong knowledge of best practice around rota scheduling, sales and labour forecasts, reporting, recruitment, HR etc.
• You will have demonstrated successful delivery of training and recruitment for kitchen teams including Apprentices, KPs, Chefs, Junior Sous Chefs and Sous Chefs.

If you want to find out more about us, follow us on LinkedIn or @life.at.loungers on TikTok and Instagram