Head Chef/Cafe Manager

Wellington City Mission

Wellington

On-site

NZD 60,000 - 70,000

Full time

7 days ago

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Job summary

Wellington City Mission – Wellington Central, North Island is seeking a Café Manager to lead Craig & Gail’s Café at Whakamaru Community Hub. You will balance front-of-house and kitchen operations, drive a mana-enhancing hospitality experience, and work with staff, volunteers and suppliers to deliver high-quality service.

We value significant chef and hospitality leadership, strong financial controls, and a commitment to dignity and community.

Qualifications

Significant chef and hospitality management experience.
Strong financial, stock and cost-control capabilities.
Excellent people leadership and team development skills.
Commitment to mana-enhancing customer service.
Good understanding of food safety and health & safety requirements.

Responsibilities

Oversee front-of-house and kitchen operations.
Partner with Leadership Team on menu design and supplier relations.
Maintain food safety, health and safety compliance.
Create a mana-enhancing hospitality experience for manuhiri, staff and volunteers.

Skills

Hospitality management

Leadership

Financial controls

People development

Customer service

Job description

Jora New Zealand will close on 9th September 2026. Thank you for being with us, we are cheering you on as you continue your career journey.

Wellington City Mission – Wellington Central, North Island

The Wellington City Mission has been supporting people and families in the Wellington region for 120 years. We journey with whānau, offering focused support, including transitional housing, food assistance through our Social Supermarket, financial mentoring, social and community support, advocacy, and creating the circumstances where whānaucan achieve the change they aspire to.

At our core, we believe all people are unshakeably good, without exception.This belief shapes our vision:People and communities experiencing empowerment, transformation, and fullness of life.

Empowermentmeans giving people the dignity of choice and the freedom to shape their own journey.

Transformationis about creating hope and growth for everyone—whānau, manuhiri, staff, and volunteers.

Fullness of lifeis living with joy and purpose, whatever that looks like for each person.

The Mission is a place of hope and belonging. We treat everyone with dignity and respect, embrace people as they are, and make decisions with courageous wisdom.

Craig & Gail’s Café is the heart of Whakamaru – Wellington City Mission Community Hub in Mt Cook. It’s a catalyst for intentional relationship between staff, volunteers and manuhiri. This enables empowerment, transformation, and fullness of life. Cost will not be a barrier to nourishing kai, and everyone is welcome. The Café Manager helps bring this to life each day!

This role provides operational leadership across the café, overseeing front-of-house and kitchen functions to ensure smooth, high-quality service. Working closely with the Community Services Leadership Team, kitchen staff and Front of House Team Leader, the Café Manager supports strong teamwork, clear systems, menu design/planning, supplier relationships, stock control and financially sustainable operations.

The role plays an important part in creating a mana-enhancing hospitality experience where manuhiri, staff and volunteers feel respected, included and welcomed.

Alongside practical café management, this position helps ensure food safety, health and safety, and compliance obligations are consistently met. This is a hands‑on leadership role for someone who can balance operational excellence with Wellington City Mission’s kaupapa of dignity, connection and community.

As a successful candidate, you will have: