Executive Chef (In Search of South African Chef to be based at Newrest Nigeria)

Newrest; Johannesburg; On-site; ZAR 500 000 - 700 000; Full time

Job summary

A Multi-Sector Catering Company in Johannesburg is looking for a Culinary Lead to oversee menu development, ensure food quality, and conduct team training. The ideal candidate must hold culinary qualifications and have at least 10 years of experience in a similar role. This position involves collaboration across multiple units and maintaining high culinary standards.

Qualifications

• 10 Years’ Experience required.
• Ability to communicate and delegate with the team under supervision.
• Ability to meet deadlines.

Responsibilities

• Lead the menu presentation process and develop menus for proposals.
• Manage food sampling processes based on client requirements.
• Conduct training for kitchen teams on critical elements.

Skills

Organization & Efficiency

Leadership

Problem Solving

Communication

Production Planning

Education

Culinary / hospitality diploma

Degree in Professional Cookery

Relevant Qualifications in Production Management

Tools

Microsoft Office

Job description

Overview

Multi-Sector Catering Company with 40,000 employees in 54 countries. Position in Labor/Commercial activities.

Responsibilities

• Lead the menu presentation process and develop menus and recipes for proposals by completing the initial grids for proposals.
• Provide menu recommendations in line with client or commercial requests while considering the current production plan for optimization.
• Create recipes and ensure correct deployment into the Winrest system.
• Review new recipes prior to costing in the Winrest system with the costing team.
• Manage the clients’ food sampling process with support from the Units Executive Chefs based on commercial requirements.
• Address gustative complaints with support from the Units Executive Chefs (e.g., meat overcooked, missing or wrong item).
• Participate in cycle change preparation, review cycle change specifications (datasheet or menu grid when the latter is not available), attend the cycle change meeting, and adjust products with the supply chain based on availability and other factors.
• Carry out training of the hot and cold kitchen teams on critical elements of the cycles and conduct a dry run when required.
• Quality control and culinary excellence: carry out quality checks as per the Chef table process and internally through the tasting station; address and correct any deviation observed and develop additional control methods to ensure high quality meals.
• Represent the culinary lead in taste, plating and specification compliance.
• Check recipes for compliance in Winrest (correct ingredients, correct pictures) and contact the Costing Manager for corrections when needed.
• Procurement related: address quality/specification issues with the National Purchasing Manager and sign off product specifications for the Procurement team, especially on high-cost and high-yield items.
• General: support other countries within the Newrest network when required; work closely with Production Managers to implement and maintain a Production Plan, complete projects, train the hot and cold kitchen teams, and ensure utmost care in food preparation (taste, quality, garnishing, presentation).
• Collaborate with the Training Officer to determine staff training needs; develop training material and conduct on-the-job training.
• Contribute to food cost reduction and waste minimization; support food audits preparation and completion; participate in cooks’ skills assessments prior to recruitment.

Perfil / Qualifications

• Culinary / hospitality diploma or or Degree in Professional Cookery
• Relevant Qualifications in Production Management
• Fully competent in Microsoft Office

Experience

• 10 Years’ Experience

Skills

• Organization & Efficiency
• Leadership
• Problem Solving
• Communication
• Production Planning

Competencies

• Ability to communicate and delegate with the team under supervision
• Ability to meet deadlines
• Ability to present and interact efficiently with Internal Clients