HEAD CHEF
Lady of the Grapes is a vibrant natural French wine bar and restaurant with 30 covers, located in the heart of Covent Garden. Dedicated to promoting female winemakers and female in hospitality, we offer a distinctive yet relaxed environment where guests can enjoy exceptional natural wines alongside ingredient-led modern bistro cuisine.
We are currently looking for a part time Head Chef or Senior Sous Chef to join our supportive and collaborative team and grow with our company.
Our menu features French bistro sharing plates, complemented by an artisan selection of cheeses and charcuterie. Everything is made from scratch using seasonal produce and the highest-quality ingredients. The menu evolves constantly and is currently led by our Head Chef Matyas Plzak, who has been with us for over two years and brings a strong Michelin-starred restaurant background. Under his leadership, our Covent Garden restaurant has been awarded 2 AA Rosettes.
As Matyas is now leading the kitchen at our new venue in London Bridge , we are looking for a talented Head Chef to oversee our Covent Garden kitchen.
Our kitchen is small, supportive and collaborative, currently consisting of a Head Chef, one Sous Chef, one Commis Chef and two Kitchen Porters.
If you are passionate about seasonal ingredients, terroir, and creative cuisine, and enjoy working in a close-knit team, we would love to hear from you.
We particularly welcome applications from women and underrepresented in the industry, as we are committed to promoting equal opportunities and diversity in hospitality.
Responsibilities
- Maintain high standards of food quality, presentation and hygiene
- Prepare, cook and present high-quality dishes
- Ensure mise en place is prepared efficiently for service
- Ensure dishes are delivered consistently and in a timely manner during service
- Contribute to menu development and new recipe creation
- Maintain and update the recipe book
- Stay up to date with culinary trends and techniques
- Manage supplier relationships, orders, deliveries and stock rotation
- Monitor food costs and maintain appropriate margins
- Lead and support the kitchen team (Sous Chef, Commis Chef and Kitchen Porters)
- Train team members on recipes, techniques, portion control and hygiene standards
- Help maintain a positive and organised kitchen environment
- Organise kitchen Rota
What we are looking for
- Minimum 3 years’ experience as a professional chef
- Good knowledge of French cuisine
- Experience in quality-driven kitchens (Michelin-starred experience is a plus)
- Passion for food, wine and seasonal ingredients
- Strong organisational and leadership skills
- Ability to remain calm and organised during busy services
- Excellent attention to detail
- Good understanding of HACCP and food safety
- Good English (spoken and written)
- Help maintain a positive and organised kitchen environment
- Right to work in the UK
A diploma in Professional Culinary Arts is beneficial but not essential.
We offer you:
- A fun, passionate and energetic, supportive management team to motivate you and encourage you to be yourself
- A yearly bonus and bonuses on performance.
- A recommendation scheme (£250 per individual hired by referral)
- A retirement pensions
- A flexible rota to allow you to keep balance with personal life
- 35h/week contract on 3 days
- Staff discount 20% off of your total bill when dining in
- Cost price on wines to take home
- Free fresh meals on duty
- 28 days holidays
- Focused development plan so you can move forward with us as we continue to expand (we are looking to open a second location)
- We are closed every Monday and around Christmas and at the beginning of January
If you think you’re up for the challenge of this role we’d love to hear from you! Get in touch, we are excited about meeting you and bringing you into the family.
Job Types: Full-time, Permanent
Pay: £18.00-£20.00 per hour
Benefits:
- Discounted or free food
- Employee discount
Work Location: In person
