Head Chef

Fenwick; Newcastle upon Tyne; On-site; GBP 31,000 - GBP 42,000; Full time

Job summary

A luxury department store in Newcastle upon Tyne seeks an experienced Head Chef to lead its Fuego restaurant. The successful candidate will create and evolve food strategies, inspire a large team, and ensure high hospitality standards. You should have a proven record in a similar role, excellent culinary skills, and a passion for food. The role offers a competitive salary, potential earnings through tronc, as well as comprehensive perks including discounts, annual leave, and a pension scheme.

Benefits

Up to 25% discount in all stores

28 days annual leave

Birthday off as an additional leave

Wellbeing advice & support service

Pension scheme

Qualifications

• Proven record in Head Chef position within a full‑service restaurant.
• Experience with Health & Safety and HACCP within hospitality.
• Excellent culinary skills with awareness of food trends.

Responsibilities

• Lead the team in our Fuego restaurant.
• Create, evolve, and deliver food strategies.
• Set objectives and coach direct reports to achieve goals.

Skills

Leadership skills

Culinary skills

H&S awareness

Problem-solving

Team development

Job description

Working Week: 45 hours

Advertised salary is £31,000 - added with tronc brings this to a potential gross annual earning of approximately £41,500.

Are you an experienced and talented head chef with a solid background in the hospitality industry? Are you passionate about food and experienced in leading large teams of chefs? Do you share our high standards when it comes to food?

If yes, we have an exceptional opportunity for a Head Chef to lead the team in our Fuego restaurant in Newcastle. We would love to hear from you!

About the role

Working collaboratively and being hands‑on, you will be instrumental in creating, evolving, and delivering our various food strategies.

As a successful candidate, you will have excellent leadership skills and be able to inspire and motivate your team to achieve great results. You will set objectives, coach and develop your direct reports, and monitor our operational standards to ensure that our restaurants consistently exceed our customers' expectations and offer the best hospitality experience possible.

About the candidate

We look for warm and welcoming people, who are adaptable, courageous, innovative, and goal‑orientated to join us on our exciting journey.

As well as these key characteristics, this role also requires some specific skills and experience to succeed‿

• A proven record in an Executive Chef/Head Chef Position within a full‑service restaurant setting.
• A proven record of working H&S, Operations and HACCP knowledge gained within a hospitality business.
• Excellent culinary skills and product knowledge as well as awareness of food trends.
• A track record of training and developing a senior team to achieve great results.
• Exceptional diligence and meticulous ways of working.
• Solution‑focused and the ability to thrive in a challenging environment.
• Enthusiastic about food with the aptitude to learn and adapt to new and diverse ways of working.

When you join Fenwick, you’ll receive:

• Up to 25% discount in all Fenwick stores and fenwick.co.uk.
• 28 days annual leave, inclusive of Bank Holidays, increasing by 1 day each year to a maximum of 33 days (pro rata for part‑time colleagues)
• Your birthday off as an additional day annual leave – this can be taken any day within your birth month.
• ‘Perks*’ - a great way to get Retail, Leisure & Hospitality discounts, exclusive deals, and cashback on a wide range of products.
• WeCare -24/7 GP, wellbeing advice & support service.
• Pension scheme.
• You will also be entitled to join the tronc system which is operated and controlled independently.

About Fenwick and Our Restaurants

Fenwick is rich with heritage and history and have been style pioneers since 1882 when our first store opened. We know luxury and are proud to remain the largest independent, family‑owned group of department stores within the UK. We are on an exciting journey to exceed our customers' expectations and we are always on the lookout for new talent to join us.

Our collaborative spirit unites a workforce of over 2,000 individuals across our stores, as well as in our support functions, encompassing Digital, Buying & Merchandising, IT, Finance, People, Customer Service teams, and our cherished restaurants and distribution centres.

Building upon the success of our 15 own‑bought restaurants and esteemed restaurant concession partners across our 8 stores, our restaurant business offers an unparalleled dining experience, epitomizing the renowned Fenwick hospitality.