£42,000–£48,000 + Performance Bonus | Kidbrooke, South East London
My client is launching an exciting new café and dining concept in Kidbrooke Village, South East London, directly next to Kidbrooke railway station.
Designed around modern daytime dining, the venue will combine the energy of a premium all-day café with a creative, quality-led food offering. Think elevated brunch, beautifully presented lunch bowls, Japanese-inspired Shokupan sandwiches, fresh morning pastries, specialty coffee and functional shakes.
The focus is on fresh, scratch-cooked food, quality ingredients, strong presentation and efficient service. The ambition is to create a destination that feels contemporary and distinctive while delivering the consistency and pace needed for a busy neighbourhood café.
This is an opportunity for an ambitious Head Chef to take ownership of the kitchen operation from the very beginning.
Working directly with the founders, you’ll help turn the food concept into a successful day-to-day operation. You’ll have a genuine voice in menu development, recipe testing, kitchen systems and the way the team works.
Your role will combine hands-on cooking with leadership and operational responsibility. You’ll establish efficient preparation and service routines, build a strong kitchen team, manage ordering and food costs, and ensure every dish is delivered consistently during busy services.
You’ll also help establish food safety procedures and hygiene standards from launch, creating a kitchen that is organised, commercially focused and ready to grow.
The menu brings together several exciting elements of modern café dining:
The culinary approach centres on scratch cooking, carefully sourced ingredients, attractive presentation and disciplined station assembly. The concept also has a seed-oil-free focus.
You’ll lead a newly fitted, purpose-built commercial kitchen equipped with modern cooking technology, including combi-ovens and high-speed ovens.
The initial team will include:
You’ll be responsible for building the foundations of the operation, from preparation lists and station workflows to recipe controls, ordering, stock management and staff training.
We’re looking for a chef who combines strong cooking ability with the organisation and commercial awareness needed to lead a modern, high-volume kitchen.
You’ll ideally have:
This is an opportunity to help shape a new food business from day one, lead your own kitchen team and combine creative freedom with commercial responsibility — all within a daytime-focused operation.
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