Head Chef

Love running a great kitchen as much as you love cooking? This one’s for you.

voco Zeal Exeter Science Park is a 142-bedroom, four-star IHG hotel and the UK’s first net zero carbon hotel. It’s modern, it’s busy, and it’s run by people who genuinely care about getting things right. We’re looking for a Head Chef to lead our kitchen and make it the best-run kitchen in the area.

What the role really looks like

This isn’t about reinventing the menu every week. It’s about taking a strong branded menu and delivering it brilliantly, every service, every time. You’ll be the person who makes the kitchen tick: the standards, the numbers and the team.

You’ll:

• Deliver our menus consistently across breakfast, the restaurant, the bar, room service and meetings

• Own your food cost and margin, through smart ordering, stock control, portion control and keeping waste low

• Manage kitchen payroll: build rotas that match the business, control hours and hit your labour targets

• Keep food safety, allergen management and health and safety spotless and audit-ready

• Lead, train and develop your team so they feel supported, confident and proud of what they serve

• Work closely with the General Manager and F&B team as a key part of the hotel’s leadership

What you’ll bring

• Experience as a Head Chef, or a strong Sous Chef ready to step up, ideally in a hotel or branded operation

• A proven track record of hitting food cost and payroll targets

• Comfort working to brand specs and standards, and the pride to execute them well

• Level 3 Food Safety (or willingness to achieve it) and solid allergen knowledge

• A calm, hands-on leadership style that people want to work for

Look at some of the Rewards and Benefits available at Valor

Fancy Joining Our Team?

We're an equal opportunities employer, and we welcome applications from all suitably qualified candidates, regardless of race, sex, disability, religion or belief, sexual orientation or age. At Valor Hospitality, we actively welcome applications from candidates of all diverse backgrounds.

Every application is carefully reviewed against the relevant skills and experience for the role, and we'll be in touch if you're a good match and have been selected for interview.

If you need any support at any stage of the recruitment process, or reasonable adjustments to help you do your best, please email our team at belonging@valoreurope.com.

Please note that employment is subject to proof of eligibility to work in the UK