Head Chef Monday-Friday

At Vacherin, our values are at the heart of everything we do. We are Precise in delivering exceptional food and service, Personal in the way we build genuine relationships and care for others, and Bold in embracing new ideas, creativity and innovation. Together, we create memorable experiences for our clients while supporting each other to grow and succeed.

Are you passionate about food, drink and exceptional service? Would you like to join an award-winning hospitality team and still make it home for dinner? We're looking for a Head Chef to join our team in Newcastle Upon Tyne.

Salary: £37,000 per annum

Working Pattern: Monday - Friday, 40 hours per week, 7:30am - 4pm

Location: Newcastle Upon Tyne, NE4 5DE

Key Responsibilities:

• Lead the day-to-day kitchen operation, delivering a busy café service alongside hospitality events.
• Deliver consistently high-quality food across 200–400 covers per day.
• Create fresh, innovative food that reflects a premium catering environment.
• Manage kitchen operations efficiently, including ordering, stock control, food costs and budgets.
• Ensure consistently high standards of food quality, presentation and service.
• Work closely with the wider team to deliver hospitality events and meet client expectations.
• Maintain excellent food safety, hygiene and health & safety standards at all times.
• Take a hands-on approach to service while effectively planning and organising daily kitchen operations.
• Lead and support 0–1 team member, creating a positive and organised kitchen environment.

Our Ideal Candidate:

• An experienced Head Chef or strong senior chef with experience managing a busy kitchen operation.
• Passionate about great food, creativity and bringing new ideas to the menu.
• Experience within café, workplace catering or hospitality would be beneficial.
• Confident delivering a high-volume service of approximately 200–400 covers per day.
• Strong knowledge of food safety, hygiene and health & safety requirements.
• Commercially aware, with a good understanding of food costs, ordering and budget management.
• Comfortable delivering both everyday café service and hospitality events.
• Highly organised, proactive and confident working in a hands-on role.
• Passionate about delivering premium catering and consistently exceeding client expectations.

What's in it for you?

Working with Vacherin has its perks! People are at the heart of everything we do, so we've developed a range of benefits to keep you happy.

• Personal Development and Training opportunities
• Life assurance scheme
• Pension scheme
• Holiday allowance
• Access to Healthcare Support App which includes Annual health check, Digital GP, Mental Health Consultations, Nutritional Consultations, Second Medical Opinion
• Eye care
• A great wellbeing strategy – including access to our Employee Assistance Programme, salary finance
• Family friendly support
• Regular social events and communication with our leaders
• A holiday purchase scheme
• Volunteering days
• Professional subscriptions
• Recognition schemes and people awards
• Long service awards

Job Reference: com/2910/48862001/52843331/SU #Vacherin

Compass Group UK&I is committed to fostering an environment where every individual can truly be themselves at work and has equal opportunities to advance in their careers. We strive to build a culture that respects and celebrates the unique talents, beliefs, backgrounds, and abilities of all our team members. We want our colleagues to feel valued, empowered to reach their full potential, and to thrive - because diversity is our strength!