Head Chef in Newport, Wales

Our Visitor Attraction site at Lisvane and Llanishen opened in 2023, in the North of Cardiff, and is open all year round! This is an exciting opportunity for anyone wishing to join Welsh Water. The site boasts a state-of-the-art Visitor Attraction building with a 150-cover restaurant, balcony with views over both reservoirs, group and cubicle changing rooms, both land and water-based activities, education learning space, bird hides & islands, meeting rooms and a Grab & Go.

This is a Head Chef role designed to support a healthy work-life balance without compromising on quality, creativity or career development. You'll primarily work daytime hours, typically 8:00am to 4:00pm, with only occasional variations and a maximum of two later finishes per week (up to 10:00pm). Weekend working is shared fairly across the team, averaging one weekend in three, and you'll receive your rota by the 14th of each month, giving you plenty of time to plan your personal commitments.

You will work any five days out of seven on an annualised hours contract. This means your working hours are spread across the year to reflect seasonal business demands, with busier periods balanced by quieter periods, while you continue to receive the same monthly salary throughout the year. Unlike many hospitality roles, you'll benefit from no split shifts, providing greater consistency and predictability in your working day.

You will be joining a friendly, supportive team where people enjoy working together to deliver excellent food and service in a well-organised environment.

What you’ll be responsible for:

• Take the reins of a buzzing, seasonal kitchen and bring your food to life with every dish.
• Create vibrant, flavour-packed menus using fresh, local ingredients (and a bit of your own flair).
• Get creative with the food offer—spot trends, try new ideas, and keep things exciting.
• Lead a passionate kitchen team, inspiring great energy, teamwork and pride in every plate.
• Support and develop your team—sharing skills, ideas and your love of great food.
• Keep standards sky-high when it comes to food safety, hygiene and presentation.
• Balance creativity with smart cost control, stock management and low waste.
• Build strong relationships with suppliers to source the very best seasonal produce.
• Play a key role in events—helping deliver standout food experiences that guests remember.
• Be hands-on, visible and energetic in the kitchen—setting the tone and leading from the front.

About you:

We're looking for someone who is passionate about great food, enjoys leading and developing others and is committed to delivering an excellent customer experience. You'll bring:

• Experience working within a catering, café or hospitality environment, with a passion for creating high-quality dishes using fresh, locally sourced ingredients.
• Practical knowledge of health and safety within a food, retail or hospitality setting.
• Excellent customer service skills and the ability to build positive relationships with customers, colleagues and stakeholders from a variety of backgrounds.
• Experience managing budgets, menu costings, gross profit margins, cash handling and day-to-day financial performance.
• Knowledge of food safety, licensing and regulatory requirements, including food hygiene standards, Environmental Health requirements and trading standards.
• Experience supporting, developing and motivating a team to deliver excellent service and achieve shared goals.
• Experience planning and delivering successful events, functions or hospitality services.
• Experience identifying opportunities to grow sales, improve performance and enhance the customer experience within a food and beverage operation.
• Demonstrable experience delivering consistently high standards of food production and service, with a focus on quality and customer satisfaction.
• Previous people management or supervisory experience, including coaching, supporting and developing team members.

Benefits:

• Annual pay review.
• Staff Discounts at our visitor attractions.
• Uniform provided.
• Beautiful working location.
• Flexible working hours.

We may close this role sooner if required. We may also extend the original closing date depending on interest. Due to the nature of the industry, we require satisfactory references, post-offer medical clearance, and a criminal records Basic Disclosure check on all new employees joining the business. For some roles there may be additional checks and security clearance required, and this offer is subject to all checks being satisfied.