At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead food production, innovate menus, and set culinary standards in a fast-paced startup.
- Company: Eat Ping is a dynamic food startup revolutionising meal prep with nutritious Asian cuisine.
- Benefits: Enjoy competitive salary, performance bonuses, equity compensation, and a clear growth path.
- Why this job: Shape the culinary future of a tech-driven company while leading a creative team.
- Qualifications: 5+ years as a chef with Asian cuisine experience; strong production and leadership skills required.
- Other info: This role offers a unique opportunity to integrate food with technology in a startup environment.
The predicted salary is between 48000 - 84000 £ per year.
About Us
Eat Ping is a fast-growing food startup revolutionising meal prep and delivery with a focus on nutritious Asian cuisine. We launched just 2 months ago and have already hit £15k MRR in month 1, and £18k MRR in month 2 with a strong pipeline projected to reach £40k MRR. We are a tech-driven food company creating a fully integrated production and customer experience platform.
The Role
This is a builder’s role — perfect for an ambitious chef ready to step up into a Head of Food (and soon Culinary Director) position. You’ll be:
- Hands-on running production batches each week alongside a small team, we have a fully functioning team of 1 junior chef and capable assistants.
- Developing, testing, and systemising menus that can eventually scale to thousands of meals/week.
- Working directly with the Founder and Operations Lead to integrate food into a smart kitchen operation — including robotics and automation.
- Balancing creativity and consistency — designing amazing Asian-inspired meals that are also operationally scalable.
- Setting culinary standards and culture — leading from the front now, managing a growing team as we scale.
This is NOT a standard restaurant chef role. This is startup food leadership — fast-moving, creative, experimental, operationally focused.
What You’ll Be Doing
- Lead daily and weekly food production with the current small team (~1K meals/week).
- Work closely with the Founder to define and refine the culinary brand, taste standards, and vision.
- Develop and document production recipes that are scalable, batch-tested, and process-efficient.
- Innovate new menu items, food experiences, and limited edition launches.
- Set quality control processes (taste testing, portion control, appearance standards).
- Help design kitchen workflows and production systems that will integrate with robotics.
- Recruit, train, and inspire future kitchen staff as we scale.
About You
- 5+ years experience as a professional chef (Asian cuisine experience required — Chinese, Southeast Asian, Japanese, Korean, etc.).
- Strong hands-on production experience — you’re comfortable both creating and executing at volume.
- Startup mindset — scrappy, experimental, high-output, solutions-focused.
- Excited about growing into a Culinary Director role as the company scales.
- Comfortable balancing quality, speed, cost, and operational constraints.
- Open to working alongside technology (robotic kitchen tools, inventory software, etc.)
- Passionate about both taste and execution — making meals customers crave and building systems that scale.
- Leadership skills: able to manage, teach, and eventually build a culinary team.
Why Join Ping?
- Opportunity to shape the culinary foundation of a fast-scaling food-tech company.
- Direct influence on both the product and the production systems.
- A clear growth path: Head of Food → Culinary Director as we hit 4K+ meals/week.
- A supportive, ambitious founder team ready to invest in your career and ideas.
- Competitive salary, performance bonuses, and future leadership opportunities.
- Equity compensation also rewarded.
Head of Food / Culinary Director employer: Eat Ping
Contact Detail:
Eat Ping Recruiting Team
StudySmarter Expert Advice 🤫
We think this is how you could land Head of Food / Culinary Director
✨Tip Number 1
Familiarise yourself with the latest trends in Asian cuisine and meal prep. This will not only help you understand the culinary landscape but also allow you to speak confidently about innovative ideas during interviews.
✨Tip Number 2
Network with professionals in the food tech industry. Attend relevant events or join online forums where you can connect with others who share your passion for culinary innovation and may have insights into the startup scene.
✨Tip Number 3
Showcase your leadership skills by sharing examples of how you've successfully managed teams in high-pressure environments. Highlight any experience you have with scaling operations, as this is crucial for a startup role.
✨Tip Number 4
Demonstrate your adaptability and willingness to embrace technology in the kitchen. Be prepared to discuss how you've integrated new tools or processes in your previous roles to improve efficiency and quality.
We think you need these skills to ace Head of Food / Culinary Director
Some tips for your application 🫡
Understand the Company: Familiarise yourself with Eat Ping's mission and values. Highlight your passion for nutritious Asian cuisine and how your experience aligns with their innovative approach to meal prep and delivery.
Tailor Your CV: Craft your CV to emphasise your relevant experience in Asian cuisine and leadership roles. Include specific examples of your hands-on production experience and any previous work in fast-paced environments.
Write a Compelling Cover Letter: In your cover letter, express your enthusiasm for the Head of Food position. Discuss your vision for scaling culinary systems and how you can contribute to Eat Ping's growth. Be sure to mention your startup mindset and ability to innovate.
Showcase Your Leadership Skills: Provide examples of how you've successfully managed and inspired teams in the past. Highlight your ability to balance creativity with operational efficiency, as this is crucial for the role at Eat Ping.
How to prepare for a job interview at Eat Ping
✨Showcase Your Culinary Passion
Make sure to express your enthusiasm for Asian cuisine and how it inspires your cooking. Share specific examples of dishes you've created or experiences that highlight your passion for food, as this role is all about creativity and innovation.
✨Demonstrate Leadership Experience
Prepare to discuss your previous leadership roles in the kitchen. Highlight how you've managed teams, trained staff, and set culinary standards. This will show that you're ready to take on the responsibilities of leading a growing team.
✨Emphasise Your Startup Mindset
Be ready to talk about your experience in fast-paced environments. Discuss how you've adapted to challenges, been resourceful, and contributed to innovative solutions in previous roles. This will resonate well with the startup culture at Eat Ping.
✨Prepare for Technical Questions
Since the role involves integrating technology into the kitchen, brush up on your knowledge of kitchen automation and robotics. Be prepared to discuss how you would implement these technologies to improve efficiency and production quality.