Head Chef - Mumbles in Swansea

Overview

A hands‑on Head Chef will lead the kitchen at Croeso Lounge, a local café bar.

You’ll drive the kitchen team to deliver the highest standards, set and maintain food quality, and build a culture of collaboration with the front of house.

Key Responsibilities

• Take full ownership of the kitchen, leading every shift from open to close and ensuring the right people are in the right place.
• Ensure food standards never slip and that every dish leaves the pass as it should.
• Recruit, develop and coach the kitchen team at all levels – from Kitchen Pointers and Chefs to Sous Chefs – through honest feedback and clear development plans.
• Know the menu specs and kitchen processes inside out, spotting issues and opportunities before they happen.
• Own a site‑level action plan with the General Manager covering food wait times, NSF standards, ordering, stock counts and cleaning.
• Deliver on kitchen KPIs – food quality, wait times, wastage, food safety and gross profit – and report on performance after each shift.
• Schedule fair rotas in line with the sales and bookings forecast, ensuring each shift has the right skill and capability.
• Work closely with the front of house to build a genuine one‑team culture, with shared understanding and cross‑training in place.

Qualifications

• Natural people leader – you build loyal, motivated kitchen teams by understanding what drives people.
• A cook who genuinely cares about fresh, high‑quality ingredients and our menu specs, spotting issues before they arise.
• Kitchen leader – you lead from the line or pass, coaching in the moment and obsessing over the details that matter.
• Commercially minded – you’re confident with GP, labour, stock, wastage and food safety KPIs and use them to make smart decisions.
• Experienced and adaptable – you have worked as a Head Chef, Kitchen Manager or Sous Chef and are ready for the next step.
• Comfortable recruiting, training and developing kitchen teams and running a busy service as well as reviewing performance with the Operations Chef.
• Fluency in UK food safety and hygiene regulations and strong knowledge of RSPCA‑compliant practices.
• Excellent communication skills and the confidence to interact with senior management and external suppliers.
• Ability to lead through change and promote a safe, tidy, and efficient working environment.

Benefits

• Competitive base salary plus bonus and overtime.
• Permanent full‑time role; 48‑hour contract with a 40‑hour option available.
• Overtime pay for every hour worked.
• Achievable bonus scheme, paid twice a year.
• Tips shared equally across the team, based on hours worked.
• Free meal on every shift, regardless of length.
• Christmas and Boxing Day off.
• Genuine career development with in‑house training courses and the ‘Future Ops’ programme.
• 50% discount on food and drinks from day one, including alcohol across all brands (Lounge, Cosy Club & Brightside).
• No uniform policy.

• Annual staff party – Loungefest!

• Long‑service awards – vouchers or extra money.
• Early access to pay via Stream.
• Emotional and practical support via the Licensed Trade Charity.
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