Company Description Horsted Place Country House Hotel is a boutique property set in a historic country house, offering an intimate and refined hospitality experience. The hotel combines traditional charm with modern comforts, attracting guests who value high-quality service, elegant surroundings, and exceptional food. Its restaurant focuses on elevated, seasonal dishes that showcases fresh, locally sourced ingredients. Team members work in a close-knit environment where attention to detail, professionalism, and guest satisfaction are central.
Role Description This is a full-time, on-site Head Chef role based at Horsted Place Country House Hotel in Uckfield. The Head Chef leads all kitchen operations, including menu planning, recipe development, and daily food preparation for breakfast, lunch, dinner, afternoon tea, and events. Responsibilities include managing and training the kitchen brigade, organizing staff rotas, and ensuring consistent culinary standards and timely service. The role oversees stock control, ordering, supplier relationships, and cost management to achieve food quality and profitability targets. The Head Chef also ensures compliance with food safety, hygiene, and health and safety regulations, maintains a clean and organized kitchen, and collaborates with hotel management on guest experience, special menus, and functions such as weddings and private events.
Qualifications
- Proven experience as a Head Chef or Senior Sous Chef in a high-quality hotel, country house, or fine dining environment.
- Strong culinary skills with a focus on fresh, seasonal, and locally sourced ingredients, and the ability to design appealing menus for both restaurant and events.
- Demonstrated leadership and people management skills, including training, coaching, scheduling, and motivating a diverse kitchen team.
- Excellent knowledge of food safety, HACCP, kitchen hygiene standards, and health and safety regulations, with a track record of maintaining high audit scores.
- Solid understanding of kitchen finance, including food cost control, waste reduction, stock management, and supplier negotiation.
- Strong organizational and time-management abilities, capable of working under pressure while maintaining consistency and quality.
- Good communication and collaboration skills, able to work effectively with front-of-house and management to deliver a seamless guest experience.
- Relevant culinary qualifications or apprenticeship training; food safety certification preferred.
- Flexibility to work varied shifts, including evenings, weekends, and holidays, in line with business needs.
- A passion for hospitality, attention to detail, and a commitment to maintaining a respectful, inclusive, and supportive workplace culture.