Head Chef, Guildford

HEAD CHEF

The Place

Barnett Hill Hotel joined the Alexander Hotels Group in September 2016. A privately owned luxury Hotel and Spa Company now boasting 5 stunning Hotels in the Southeast all holding a range of Rosette and Michelin Star awards.

Since that time the Hotel has been transformed into a 4 star luxury Hotel following a complete refurbishment of all guest bedrooms and public areas and the re-development of the coach house rooms. This investment in product and staffing has seen the Hotel improve its business levels even in these difficult times.

Our Kitchen Brigade have done an excellent job of improving our food offering and achieved a 2 Rosette rating for his food. We are now seeking a new Head Chef to continue to develop and improve our food offering further.

The Hotel is a beautiful Queen Anne style property, built in 1905, set within 26 acres of lovingly maintained gardens and woodlands, sitting in the heart of the Surrey Hill area of outstanding natural beauty just outside Guildford, Surrey. This idyllic location is 15 minutes from Guildford town and 45 mins from Central London. Since 1944 Barnett Hill has been used for training, conference and events, with bedrooms later being added; to date it now serves as a beautiful venue for leisure, dining, wedding and conference events.   Bedrooms at Barnett Hill show historic and contemporary personalities. Each room is individually decorated, many are in the main house and other located in an adjacent bespoke accommodation building.  

Following refurbishment and redevelopment the Hotel now offers;

• Stunning grounds of 26 acres
• 56 bedrooms Restaurant Bar and Lounges
• 15 function/conference rooms catering for us to 70 guests
• 2 suites for Civil Ceremonies catering for up to 80 guests (only one wedding at a time)

The Role

Reporting to the General Manager with complete responsibility for all aspects of food production from sourcing suppliers to delivering customer excellence in the finished dish.

Along with the product development planned for Barnett Hill Hotel there are great opportunities to develop the food standards and offering at the hotel.

Creating a restaurant menu to inspire local patrons, an afternoon tea menu that encourages loyal local business will all be on the to do list of the new Head Chef.

You will be support by Nicolas Roulier the General Manager and will be provided with the equipment and staff resources you need to deliver on these ambitions.

You will be responsible for;

• Recruitment, training and coaching team of 5 Chefs and 2 Kitchen Porters – adding to your team as the business grows. Working with local colleges to encourage new recruits as well as working with our Group Resourcer to attract quality Chefs. Following re-opening after the COVID-19 closures we expect to grow our business successfully and increase the team to 8  Chefs and 3 Kitchen Porters.
• The menu planning, supplier resourcing, ordering, delivery, storage, preparation, cooking and service across the range of food areas within the Hotel
• Development of menu ideas to progress the food offering to achieve rosette standards across all areas of service; restaurant, banqueting, afternoon tea, corporate functions
• Ensure compliance with HACCP and food hygiene, health and safety legislation.
• Achieving gross profit targets on dishes to allow for future investment in the facilities and staffing
• Creating passion, flair and drive in your team to assist the hotel to achieve its quality and business objectives. Practice and promote effective teamwork and communication amongst your direct work colleagues and colleagues in other departments.

The business is varied offering catering to Hotel Guests, In-house Conference Delegates, as well as  guests from the local area. Barnett Hill is a popular wedding venue with weddings taking place in the 2 wedding suites.

Requirements

• A minimum of 2 years Head Chef experience in a quality hotel with 2 Rosette award for food
• Demonstrate during a cooking trial the practical ability and flair that will be required to drive and motivate others on the team to achieve.
• Demonstrate ideas of how the food offering can be developed and standards improved when being interviewed.
• Hold the experience to manage the multi menu requirements and busy banqueting operation.
• Display the experience of kitchen management to operate a quality, effective and cost controlled kitchen operation.
• Proven record of team selection and retention that supports the development of excellent standards.
• Ability and passion to lead and develop the Brigades skills and to build a strong successful team through training and coaching.
• Live locally or have the ability to relocate to the area with own transportation.

Benefits

£50,000 + Quarterly GP Bonus (additional £4k very achievable earnings)

• 4 weeks holiday increasing to 5 weeks with service
• 8 Bank holidays
• Free car parking
• Employee uniform

In addition you will also benefit from a  range of company benefits including:

Discounted hotel accommodation for yourself and your family at all hotels
Discounted hair treatments at our two Utopia Spas
Discount off all food & beverage at all hotels
Discount of individual treatments booked in our two Utopia Spas
Discount on retail products in our two Utopia Spas
Refer a friend staff recruitment scheme In additional you will enjoy a range of other benefits when you celebrate your 1 yr, 3 yr and 5 yr anniversary including; your birthday off paid, complimentary overnight stays, complimentary lunch/afternoon tea and service related holiday