Sous Chef

This kitchen exists to make excellent food feel welcoming, not exclusive. As Sous Chef, you will turn seasonal produce and trusted local suppliers into plates guests remember, and you will keep the pass calm when the room is full. The role matters because consistency, care, and a well-led brigade are what turn a good pub into a place people return to.

Performance Objectives

• Run a section so every dish leaves on time, correctly plated, and true to the agreed standard through peak service.
• Partner with the Head Chef to build and cost seasonal menus that stay generous, distinctive, and accessible.
• Coach cooks daily so skills, speed, and standards rise and the brigade can cover one another.
• Hold food cost and waste to target without cutting quality, portion accuracy, or guest experience.
• Own mise en place, allergen controls, and recipe discipline so service starts ready and stays safe.
• Keep hygiene, HACCP, and equipment standards inspection-ready every shift, not only on audit days.
• Step in for the Head Chef, recover guest issues quickly, and leave the next service set up to succeed.

Environment & Resources

You will report to the Head Chef and lead a small, hands-on brigade in an independent British pub kitchen. Expect seasonal menus, close supplier relationships, and direct influence over how food is prepared and served. You will have clear recipes, costing tools, a defined food budget, and a team culture built on hospitality, inclusivity, and a living wage.

Essential Qualifications

• Proven section or sous leadership in a busy pub, restaurant, or similar high-volume kitchen.
• A record of consistent plates under pressure, including allergen accuracy and timing.
• Hands-on menu development, recipe writing, and food-cost control with measurable results.
• Experience coaching cooks, running prep, and maintaining food-safety standards.
• Confidence covering senior shifts and communicating clearly with front of house.
• Current food hygiene certification and the stamina for service-led hours.

Role Selling Points

• Cook food that is award-worthy and still meant for everyone.
• Work with acclaimed local suppliers and a genuinely seasonal larder.
• Lead in a culture that pays a living wage and treats hospitality as a craft.
• Shape standards early in a growing, independent group rather than inherit a rigid system.
• See your work support warm rooms, loyal regulars, and community partnerships.

Call to Action

If you can lead a pass, lift a team, and make seasonal cooking feel generous, apply. Show us the kitchens you have run and the standards you will own here.

Pineapple Recruitment is acting as a Recruitment Agency on behalf of our client for this vacancy.