Commis Chef

About the role

As a Commis Chef working in one of our Partnership Hotels, you'll be working as part of our talented kitchen brigade, helping to provide a first-class experience for Partners and guests of the hotel.

You'll be working under the direction of the Head/Sous Chef, but there will also be opportunity for you to work independently, giving you the responsibility and experience to develop in your career.

If you join us from 5th October, in addition to your contractual pay, any time worked between 22:00 - 06:00 will attract Night Premium at a rate of £4.00 per hour. This will also apply to existing Partners who have enrolled onto Enhanced Hours Premium arrangements.

At Brownsea Castle

Working on an island, living in a castle with red squirrels at your window sounds like a fantasy but due to the wonderful and unique Brownsea Castle this could be your reality.

It’s our place by the sea, our island getaway across beautiful Poole Harbour offering an escape to our Partners with history and nature in abundance. Guests stay on the National Trust run island in the amazing Tudor castle, set amongst 17 acres of private grounds with stunning Italian gardens and a dedicated beach offering relaxation and beautiful nature walks.

If you are looking for a hotel with a difference, this could be it. You’ll be surrounded by a team of passionate and dedicated hospitality Partners who give our guests the best experience possible. What is different about our guests though is that they are Partners with their friends and family. 

As co-owners in the business, you’ll see this difference in the way your teammates and you approach your job and carry out your responsibilities. With all of the island to explore or using any of the facilities on offer; a croquet lawn, children's play area, badminton, football, cricket, fishing, archery and frisbee golf you can guarantee that our guests will be hungry and looking to recharge with the fantastic food offering we give them.

Boats:  We have our own private boat service from Poole Quay and Salterns Marina to get Partners to and from work, these boats run approximately once an hour between 7am - 11pm. Castello Boat berths in the Marina at Poole and Enterprise at Salterns . 

Car parking: Parking for Poole can be found on BCP Council car park information page - https://www.bcpcouncil.gov.uk/parking/find-a-car-park/quay-visitors-multi-storey-car-park and for Salterns marina there is on road parking on Dorset lakes road, the marina is permit parking only.

Buses: Buses from Salterns stop at 7pm and all staff are required to cover late night shifts beyond the bus times.

At a glance

• Salary - £25,500 - £35,500 (depending on experience)

• Contract type - This position is available as a  permanent or fixed term contract

• Live in option available 

• Working pattern - Earliest start 7am - latest finish 10pm, includes weekend working 

• Location - Brownsea, Poole

• Please be aware that due to the nature and activities of this role, all successful candidates will have a DBS check carried out on them through a 3rd party registered body. For more details on DBS checks and what these entail, please visit the Government website. A financial probity check will also need to be completed for this role.

Key Responsibilities
 

As a Commis Chef, you'll typically be responsible for:

• Assisting the Head Chef & Sous Chef to plan, produce and deliver the hotel food offer and agreed food presentation standards, in line with current trends and customer demand.

• Able to work under pressure in a fast-paced environment.

• Meeting all legislative requirements for the Catering environment, to include allergens.

• Daily compliance which could include maintaining accurate records of equipment, cleaning schedules, temperature checks, following all food safety policies.

Essential skills / Experience you'll need

• Professional kitchen experience.

• Basic computer skills.

• Great customer service.

• Able to multitask and prioritise.

Desirable skills / experience you may have

• City & Guilds 706 1 and 2 or NVQ equivalent.

• Food Hygiene Certificate Level 2.

The Partnership

We’re the largest employee owned business in the UK and home of our cherished brands, John Lewis and Waitrose. We’re not just employees, we’re Partners, driven by our purpose to build a happier world. As we look to our future, there’s never been a more exciting time to join us.  

We’re ruthlessly focused on being brilliant at retail. We continue to innovate, adapt and diversify. Never Knowingly Undersold on price, quality and service in John Lewis and passionately serving food-lovers in Waitrose.   

As Partners we all share the responsibility of ownership and in its rewards. We use our voices to contribute to our success, working together through the good and challenging times, holding true to our behaviours and treating everyone with kindness and respect. 

We all own making the Partnership somewhere we belong. Embracing our differences and creating an environment where we’re free to be ourselves and can THRIVE. Growing ourselves individually, and as a collective. 

As Partners, we make all the difference. And, we all own it.  

Important points to note:  

It’s important to note that some of our roles are subject to pre-employment vetting (which may include DBS checks for successful candidates). If required, you’ll be informed and provided with information about vetting during the recruitment process and we encourage you to complete any vetting documents quickly to avoid delays. Any DBS checks required will be carried out by a third-party registered body and financial probity checks may also be required for some of our roles.  

We also recommend that you apply as soon as possible as vacancies can close early if we see a high number of applicants.  

We want all of our Partners to have a good work-life balance and we support flexible working. This might mean flexible or compressed hours, job sharing or shorter hour contracts, where possible. Please discuss this further with the hiring manager during your interview.