Private Cook - Gloucestershire

Full Time Cook required for private household located in a wonderful location in the Cotswolds approx. 5 miles north of Tetbury.

The hours will 37.5 per week with recognition that the shoot season will be busier than other times of the year. 

You will be required to work regular weekends and evenings (when the family are in residence, and at other locations occasionally.

We are looking for an experienced cook with previous private household experience who is polite, well presented, discreet and can present the family and their guests with delicious meals using locally sourced ingredients.

Job Description

• To plan and prepare menus
• To undertake local food shopping as required, ensuring stock levels are maintained in line with requirements
• To prepare, present and serve a range of meals for the family and guests, which will include catering for dinner parties, shoot breakfasts/lunches for up to 30 people
• To prepare meals, snacks, cakes etc for the family when you have days off
• To be accountable for all catering expenditure
• To remain up-to-date with current hygiene regulations, to be responsible for ensuring health, safety and hygiene standards are maintained and best practice procedures are followed at all times
• To ensure that correct procedures are used, particularly in the preparation of sensitive commodities, ensuring that food preparation is of the highest standard at all times
• To ensure that all refrigerated areas are kept clean and temperatures are maintained at the correct levels and recorded in the correct manner
• To ensure that the kitchen, cool room, pantry, freezer room, function barn kitchen and related areas are kept clean in accordance with Hygiene Regulations. All kitchen equipment must be clean, safe and in good working order.
• To ensure that any faulty kitchen equipment is recorded and reported accordingly to enable repairs to be carried out promptly
• To work flexibly and on occasions carry out other general tasks in support of the normal running of the household, to ensure that a high standard of service is maintained, including providing cover for other house staff as required, e.g. when they are on leave or absent through illness

Person Specification 

Essential 

• Have sound chef/cooking experience, ideally gained within a private Household / Officers’ Mess where the highest standards are a prerequisite.
• Have previous experience of formal dining and catering for events and dinner parties.
• Be experienced in menu planning. 
• Have proven planning and organisation skills. 
• To have experience of managing within a defined budget and recording all catering expenditure.
• Be pro-active, able to use initiative and work independently.
• Have a positive and flexible attitude with a hands-on, practical approach. 
• To be able to work cooperatively as part of a small team.
• To have good inter-personal and communication skills with the family and other staff and be committed to achieving exceptional standards of service. 
• To be fully conversant with: The Health and Safety Policy Procedures and The Food and Safety Code of Practice, and any other directly relevant cooking legislative requirements. 
• Possess a full valid UK driving Licence.

Desirable

• Possess a City and Guilds catering qualification (or equivalent) and a Food and Hygiene Certificate
• Have previous experience of volume catering

The successful person will be offered a salary package with many benefits including an excellent pension.

25 days holiday plus bank holidays

To apply please email - info@larstonerecruitment.com