A Head Chef's CV tells you where they've worked and what cuisine they've produced. It tells you almost nothing about whether they can run a kitchen commercially, lead a brigade effectively, or maintain standards under pressure and staff shortage. Your interview needs to fill those gaps.

The Three Dimensions of Head Chef Performance

  1. Technical excellence: Food quality, menu creativity, consistency — these are usually evident from the CV and a tasting
  2. Leadership and people management: The hardest to assess and the most common reason Head Chefs fail
  3. Commercial and operational discipline: GP%, waste management, ordering, compliance — often neglected in interviews because it feels less exciting

Questions on Leadership

"Tell me about a time you had a serious problem with a key member of your kitchen team. How did you handle it and what was the outcome?"

Look for: Direct, fair approach, documentation awareness, ability to maintain kitchen performance through the process.

"How do you develop the skills of your junior kitchen team? Give me a specific example of someone you've helped grow."

Look for: Deliberate coaching, not just osmosis. Evidence of someone promoted or significantly improved.

Questions on Commercial Discipline

"Walk me through how you manage food GP% in your current kitchen. What does your ordering and waste process look like?"

Look for: Specific GP% figures, systematic approach to ordering, portion control, and waste recording.

"Tell me about a time you had to redesign your menu for commercial reasons — cost pressure or changing supplier availability. How did you approach it?"

Questions on Consistency Under Pressure

"Describe the most difficult service period you've managed — short-staffed, equipment failure, or exceptionally high covers. What did you do?"

Critical deal-breaker areas Any candidate who cannot describe a food safety management system, cannot discuss allergen management with confidence, or who demonstrates a dismissive attitude to kitchen team welfare should not progress.

The Kitchen Culture Question

Kitchen culture has been a sector-wide problem — high-pressure, hierarchical environments with high burnout. Ask directly: "How would your current team describe the culture in the kitchen when you're running it?" Then verify with references.

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