Development Chef (Airport Lounge Network)

Description

About us:

For airports, for partners, for people. We are CAVU. Founded by MAG (Manchester Airports Group) and backed by over 80 years of aviation expertise, we’re striving to revolutionize airport travel, creating value for passengers and the businesses that serve them.

Why CAVU?

Our name is taken from the aviation, meteorology term, ‘Ceiling And Visibility Unlimited’ (CAVU), which designates the perfect flying condition, where the ceiling is more than 10,000ft and the visibility is more than ten miles.

More than just a name, CAVU is our mindset. It represents all that we stand for. Our proud aviation heritage, our drive to push boundaries, and the very essence of what we do: creating seamless, enjoyable travel experiences for airport passengers.  

Position Summary

The role-holder will take responsibility for shaping, developing and implementing our food & beverage programme that supports our guest operations in our Americas lounges that welcome c2m guests each year… and growing!

The role requires a cool head with experience of operating large scale catering operations, who understands the fine balances that need to be maintained between ensuring our product offer is best-in-class with a distinctive ‘wow factor’, but at the same time, executable at scale within small footprint kitchens.

This role is responsible for ensuring our food and beverage experience remains strong every day, from our early opens to late closures, before we go again in a few hours' time all over again. While a large proportion of your time will be spent developing the menu pipeline to stay well ahead of our quarterly cycle process, time will also be dedicated to nurturing and managing our supply chains, ensuring value for money in our purchasing, whilst also bringing to the forefront smaller and more local suppliers that help build the character of our proposition.

Our guests won’t see what you directly create in our development kitchen. What they will see is the work undertaken by our kitchen teams across our lounges. But it’s on you to ensure our teams fully understand and can implement your menu creations through your delivery of clear and detailed specifications, training materials and ongoing coaching as you tour our lounges across the continent.

Requirements

Key Responsibilities 

· Develop, specify and implement the Food and Beverage offer across our US lounges, producing exceptional food quality and consistent delivery in line with guest and brand expectations

· Remain abreast of market and food trends to ensure offer remains relevant at all   times, including constant monitoring of competitor propositions as well as   ensuring a sense of ‘locality’ in our network of lounges from East to West   coast. 

· Through a   process of continual improvement, ensure the operational delivery processes   constantly evolve as needed to reflect raised standards.

· Support   alongside Heads of Operations to implement exceptional stock control   processes ensuring stock levels reflect business requirements as well as solid   stock rotation principles, and food waste is minimized

· Provide as   required, and to meet legislation, all documentation in terms of calorific, nutritional, allergy as well as all temperature controls, HACCP, COSHH,   labelling, food legislation and licensing.

· Develop as required, seasonal menus; upgrade menus and rotational   daily specials. Manage the quarterly menu change and ensure the Lounge   Manager’s and kitchen teams are fully trained. 

· Use our   customer experience scores and mystery shopping feedback, along with Heads of   Operations, to ensure a feedback process is in place to support future   product refinement.

· Draft, agree   and implement, under guidance, updates on Kitchen/Bar equipment requirements, systems and its management through development with internal/external   partners in order to meet growth plans and to maximise the advantage to the   business.

· Manage delivery of Catering provision across the estate effectively, ensuring the   swift and effective resolution of issues.

· Carry out research   and analysis activities and develop documents and reports to support the   development of plans and proposals relating to the business and operational   development of the business.

· Lead and/or carry out planning and estimating activities to facilitate the development   and effective management of accurate and profitable plans and Audit/Legal requirements.

· Carry out   or lead reporting activities for Food and Beverage, ensuring that performance   issues are identified as early as possible and that effective action is taken   to address such issues.

· Spend circa 40%   of time in our lounges, t