Head Chef - Modern African Restaurant Pre-Opening

About the role

Radiant Hospitality is launching a modern African restaurant in Dubai and seeks a Head Chef to lead the kitchen from the pre‑opening stage. This founding culinary leadership role offers full creative ownership of the menu, kitchen culture, and operational discipline.

Key responsibilities

• Develop and own the menu end‑to‑end, including concept, seasonality, dish creation, costing, specials and consistency at volume.
• Build a modern menu around African and African‑influenced ingredients, spices and techniques, and communicate the story behind each dish.
• Recruit, train, roster and retain the kitchen brigade, fostering a respectful, low‑turnover culture.
• Lead pre‑opening recruitment and training, ensuring the team understands standards and why they matter.
• Manage kitchen commercials: food cost of sales, gross margin, portion control, wastage, stock management and supplier negotiation.
• Deliver the kitchen’s contribution to the venue P&L in partnership with the General Manager.
• Implement disciplined systems for ordering, stock control, prep planning and kitchen scheduling.
• Build direct relationships with growers, fishermen, butchers and specialist suppliers to protect provenance and ingredient quality.
• Own food safety, HACCP, hygiene and kitchen compliance.

Required profile

• Creative cook with a strong point of view and credibility in African or African‑influenced cuisine.
• Proven ability to lead a disciplined, profitable kitchen and inspire a high‑performing team.
• Experience in menu ownership, cost control and food safety compliance.
• Strong communication skills to convey dish stories to guests and staff.

Required skills

• Menu development and costing
• HACCP and food safety compliance
• Supplier negotiation and relationship management
• Stock control and waste management