Chef de Cuisine – Pan-Asian Restaurant

Nairobi Serena Hotel is seeking an experienced, creative, and quality-focused Chef de Cuisine to lead the culinary operations of our Pan-Asian restaurant. The successful candidate will be responsible for designing and executing an authentic, innovative, and commercially viable Southeast Asian-inspired menu while ensuring consistency, quality, cost control, food safety, and an exceptional guest dining experience.

• Lead the day-to-day culinary operations of the Pan-Asian restaurant's kitchen, ensuring smooth kitchen workflow, high productivity, and excellent service delivery.
• Design, develop, and implement authentic Pan-Asian menus that reflect quality, creativity, seasonality, and cultural authenticity.
• Prepare, standardize, and maintain detailed recipes, including ingredients, methods of preparation, portion sizes, plating standards, allergen information, and yield controls.
• Conduct accurate food costing for all menu items and work closely with the Executive Chef and Cost Controller to maintain approved food cost targets.
• Ensure consistent quality, taste, presentation, portioning, and temperature of all dishes served from the restaurant's kitchen.
• Carry out regular quality checks on raw ingredients, mise en place, cooked products, à la carte items, and final plate presentation.
• Train, coach, supervise, and motivate kitchen team members in Pan-Asian cooking techniques, hygiene practices, food safety, presentation standards, and service expectations.
• Maintain high standards of food safety, sanitation, cleanliness, and storage in line with Nairobi Serena Hotel's policies and applicable public health regulations.
• Monitor stock levels, and ensure the proper use, storage, rotation, and control of ingredients, especially specialty Asian products.
• Work collaboratively with service teams to ensure menu knowledge, smooth guest communication, and prompt resolution of guest feedback relating to food quality or presentation.
• Introduce creative chef's specials, tasting menus, promotions, and culinary concepts that enhance the restaurant's reputation and guest experience.
• Ensure kitchen equipment is used properly, maintained in good working condition, and reported promptly when repairs or replacements are required.

• Professional training in Culinary Arts, Hotel Management, Food Production, or a related field.
• Working experience of 3-5 years as a Chef de Cuisine, Sous Chef, Specialty Chef, or senior culinary leader in a Pan-Asian, or high-quality specialty restaurant.
• Strong hands-on ability to prepare authentic Southeast Asian dishes using traditional and contemporary cooking techniques.
• Excellent knowledge of Asian ingredients, condiments, sauces, spices, noodles, rice dishes, broths, marinades, seafood, meats, vegetables, and specialty cooking methods.
• Demonstrated experience in menu design, menu engineering, recipe writing, costing, portion control, and quality assurance.
• Strong leadership, organizational, planning, training, and team management skills.
• Good understanding of food hygiene, HACCP principles, kitchen safety, stock control, and waste management.
• Ability to communicate clearly and professionally in English, both verbally and in writing.
• Proven commercial awareness especially in food costing and cost control.