Job Description

Qima Cafe is part of Origins 1450, a group redefining coffee and hospitality through craft, quality, and vertical integration across the entire coffee value chain. With our new Central Production Kitchen (CPU) & Bakery in East London, we are scaling our pastry and bakery offering to support Qima Cafe and, in the future, develop a selective wholesale client base.

We are seeking a Head Pastry Chef with exceptional technical mastery in viennoiserie and strong experience in modern patisserie to lead our pastry and bakery operations, balancing craft with commercial scalability.

Key Responsibilities

Craft & Product Development

Lead the creation and execution of all pastry, viennoiserie, and bakery items for Qima Cafe. Develop a rotating menu that reflects Qima's ethos: refined, innovative, and rooted in quality craft. Ensure all products meet consistently high standards of taste, texture, and presentation. Innovate with seasonal ingredients and collaborate with the culinary and beverage teams to create integrated menus.

Leadership & Team Management

Manage, train, and inspire the pastry and bakery team, fostering a culture of craft, discipline, and pride in work. Build and maintain rotas, schedules, and shift structures that ensure efficiency while maintaining work-life balance for the team. Mentor junior chefs and support their professional growth. Promote a positive, respectful, and collaborative work environment.

Operational Management

Oversee daily operations at the CPU, ensuring smooth production flow, timely deliveries, and excellent quality control. Work closely with operations to align production capacity with demand from Qima Cafe, and in time, selective wholesale clients. Develop and implement systems and SOPs for production, storage, inventory management, and delivery. Monitor and manage ingredient and consumable usage to reduce waste and improve efficiency.

Commercial & Strategic Responsibilities

Balance creativity with commercial feasibility; ensure recipes and processes are cost-efficient and scalable. Work with management to develop production budgets, costing, and margins to ensure profitability. Support the long-term growth of the wholesale arm by ensuring production is robust, consistent, and scalable. Provide input on long-term growth strategies, including new product lines and expansion opportunities.

Quality, Safety & Compliance

Maintain impeccable hygiene and food safety standards, ensuring compliance with SALSA/ISO and UK health & safety regulations. Lead quality assurance practices to guarantee consistent excellence across all product categories. Ensure the CPU is audit-ready and compliant with food safety certifications.

Requirements

Extensive experience in viennoiserie (laminated doughs, croissants, brioches, etc.) at a high professional level. Solid experience in patisserie aligned with Qima Cafe's refined, modern style. Proven track record in leading and managing teams in a bakery or pastry production environment. Strong organisational skills: rota planning, workflow management, productivity improvement. Commercial awareness: cost control, margin optimisation, waste management. Ability to innovate while staying true to the ethos of craft and quality. Experience in scaling production operations while maintaining artisanal standards. Familiarity with central production kitchens or multi-site production supply preferred. Excellent communication and leadership skills.

What We Offer

The opportunity to lead and shape the pastry and bakery vision of a fast-growing, globally recognised hospitality group. A creative yet commercially strategic role, where craft meets scale. State-of-the-art Central Production Kitchen in East London. Career growth opportunities across Origins 1450's expanding brand ecosystem. A collaborative, impact-driven culture, combining craft, innovation, and purpose. As a fast-growing company, we offer the right candidate the opportunity to grow significantly in both scope and responsibility, with future progression reflected in compensation and role development.
Job Type: Full-time

Pay: 45,000.00-55,000.00 per year

Benefits:

Company events Employee discount Employee mentoring programme Profit sharing Referral programme Store discount UK visa sponsorship
Application question(s):

How many years of professional experience do you have working specifically with viennoiserie (laminated doughs such as croissants, pains au chocolat, brioches, etc.)? How many years of professional experience do you have in patisserie or plated pastry (beyond viennoiserie)? Have you managed or worked within a central production unit/kitchen supplying multiple sites?
Work authorisation:

United Kingdom (required)
Work Location: In person