Head Chef

Role Purpose

The Head Chef is the culinary leader of Mama Shelter Singapore, with full ownership of the kitchen and culinary operation.

As the senior culinary authority on property, the Head Chef leads menu creation, R&D, food quality, kitchen operations, team development, food safety, purchasing, food and labour cost, and overall culinary performance. This is a hands-on role combining creativity, commercial awareness and strong leadership to deliver food that is generous, fun, relevant and unmistakably Mama.

Key Responsibilities:

Culinary Operations & Quality

• Lead all kitchen operations and ensure smooth, efficient service across all F&B outlets.
• Maintain high standards of taste, presentation, consistency, portioning and speed of service.
• Lead daily kitchen briefings, mise-en-place and service readiness.
• Remain hands-on during key and peak service periods.
• Continuously improve kitchen standards, productivity and operational efficiency.

R&D & Menu Development

• Own all culinary R&D, menu creation and product development.
• Develop menus, seasonal dishes, specials, promotions and culinary concepts aligned with Mama Shelter and the Singapore market.
• Conduct tastings, recipe testing and continuous product improvement.
• Maintain standard recipes, specifications, plating standards and accurate recipe costing.
• Monitor food trends, guest feedback and menu performance to keep the offering fresh and relevant.
• Collaborate with F&B and Marketing on activations, events and culinary collaborations.

Commercial, Labour & Cost Management

• Take full ownership of food cost, culinary labour cost, payroll, wastage, productivity and overall kitchen profitability.
• Plan staffing levels, schedules and deployment according to business volume and operational needs.
• Monitor labour cost against budget and forecast, managing overtime, casual labour and productivity effectively.
• Manage menu engineering, recipe costing, portion control, inventory and stock rotation.
• Work closely with Purchasing and suppliers to source quality ingredients at the right value.
• Support budgeting and forecasting and identify opportunities to improve profitability without compromising quality or guest experience.

Team Leadership

• Recruit, lead, train and develop the entire culinary brigade.
• Build a positive, energetic and accountable kitchen culture that reflects Mama Shelter.
• Manage manpower planning, scheduling, performance and development.
• Develop Sous Chefs and Chef de Parties and encourage the team to contribute to R&D and continuous improvement.
• Lead by example in quality, discipline, teamwork and professionalism.

Guest Experience & Mama Identity

• Be the culinary driving force of Mama Shelter Singapore.
• Ensure the food experience reflects Mama’s generous, approachable and playful personality.
• Use guest feedback and market insights to continuously improve the culinary offering.
• Work closely with F&B, Events, Sales and Marketing on events, festive programmes and special activations.
• Keep the food offering relevant and competitive within Singapore’s dining scene.

Food Safety & Compliance

• Take overall responsibility for kitchen hygiene, sanitation and food safety.
• Ensure compliance with HACCP, Singapore food regulations and Mama Shelter/Accor standards.
• Maintain proper receiving, storage, labelling, temperature control and stock rotation procedures.
• Conduct regular kitchen inspections and ensure corrective actions are completed.

Management & Collaboration

• Serve as the senior culinary decision-maker on property.
• Work closely with the General Manager and F&B leadership on culinary strategy, budgets, forecasts and business performance.
• Collaborate across F&B, Purchasing, Finance, Engineering, People & Culture and Marketing.
• Take ownership of culinary challenges and make timely decisions to protect quality, guest satisfaction and profitability.

What We’re Looking For

• Proven experience as a Head Chef, Executive Chef or senior culinary leader with full kitchen responsibility.
• Strong experience in R&D, menu creation and recipe development.
• Passion for bold, generous and approachable food.
• Strong understanding of Singapore’s dining market and food trends.
• Strong commercial knowledge of food cost, labour cost, payroll, purchasing, inventory, budgeting and menu engineering.
• Strong people leadership and team-development skills.
• Solid knowledge of HACCP, food hygiene and kitchen safety.
• Creative, commercially minded and highly hands-on.
• Strong communication and cross-department collaboration skills.
• The personality, energy and creativity to make Mama Shelter Singapore a destination for great food.