Apprentice Chef

La Piazza is looking for an enthusiastic and motivated Apprentice Chef to join their busy kitchen team. This exciting opportunity will be perfect for someone with a passion for food, eager to start a career in the hospitality industry, working alongside an experienced brigade, while studying for a Level 2 Production Chef Apprenticeship.

What you will gain:

• Essential culinary skills, how a professional kitchen operates, food safety standards, and professional cooking techniques.
• Working within a growing business who are committed to developing future culinary talent and providing apprentices with hands-on experience in a supportive and professional kitchen environment.
• A nationally recognised qualification with a Level 2 Production Chef.

Key Responsibilities:

• Preparing ingredients, including meat, poultry, fish, and vegetables
• Learning and practising professional knife skills
• Cooking and plating dishes to fine-dining standards
• Maintaining a clean, hygienic, and organised kitchen environment at all times
• Measuring ingredients and ensuring accurate portion control
• Presenting dishes attractively and consistently
• Refreshing menus and contributing ideas based on seasonal produce
• Checking stock levels, reporting shortages, rotating stock, and ensuring proper storage
• Supporting the team during service and contributing to a smooth kitchen operation

Who you will be:

• Someone with a strong work ethic and a willingness to learn
• Someone with a passion for food, flavour, and culinary excellence
• Someone committed to maintaining high standards of cleanliness and organisation
• Someone who is a team player and will be comfortable fitting into a small, tight-knit, and supportive team
• Someone who will be dedicated to the apprenticeship and excited about possible progression in the future
• Someone looking for a long-term career as a Chef and will fully commit to the apprenticeship

Training:

Apprenticeships include time away from working for specialist training. You’ll study to gain professional knowledge and skills.

• Training provider: CHICHESTER COLLEGE GROUP
• Training course: Production chef (level 2)

What you'll learn:

Course contents:

• Prepare and cook pre-portioned fresh and frozen meat, fish, and poultry to business standards.
• Prepare and cook fresh and frozen fruit and vegetables to business standards.
• Prepare salad vegetables to business standards.
• Cook poached, simmered, steamed, boiled, braised, stewed, baked, grilled, and fried dishes.
• Regenerate dried and frozen ingredients and dishes.
• Undertake stock control, storage, and rotation.
• Communicate professionally with colleagues, line managers, stakeholders, and customers.
• Work as part of a team to support service delivery.
• Follow specifications to produce, portion, and present food.
• Manage own time to ensure allocated tasks are completed.
• Use techniques for maintaining good mental health and wellbeing to support self and others, including asking for and giving help with daily tasks.
• Use feedback to improve own performance.
• Prepare and close down an area for service.
• Use problem solving techniques to resolve routine and non-routine issues within scope of own role.
• Maintain prep and par levels according to business need.
• Clean and maintain manual and electrical food-preparation and cooking tools, equipment, and technology.
• Follow standard operating procedures to select and safely use appropriate knives and boards for the task, for example red handled knife and red board for raw meat.
• Monitor and record food temperatures and manage allergens during preparation, cooking, holding, and serving.
• Apply hygiene management techniques to maintain a safe clean work environment, for example COSHH, personal hygiene, and uniform.
• Reduce the waste of resources, acting to measure and reduce plate waste, exercise portion control, and maximise yield.
• Comply with health and safety legislation, regulations, guidelines, and procedures, including stress management.
• Follow equity, diversity, and inclusion legislation and organisational policies.
• Deliver to key performance indicators to support the production, performance, and budget within own area of responsibility.
• Use manual and electrical food-preparation and cooking tools, equipment, machinery, and technology.
• Prepare and cook pre-portioned fresh and frozen meat, fish, and poultry to business standards.
• Prepare and cook fresh and frozen fruit and vegetables to business standards.
• Prepare salad vegetables to business standards.
• Cook poached, simmered, steamed, boiled, braised, stewed, baked, grilled, and fried dishes.
• Regenerate dried and frozen ingredients and dishes.
• Undertake stock control, storage, and rotation.
• Communicate professionally with colleagues, line managers, stakeholders, and customers.
• Work as part of a team to support service delivery.
• Follow specifications to produce, portion, and present food.
• Manage own time to ensure allocated tasks are completed.
• Use techniques for maintaining good mental health and wellbeing to support self and others, including asking for and giving help with daily tasks.
• Use feedback to improve own performance.
• Prepare and close down an area for service.
• Use problem solving techniques to resolve routine and non-routine issues within scope of own role.
• Maintain prep and par levels according to business need.
• Clean and maintain manual and electrical food-preparation and cooking tools, equipment, and technology.
• Follow standard operating procedures to select and safely use appropriate knives and boards for the task, for example red handled knife and red board for raw meat.
• Monitor and record food temperatures and manage allergens during preparation, cooking, holding, and serving.
• Apply hygiene management techniques to maintain a safe clean work environment, for example COSHH, personal hygiene, and uniform.
• Reduce the waste of resources, acting to measure and reduce plate waste, exercise portion control, and maximise yield.
• Comply with health and safety legislation, regulations, guidelines, and procedures, including stress management.
• Follow equity, diversity, and inclusion legislation and organisational policies.
• Deliver to key performance indicators to support the production, performance, and budget within own area of responsibility.
• Use manual and electrical food-preparation and cooking tools, equipment, machinery, and technology.