CODE Concepts
Keeper of The Catch - Culinary Lead
How your CV stacks up
Upload your CV to see how well it fits this job role
?%
The Opportunity
CODE is developing a new premium food and drink experience within our Edinburgh hospitality portfolio, which currently includes The Court, The Lost Close, and The Pend.
We’re looking for a talented, commercially minded culinary lead to help shape and launch a new seafood-led guest experience in the heart of Edinburgh’s Old Town. This is a hands-on role for someone who understands exceptional Scottish produce, can build strong supplier relationships, and knows how to deliver quality, consistency and pace in a premium but accessible format.
This is not a traditional restaurant role. It is a chance to influence a new concept from the ground up, from sourcing and menu development through to stock control, service flow, team training and guest experience.
We need someone who can make the food side work beautifully, commercially and consistently.
What You’ll Do
-
Shape the food offer
- Develop and maintain a short, seasonal, seafood-led menu that is simple, brilliant and led by the quality of the produce.
-
Build supplier relationships
- Source well, negotiate confidently, and build trusted relationships with fishmongers, shellfish suppliers, smokehouses and Scottish producers.
Reasons to use Rodeo
Start with a chat, not a search bar
Grad scheme, placement, apprenticeship? Not sure what you want yet — that's fine. Your agent talks it through with you and turns "I have no idea" into a shortlist.
It searches the market for you
Every day your agent scans the market matching roles against what actually matters to you, not just keywords on a CV.
Only hits
No noise. No "maybe this fits." Just roles with a clear explanation of why they're right — and where to focus when applying.
-
Own the standards
- Oversee food safety, storage, preparation, presentation and consistency across the operation.
-
Support the guest experience
- Work with the wider CODE team to create a food and drink offer that feels distinctive, premium and rooted in Scottish provenance.
-
Curate complementary drinks
- Help shape a concise drinks list that pairs intelligently with the food offer and sits comfortably within the wider CODE portfolio.
-
Lead a small team
- Recruit, train and manage a compact kitchen and service team, setting clear standards without unnecessary fuss.
-
Manage the numbers
- Take responsibility for food cost, GP, waste, stock control and supplier spend. This is a premium product, so the margins need to work.
Who You Are
- You have genuine experience sourcing and working with high-quality Scottish seafood.
- You understand when the product should be the star and when to get out of its way.
- You’ve run, led or helped develop a kitchen, food counter, seafood offer, pop-up, events food operation or premium casual concept.
- You understand speed, consistency and quality in equal measure.
- You are comfortable with supplier negotiation, stock control and food safety compliance.
- You can think commercially without compromising the product.
- You care about provenance, sustainability and Scottish food culture.
- You are hands-on, ego-free and excited by the idea of helping build something new.
Get help with your application
Your very own career expert that helps elevate your application to the next level.
The Details
- Location: Edinburgh Old Town
- Company: CODE
- Reporting to: Head of Experience and CEO
- Contract: Open to salaried full-time, freelance or consultancy arrangement initially
- Start: As soon as the right person is found
- Salary: Competitive and commensurate with experience. To be discussed at interview.
The initial phase will involve supplier conversations, menu development, operational planning and preparation ahead of launch.
How to Apply
Send your CV and a short note, no more than one page, telling us:
- What kind of Scottish seafood-led menu you’d build for a premium casual guest experience.
- Which suppliers, producers or products you rate highly.
- Why this kind of launch appeals to you.
We’re more interested in your taste, judgement and supplier knowledge than a long list of previous employers.
“It took my CV and asked me questions relevant to understanding what kind of jobs to suggest for me. Suggestions were almost perfect. Jobs were exactly what I’ve been looking for.”
Jessica, London
Skills