We’re looking for an experienced Kitchen Manager to take ownership of our busy Tweed Heads kitchen and lead our BOH team.

Next Door is a high-volume café with a fast-paced breakfast and lunch service. We’re looking for someone who loves being on the tools, but also understands that running a great kitchen is about much more than cooking.

This is a hands-on leadership role for someone who can run service, lead and develop a team, manage prep and stock, control wages and COGS, and keep a busy kitchen organised and operating consistently.

Most importantly, we want someone who genuinely enjoys building a strong kitchen and making it run well.

THE ROLE

You'll take responsibility for the day-to-day operation and performance of the Tweed kitchen, including:

Leading the kitchen team during service

Running fast, organised breakfast and lunch services

Maintaining food quality, consistency and presentation

Managing kitchen prep and production

Managing ordering, stock levels and deliveries

Monitoring food waste and COGS

Managing kitchen labour and roster efficiency

Building and maintaining the kitchen roster

Training, developing and supporting BOH team members

Managing staff performance and maintaining clear standards

Ensuring food safety, cleanliness and kitchen organisation

Making sure recipes, prep and procedures are followed consistently

Working closely with our FOH Manager and ownership team

Identifying operational problems and helping improve efficiency

HOW WE OPERATE

Next Door is a systems-driven business .

We use platforms including Restoke and Deputy to manage recipes, prep, procedures, rostering and daily operations.

We absolutely want someone who brings experience and ideas to the table,



but we're not looking for someone who comes in and changes everything overnight.

You'll first spend time learning the Next Door way , our menu, kitchen, service, systems and team.

Once you've completed your training period and understand the operation, you'll take increasing ownership of the kitchen and work with us to continually make it better.

If something needs changing, we discuss it, test it, document it and update the system so the whole team is working the same way.

WHO WE'RE LOOKING FOR

You might currently be a:

and ready to take ownership of your own kitchen.

We're looking for someone who:

Is confident leading a team

Can stay calm and organised during busy services

Is quick and efficient on the tools

Understands COGS, stock, waste and labour

Can delegate rather than trying to do everything themselves

Communicates clearly and respectfully

Holds people accountable while still building a great team culture

Is organised and comfortable using systems & tech

Is reliable and consistent

Wants to grow with a business long term

Experience in a busy breakfast/brunch café would be an advantage.

THE OPPORTUNITY

This isn't just another chef position.

We're building the management structure around Next Door so the business can continue to grow, and we're looking for someone who wants to become an important part of that.

You’ll have a clearly defined training period where you’ll learn the operation before being expected to take full ownership.

From there, the goal is for you to genuinely own the day-to-day running of the kitchen — your team, service, standards, labour, COGS and performance.

If you're an experienced chef or kitchen leader who loves busy service, strong systems and building great teams, we'd love to meet you.

#J-18808-Ljbffr

📌 Lead Chef - Kitchen manager (City of Gold Coast)
🏢 @
📍 City of Gold Coast