CATERING & EVENTS MANAGER

Armstrong Barbecue & Smashville

Geelong, VIC

$85,000 base + super + Profit Share Bonus

Base + bonus earning potential up to $185,000

Full time | Geelong-based | Hands-on operational leadership role

ABOUT THE ROLE

Armstrong Barbecue and Smashville are looking for an experienced, hands-on Catering & Events Manager to lead the operational delivery of our catering, food truck, marquee and festival business.

This role combines hospitality operations, team leadership and hands-on cooking.

You must be able to cook confidently in a commercial environment, lead a team under pressure and consistently execute our food and presentation standards.

Bookings and sales are handled elsewhere in the business.

Once an event is confirmed and handed over to you, you own the operational execution.

The Executive Chef sets the food standards, budget and initial event plan.

From there, you take responsibility for the team, equipment, stock, logistics, service, client experience and successful delivery of the event.

YOU’LL HAVE A PROPER OPERATION BEHIND YOU

You will not be expected to prep an entire event and then somehow run it yourself.

Armstrong Barbecue and Smashville are supported by a large-scale Central Production Kitchen, led by a Kitchen Manager and production team.

The CPK coordinates food production and prep for confirmed events so you can focus on:

People. Logistics. Final cooking. Service. Standards. Execution.

Food Truck Cooks and Catering & Event Crew report into this role.

You are not doing everything yourself.

You are leading an operation.

WHAT YOU’LL BE RESPONSIBLE FOR

- Leading the operational delivery of food truck, catering, marquee and festival events
- Rostering and leading Food Truck Cooks and Catering & Event Crew
- Recruiting, training, coaching and developing staff
- Turning confirmed event plans into practical operational execution
- Coordinating equipment, stock, loading, transport and site logistics
- Managing event set-up, service and pack-down
- Working hands-on during service alongside your team
- Executing Armstrong Barbecue and Smashville recipes, specifications and presentation standards
- Maintaining food quality and consistency during high-volume service
- Acting as the main operational contact for clients on event days
- Solving problems quickly and calmly when plans change
- Maintaining food safety, cleanliness and compliance standards
- Looking after the food truck, equipment and event infrastructure
- Tracking food, labour and operating costs against budget
- Completing post-event operational and financial reporting
- Developing and improving SOPs across food truck, marquee and festival operations
- Working closely with the Executive Chef, Kitchen Manager and wider kitchen team

YOU MUST BE ABLE TO COOK This is important.

This is not an event coordinator position with some food attached.

You must already be a competent commercial cook.

You do not need to know every Armstrong Barbecue or Smashville recipe before you start. We will train you in our products, recipes, systems and specifications.

But you must understand commercial service, including:

- Timing and temperature
- Portion control
- Food quality and consistency
- Assembly and presentation
- Following recipes and specifications
- Food safety
- Working cleanly and efficiently




- Maintaining standards during busy, high-volume service

If your team needs you on the grill, fryer, pass or service line, you need to be capable of stepping in and executing properly. The Executive Chef sets the food and presentation standards.

Your responsibility is to learn them, execute them and train your team to deliver them consistently.

LEAD FROM THE FRONT

You will lead the Food Truck Cooks and Catering & Event Crew.

That means recruiting, rostering, training, briefing, coaching and holding people accountable to the standard.

We believe good leaders train people properly.

We are not interested in “watch me once and work it out”.

The goal is to build a team you can trust to execute because you took the time to train them properly.

At the same time, when service starts, you are part of the team.

You will work alongside your crew rather than manage from behind a clipboard.

WHEN THINGS GO WRONG, YOU OWN THE RESPONSE

Events do not always go perfectly.

Someone calls in sick.

Equipment fails.

A venue changes something at the last minute.

Guest numbers hit harder than expected.

Service gets under pressure.

We are looking for someone who stays calm, organises the team and solves the problem.

Someone who takes ownership instead of looking for somebody else to blame.

ABOUT YOU

You have genuinely managed food service, catering, food truck, events or hospitality operations before.

Not just worked in one.

Managed one.

You are comfortable being accountable for a team, a standard and an operational result.

You can cook.

You can lead.

You can train people.

You understand food and presentation standards.

You understand that food cost, labour cost, waste and profitability matter.

And you take pride in delivering a great product properly, even when service gets difficult.

WHAT WE VALUE

Reliability matters here.

So does ownership.

We are looking for someone who:

- Turns up when they say they will
- Takes responsibility for the result
- Stays calm under pressure
- Leads without needing to shout
- Trains people properly
- Can delegate without losing control of standards
- Takes food safety seriously
- Cares about cleanliness and presentation
- Respects equipment and company assets
- Understands budgets and costs
- Takes pride in the food they serve
- Enjoys being hands-on
- Wants responsibility and is prepared to be accountable for it

ABOUT THE BRANDS Armstrong Barbecue specialises in Texas-style barbecue cooked low and slow.

Smashville specialises in Nashville hot chicken and smash burgers.

We take the food seriously.

You do not need to arrive as a pitmaster, but you need to genuinely care about the product you represent.

Customers can tell the difference between someone who understands the product and someone who is simply going through the motions.

LICENCE REQUIREMENTS A current driver’s licence is required.

You must also either

- Already hold an MR licence; or




- Be willing and able to obtain an MR licence.

If you are the right candidate and do not currently hold your MR licence, we will cover the cost of obtaining it. SALARY & PROFIT SHARE

$85,000 base salary + super + annual Profit Share Bonus.

The Catering Department is already an established revenue-generating operation.

You are not being asked to build a hypothetical business from zero.

The role participates in a documented profit-share scheme linked to the financial performance of the Catering Department.

The annual Profit Share Bonus can reach up to $100,000.

That means total base-plus-bonus cash remuneration can reach up to $185,000, subject to departmental profitability and operational performance standards.

You will have visibility of the Catering Department P&L.;

The full profit-share structure and qualifying conditions will be provided before you accept an offer.

HOURS & LOCATION

This is a full-time, Geelong-based role.

You must be based in Geelong or willing to relocate.

This is not a remote position.

Catering and events naturally involve:

- Weekends
- Evenings
- Early starts
- Festival schedules
- Travel to event locations

If you need a Monday-to-Friday office role, this is not it. We would rather be clear about that before you apply.

CAREER PROGRESSION

This role is not intended to be the end point. Prove that you can lead the team, maintain standards, execute consistently and grow the department profitably, and there is genuine scope to take on greater responsibility for the entire Catering & Events business.

Over time, that can include bookings, client development and broader commercial leadership.

We are not looking for someone who only wants to run the next event.

We are looking for someone who wants to build something.

BEFORE YOU APPLY

Spend some time looking at Armstrong Barbecue and Smashville.

Understand what each brand stands for.

Understand the difference between them.

Understand the food.

We will ask you about this during the recruitment process.

Generic applications that show no sign of research are unlikely to progress.

HOW TO APPLY

Please include short answers to the following questions with your application:

- Can you cook confidently in a commercial kitchen? What type of service have you worked?
- What operation have you genuinely been responsible for running?
- What size team have you directly led, trained or rostered?
- What experience do you have managing food cost, labour cost, budgets or operational costs?
- Tell us about an event or service that went badly off-plan. What did you personally do, and what was the outcome?
- Tell us about someone you successfully trained. What did you do to get them to the point where you could trust them to execute without standing over them?
- What do you know about Armstrong Barbecue and Smashville?
- Do you currently hold an MR licence? If not, are you willing and able to obtain one?

You can answer in writing or send a short 2–3 minute video. We care more about what you have actually done, how you think and the standards you hold yourself to than how polished your application looks.

Applications close: 24th September 2026

Questions: Executive Chef - [email protected]

Pay: $85,000.00 – $185,000.00 per year

Work Location: In person

📌 Catering & Events Manager (North Geelong)
🏢 Armstrong Barbecue
📍 North Geelong