Lead the kitchen. Build the team. Shape the menu.

The Portarlington Grand Hotel is a landmark on the Bellarine Peninsula, offering bistro and atrium dining, functions and accommodation just back from the bay. Under new management, we're investing in our kitchen. We want a Head Chef to own it and work directly with our newly appointed Executive General Manager.

This is a building role. You'll have real say over the team, the systems and the menu, and the backing to make our food a reason people come to Portarlington.

The kitchen at a glance

- Contemporary Australian pub and bistro dining built on local produce
- Kitchen open 7 days; this role works 5 days on a rotating roster across days, nights and weekends
- Start as soon as possible, ready to lead the kitchen into summer

What you'll do

- Lead, recruit and develop the kitchen team, and build a culture people want to be part of
- Create menus that make the most of Bellarine produce and work across dining, functions and accommodation guests
- Develop a summer menu balancing affordable pub classics with Portarlington mussels, quality local seafood and a smaller selection of more refined dishes showcasing the Bellarine
- Set the standards and systems for prep, ordering, stock control, food safety and hygiene
- Own the numbers: food cost and gross margins, wastage, rostering and labour




- Work closely with FOH management on large bookings, walk-ins, peak periods and accurate order entry, so the kitchen is prepared for every service

About you

- Experience as a Head Chef, or a senior Sous Chef ready to step up, ideally in high-volume hotel, pub or functions kitchens
- A track record of building teams and lifting standards
- Menu development and food costing experience, and comfort owning a budget
- Strong food safety knowledge, including a Food Safety Supervisor certificate or willingness to get one
- Calm, organised and hands-on when it's busy

What we offer

- $110,000 salary package, inclusive of super
- $10,000 performance bonus after successful completion of the 6-month probation period, linked to KPIs including service delivery, COGS and labour cost ratio
- Your own team to build, and genuine influence over our food direction
- A direct line to the EGM, so decisions get made quickly
- Staff meals, parking
- Coastal living on the Bellarine, around 30 minutes from Geelong
- Open to discussing relocation assistance for the right candidate

If you want to build something rather than maintain it, we'd love to hear from you. Apply through Seek with your CV and a short note about a kitchen you've built or turned around.

📌 Head Chef (Portarlington)
🏢 Portarlington Grand Hotel
📍 Portarlington