Executive Chef | Rick's Garage & Rick's Bakehouse

Palmwoods, Sunshine Coast QLD · Full-time

$100,000 - $120,000 + super · Kitchen closes 8.30pm · Set days off A hands-on Executive Chef role. You'll be on the line with your team, owning two venues and two menus.

The operation

Rick's Garage is a high-volume American diner and bar, open seven days. It has a 200-seat beer garden, retro indoor dining and an 18+ whiskey bar. We sell 3,000 burgers a week, and over 5,000 a week through Christmas. Next door, Rick's Bakehouse runs its own bakery, specialty coffee and kitchen.

You report to the Operations Manager. You lead a Sous Chef, experienced line chefs and the Bakehouse Supervisor.

You'll be on the line

This is not an office job. You'll cook on the line, run the pass and back your team through service. When it's slammed, you're in it with them. You set the standard by working to it.

What you'll own

- Menus: Develop and refresh both menus. Every dish is costed before it goes on.
- Food cost and GP: Purchasing, portions, wastage and stock, backed by live stock and POS data.
- Standards: Documented specs and consistent plates, even at volume.
- Kitchen flow: Station setup, pass management and ticket times.
- Training: A station-based competency program with sign-offs, taught on the line during real service. You'll also develop your Sous Chef to run the kitchen when you're off.




- Systems: SOPs, rostering, stock, bookings and POS are all digital. Your job is to make them work harder.
- Functions and events: A growth priority. The food side is yours, from menu and costing through to delivery.
- Bakehouse: A weekly site review with the Bakehouse Supervisor.

What you bring

- Executive Chef or Head Chef experience in high-volume venues
- You still love cooking on the line and leading from the front
- Menu development with real GP accountability
- You know your numbers: food cost, GP, wastage and labour
- A track record of building kitchen teams
- Cert III Commercial Cookery (Cert IV or management qualification preferred)
- Current Food Safety Supervisor certificate

Why it's worth it No split shifts. Set days off, published in advance. An in-house cleaning team means no deep cleans at the end of the night. And you're 15 minutes from the coast.

The honest bit

We have good people and working systems. What's missing is documented specs, a properly embedded training pathway and tighter stock control. If you want a kitchen that runs itself, this isn't it. If you want a desk job, this isn't it either. If you want to build a great kitchen from the line, it is.

You'd also start just before our busiest period, so expect a rapid, hard start.

📌 Executive Chef (Palmwoods)
🏢 Rick's Garage
📍 Palmwoods