Food and Menu Development Manager

Do you love creating great food that keeps guests coming back for more? We're looking for a commercially minded Food & Menu Development Manager to shape and evolve our food offer across our managed pub estate. This is an exciting opportunity to combine culinary creativity with commercial thinking, developing menus that delight guests, drive profitability and can be delivered consistently across multiple sites. Working closely with Operations, Procurement, Marketing and supplier partners, you'll lead the development of seasonal menus, new product launches and continuous menu improvements, ensuring our food offer remains relevant, competitive and operationally executable. Although a field-based role, our pubs are across the Northern Home Counties so you will need to live with daily commutable distance. Position: Key Accountabilities:

• Leading the creation and delivery of seasonal menu launches and new food concepts.
• Identifying food trends, consumer insights and market opportunities to keep our offer fresh and competitive.
• Using sales data, guest feedback and operational insight to improve menu performance, drive food sales and maximise margin.
• Managing product development from concept through to launch, including tastings, trials and operational testing.
• Developing recipes, specifications, costings and allergen information with accuracy and compliance at the forefront.
• Working closely with suppliers to deliver innovation, maintain quality standards and manage cost pressures.
• Supporting operational efficiency through practical menu design and kitchen-focused solutions.
• Acting as the business's food and menu development expert, partnering with Operations, Procurement, Finance, Marketing and Training teams. Requirements: We're looking for someone who combines a passion for food with strong commercial acumen and a practical understanding of multi-site hospitality operations. Ideally you will have:
• Experience in food development, menu development or product innovation within hospitality or foodservice.
• Strong knowledge of food costs, margins, menu engineering and commercial performance.
• Experience delivering successful menu launches across multiple locations.
• Supplier management experience with a track record of building effective partnerships.
• A solid understanding of recipe costing, allergen management and menu data systems.
• Strong analytical, project management and stakeholder management skills.
• Experience within a managed pub, restaurant or wider multi-site hospitality business would be highly advantageous. Other information:
• Salary £55,000 - £60,000
• Car allowance
• 25 days annual leave + bank holidays
• Private medical health care
• Group personal pension plan.
• Life assurance
• 30% off dining and 30% retail shop If you need any adjustments or additional support during the recruitment process, please let us know when you apply.