RARE AND EXCITING OPPORTUNITY FOR A PASSIONATE HEAD CHEF FOR OUR FAMILY RUN RESTAURANT IN A RESTORED 300 YEAR OLD WINERY IN THE HEART OF THE CAHORS WINE REGION, SOUTH WEST FRANCE
THE ROLE:
We are looking for a passionate Head Chef, someone who can bring their experience, enthusiasm and creativity into the kitchen each day to produce outstanding, well presented dishes with bold, fresh flavours.
The Lot region is renowned for its gastronomy, including foie Gras, duck and truffles and many local markets have an array of wonderful ingredients. Combining this with your extensive knowledge of modern cuisine, you will be able to produce inventive daily as well as seasonal menus. You will be expected to:
-Create interesting menus which are all about the intense flavour with a rustic charm.
-Mentor the team, building their confidence and ability.
-Have knowledge of butchery and working with whole animals to use all cuts in your menus.
-Have ideas for tasting menus with local wines or specific local ingredients (venison, wild boar, hare, cepes, goats cheese, truffles).
-Work closely with the owners to help with marketing the restaurant.
-Work towards being listed on the ‘Bonnes Tables du Lot’, a local listing of the best restaurants and chefs in the region.
-Be pro-active with our vegetable garden, suggesting vegetables and herbs to be grown and used in the dishes.
-Have good communication skills both with your team in the kitchen and with us, the owners.
-Meet the General Practitioner targets, keep wastage to a minimum, look after and respect equipment in the kitchen, meet high hygiene standards, control stock, ordering and negotiations with suppliers.
THE CANDIDATE:
-You will need to be a strong leader, able to manage the team, overseeing their personal development.
-You must be passionate about food and fresh ingredients, and work with ingredients from our garden.
-Highly organised and motivated.
-Spoken French is an advantage but not essential for the right candidate.
-Applicants must have their own transport.
ABOUT US:
Le Caillau, a renovated 300 year old winery, is surrounded by some of the best vineyards in the Cahors region. Opened in 2011 our family business has grown every year. We’ve invested heavily over the years to build up the reputation of Le Caillau, becoming one of the favourite restaurants in the region, listed as a ‘decouvert and vignoble’, and receiving the ‘Esprit Lot’ badge, as well as recently being listed on Gault and Millau.
We have recently renovated the old wine ‘Chai’ creating an inside space that seats 60, adding to the outside space which seats up to 100. Our new kitchen opened in 2021. It is 64 square metres with a central cooking island, separate large storage areas and window with a view overlooking the rolling vines.
APPLICATION PROCESS:
A short list will be drawn up and Skype interviews arranged. During this interview you will be asked to suggest some dishes you think will fit well on our menu given certain ingredients, as well as discussing your past experience.
From the Skype interviews, 2-4 candidates will be invited to France for a face to face interview and cooking trial. You will be expected to cook for 6 people:
-A menu du jour style dish (low cost daily special) - main and dessert
-An à la Carte starter, main and dessert using local suppliers (recommended by us) and seasonal produce from our garden
-A selection of 3 ‘amuse gueule’ to go with 3 wines from the region
A BIT ABOUT LIFE IN RURAL FRANCE:
We are based in the countryside nestled between the many medieval villages of the Lot valley. Rental of a 3 bedroom house is from 500€ per month, up to 800€ with a swimming pool. Most houses have large gardens and are detached. Smaller apartments can be found for 350€+ per month in the centre of villages. There are two local cinemas which show English films. Cahors is the nearest big town which is half an hour away, with plenty of large shops and restaurants. There are many vineyards around to visit and taste the wine, over 250 in the region. The French have a superb healthcare system which you’ll be eligible for with employment. There are local schools in most villages with small class sizes and after school activities the same as in the UK.