Pastry Sous Chef

Key Responsibilities: • Kitchen Operations & Execution: Support daily kitchen operations, ensuring all pastry workstations run efficiently, and culinary standards are met consistently. • Pastry Preparation & Presentation: Prepare, bake, and present a premium variety of desserts, breads, cakes, tarts, confections, chocolate work, to a flawless standard. • Team Leadership & Mentorship: Supervise, guide, and mentor junior pastry kitchen staff and trainees. Deliver routine on-the-job training, monitor technique, and manage kitchen morale. • Menu Development & Innovation: Collaborate closely with the Executive Chef to engineer seasonal pastry menus, specialized function options, and dynamic custom desserts for unique events. • Inventory & Cost Optimization: Manage stock controls, minimize kitchen waste, maintain par stock levels, and enforce a strict First-In, First-Out (FIFO) ingredient rotation approach. • Safety, Hygiene & Compliance: Ensure absolute compliance with food hygiene, occupational health and safety regulations, and HACCP benchmarks aligned with South African statutory acts Core Competencies: • Technical Pastry: Demonstrated proficiency in fine dining dessert plating, intricate modern/classic baking mechanics, and advanced artisanal chocolate crafting • Operational Agility: Highly organized and flexible with a strong multitasking record; comfortable coordinating sudden banqueting or event menu shifts • Professionalism & Leadership: Maintains positive, authoritative cross-functional working dynamics across the broader kitchen floor while remaining deeply customer-centric Qualifications & Experience Grade 12 certificate (or equivalent) paired with a formal Pastry or Culinary qualification from an accredited academy • Industry Experience; Leadership track record; Compliance Literacy; System and Communication Skills; Logistics and availability