Head Chef | Events

For Head Chefs Ready for More Than a Dining Room

If you’re a Head Chef from a fine-dining or premium restaurant background and you’re starting to feel the ceiling — on covers, creativity, resources or progression — this could be your next evolution.

Merivale Events offers the chance to take the standards, discipline and mindset of fine dining and apply them to something bigger: high-end events at scale, complex service delivery and a kitchen built to execute at the highest level, every day.

This is not a departure from quality — it’s quality multiplied.

The Venue

Merivale Events delivers some of Sydney’s most premium and diverse event experiences across the Ivy and Establishment precincts. From intimate private dinners and bespoke food installations to large-scale cocktail parties, breakfast functions and off-site productions — we operate at a scale few restaurants ever reach.

You’ll work from one of the largest and best-resourced kitchens in the Merivale group, producing refined, restaurant-quality food across multiple events simultaneously. Menus are constantly evolving, tailored to clients, concepts and occasions — requiring precision, structure and leadership at every level.

The Role

We’re seeking a Head Chef with a fine-dining mentality who’s ready to step beyond the limitations of a single dining room and learn how premium catering operates at volume.

This role is designed for a chef who:

• Cares deeply about standards, consistency and execution
• Thinks in systems, structure and process
• Wants exposure to larger teams, bigger budgets and more complex operations
• Thrives on creative collaboration, and able to work hand-in-hand with the senior management team and Executive Chef
• Is motivated by growth, not just another service

You’ll lead a high-performing events kitchen, delivering multiple services concurrently while maintaining the level of polish expected in top-tier restaurants.

What You Bring

• Proven experience as a Head Chef or senior leader in fine-dining or premium restaurants
• A detail-driven, restaurant-first mindset
• Strong leadership and the ability to develop large, diverse teams
• Commercial awareness — COGS, P&L, food costing and kitchen admin
• Broad culinary knowledge, sound technique and creative adaptability
• The ambition to learn and master high-end events and large-scale service

Previous events or banquet experience is welcome but not essential — we’re hiring for mindset, not just background.

Why Make the Move?

• Bigger kitchens, bigger teams, bigger opportunities
• Exposure to high-value clients, bespoke events and varied service styles
• Creative challenge without the grind of nightly covers
• Clear pathways for growth within one of Australia’s most respected hospitality groups

The Reward

• Competitive salary and award rates
• Paid parental leave and flexible return-to-work support
• Discounts across 90+ Merivale venues
• Career development through the Merivale Academy
• Employee Assistance Program
• Employee Referral Program