5 things to know before you make the move!

Same kitchen, same menu, same rota, week after week. If that sounds familiar, relief chef work could be the change you're looking for.

Relief chefs step in wherever a kitchen needs them. One week it's a busy hotel, the next a pub, a care home or a big event. It's varied, it keeps your skills sharp and no two weeks look the same.

But it's a different way of working, so it pays to know what you're signing up for. Here are five things to think about before you make the move.

1. Expect variety (and enjoy it)

As a relief chef you could work across hotels, restaurants, pubs, event catering, contract catering, care homes and schools, sometimes all in the same month.

Every kitchen has its own menu, equipment and way of doing things. If you like learning fast and picking up new skills, you'll love it. Experience across lots of sectors also looks great on your CV.

2. Be ready to troubleshoot

Relief chefs are usually called in when a kitchen needs help: a head chef off sick, a busy event, a gap in the rota.

You'll need to walk in, read the kitchen quickly and get service out on time. Staying calm, organised and adaptable matters as much as your cooking. The upside? There's real job satisfaction in being the person who saves the day.

3. You'll need your own transport

Relief work means travelling to different kitchens across your area, often at short notice and at times when buses and trains aren't running.

A full driving licence and your own car make the job possible. Before you make the move, think about how far you're happy to travel and how that fits with home life.

4. Your qualifications and experience count

Most relief chef roles ask for an NVQ Level 2 (or equivalent) and solid experience as a chef, sous chef or head chef.

Kitchens rely on relief chefs to run things with little handover, so experience at a senior level is a big plus. Keep your food hygiene certificate up to date and increase your venue options with an up to date DBS certificate. CSI can organise one for you (discounted)!

5. Relief work doesn't have to mean giving up security

Many chefs worry that relief work means losing a steady income. With freelance or zero-hours agency work, that can be true: when the shifts dry up, so does your pay.

It's worth looking for a relief chef role on a permanent contract instead. That way you get the variety and flexibility of relief work, plus a guaranteed salary, holiday pay and a pension.

Become a CSI Superchef

At CSI, our area relief chefs are called Superchefs, and we're recruiting now. It's a permanent, full-time role with the flexibility and variety of relief work:

• Up to £40,000+ a year, paid weekly
• Guaranteed basic salary, with overtime paid hourly
• £1,000 signing-on bonus*
• Employee ownership after 1 year
• 28 days holiday (more with length of service) and a pension
• Uniform, training and a subsidised DBS check
• Career progression, including into recruitment

We're recruiting Superchefs in Bath, Brighton, Bristol, Cardiff, Cheltenham, Coventry, Oxford, Reading, Southampton, Swindon and the surrounding areas.

Find out more on our Superchef jobs page, or email superchef@catserv.co.uk to join our team of hospitality heroes!

*£500 after 3 months and £500 after 6 months. New registrations only; you must apply through the Superchef ad or superchef@catserv.co.uk.