New Product Development Chef
Food Service, Hospitality / Restaurants
Minimum Requirements
- Conduct cost-per-serving analysis and work within defined food cost targets to ensure profitability
- Oversee pilot testing, sensory evaluation, and consumer taste panels to validate products before launch
- Quality, Compliance & Food Safety
- Ensure all new products meet South African food safety and labelling regulations
- Advanced culinary technique & flavour profiling
- Recipe costing & food margin management
- HACCP & food safety compliance
- SOP writing & training material development
- Sensory evaluation & consumer testing
- Supply chain & ingredient sourcing
- Recipe creation, innovation & ideation
- Personal Attributes
- Creative thinker with commercial acumen
- Strong communicator & collaborator
- Detail-oriented with a systems mindset
- Resilient under pressure and deadlines
- Passionate about South African food culture
- Self-motivated and proactive leader
- Drivers license and own vehicle
- Must be willing to travel to outlets nationally/internationally on occasion ‘
- Culinary diploma or degree from a recognised institution (e.g. South African Chefs Association accredited school or equivalent)
- Strong understanding of food costing, yield analysis, and menu engineering
- Proven ability to scale recipes and develop SOPs for high-volume, franchise kitchen environments
- Working knowledge of South African food safety legislation and HACCP principles
- Minimum 8 years of professional culinary experience, with at least 3 years in a senior or executive chef role
- Demonstrated experience in new product development within a QSR (Quick Service Restaurant), FMCG, or multi-unit hospitality environment
- Work with the
- Minimum 8 years of professional culinary
- with at least 3 years in a senior or executive chef role
- Demonstrated
- in new product development within a QSR (Quick Service Restaurant), FMCG, or multi-unit hospitality environment
Responsibilities
- The Executive Chef — New Product Development is the creative and operational engine behind Pedro’s Chicken’s menu pipeline. This role is responsible for conceptualising, developing, and commercialising innovative, on-brand products that delight our customers, meet our quality standards, and perform profitably at scale across all franchise locations
- Product Development & Innovation
- Lead the end-to-end development of new menu items — from concept ideation and taste profiling through to final recipe standardisation and rollout
- Drive seasonal, limited-time, and permanent menu innovation aligned to Pedro’s brand identity and customer insights
- Conduct competitor benchmarking and food trend analysis to identify opportunities for differentiation
- Collaborate with the marketing team to align product launches with campaign calendars and brand positioning
- Recipe Standardisation & Commercialisation
- Translate creative concepts into precise, scalable Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and recipe cards suitable for franchise kitchen environments
- Establish and uphold product quality standards across all franchise locations through training and auditing support
- Cross-Functional Collaboration
- Partner with Operations, Training, and Franchise teams to ensure smooth product implementation at store level
- Provide culinary guidance and support during new product training rollouts to franchise owners and kitchen staff
- Engage with suppliers, manufacturers, and flavour houses to co-develop proprietary ingredients and sauces
- Leadership & Kitchen Management
- Support and mentor the NPD team, fostering a culture of creativity, precision, and continuous improvement
- Manage budgets, equipment, and resources efficiently
- Represent Pedro’s Chicken at industry events, food expos, and supplier engagements as required
- Partner with supply chain and procurement to source ingredients that meet quality, cost, and availability requirements
- Conduct cost-per-serving analysis and work within defined food cost targets to ensure profitability
- Oversee pilot testing, sensory evaluation, and consumer taste panels to validate products before launch
- Quality, Compliance & Food Safety
- Ensure all new products meet South African food safety and labelling regulations
- Work with the quality assurance team to define shelf-life parameters, allergen declarations, and nutritional profiles
- Core Skills
- Advanced culinary technique & flavour profiling
- Recipe costing & food margin management
- HACCP & food safety compliance
- SOP writing & training material development
- Sensory evaluation & consumer testing
- Supply chain & ingredient sourcing
- Recipe creation, innovation & ideation
- Personal Attributes
- Creative thinker with commercial acumen
- Strong communicator & collaborator
- Detail-oriented with a systems mindset
- Resilient under pressure and deadlines
- Passionate about South African food culture
- Self-motivated and proactive leader
- Partner with supply chain and procurement to source ingredients that meet quality, cost, and availability
- team to define shelf-life parameters, allergen declarations, and nutritional profiles
