The Relief Chefs UK blog

Notes from
the pass.

Guides for kitchens and chefs: staffing, food safety, right to work, menus and running a busy service.

How to Reduce Overtime Costs: A UK Hospitality Playbook

Friday night is done. Service held. Guests left happy enough. Then payroll lands on your desk and the numbers tell a different story. Two…

Saturday night. Full restaurant. Tickets hanging. A chef turns on a wet patch by the pass, goes down hard, and says they're fine while…

Friday afternoon. The hotel is full for the weekend, a wedding party is due in, breakfast numbers are already looking heavy for the next…

Friday lunch is fully booked. A wedding tasting is due in the afternoon. Then your sous chef rings in sick, a breakfast chef has…

Friday lunch is building, one chef has called in sick, and the person stepping in gets handed a stained notebook, a few shouted instructions,…

It's the scene every hospitality manager dreads. Friday afternoon, a fully booked weekend ahead, and the phone rings. Your Head Chef is out sick.…

A busy Saturday service tells you very quickly where money is being lost. The kitchen might be holding, but the floor is under pressure,…

Friday afternoon. Eighty covers on the books, a private dining room turning for a wedding tasting, and your sous chef rings in sick. Then…

Friday dinner service is full. The pass is stacking up. Grill is coping, but garnish is behind, sauces are tightening in the pan, and…

Scotland gives chefs and hospitality operators a market with real upside, but it doesn't give anyone an easy ride. One week you're planning around…