Head Pastry Chef

About the role

The Fresh Collective is seeking an experienced and creative Head Pastry Chef to lead pastry and dessert production across the Museums Victoria portfolio, based at Melbourne Museum. The role covers pastry and bakery operations for events and retail at Melbourne Museum, Scienceworks, the Royal Exhibition Building and Immigration Museum, with occasional offsite catering. It is a hands-on leadership position overseeing a team that produces pastry for retail, intimate functions, major events and large-scale catering.

Key responsibilities

• Lead the daily pastry and bakery operation across retail, events and catering
• Create, prepare and present high-quality desserts, pastries and baked goods with consistent presentation, flavour and quality
• Contribute to menu development, new dishes and seasonal offerings alongside the Head Chef Events and Executive Chef Retail and Events
• Plan weekly production, mise en place, ordering and staffing requirements
• Manage food costs, stock rotation, ordering and wastage in line with budget targets
• Document, standardise and ensure recipes are followed consistently
• Supervise, train and motivate pastry team members
• Coordinate production and packing for functions
• Maintain food safety, allergen management, hygiene, cleaning and workplace safety standards

Required profile

• Demonstrated experience leading a pastry or bakery section in a high-volume events, catering, hotel or premium hospitality environment
• Experience producing at scale while maintaining quality and attention to detail
• Calm, organised, hands-on leadership style able to develop junior chefs
• Excellent communication skills and ability to work with kitchen, events and logistics teams

Required skills

• Strong technical pastry skills and creative flair
• Menu development, recipe standardisation, production planning and cost control
• Food safety, allergen management and Victorian workplace health and safety requirements

What we offer

• Work at Melbourne Museum and across the Museums Victoria portfolio
• Inner-city location accessible by public transport
• Career development opportunities within The Fresh Collective