As Culinary Business Development Manager & Group Development Chef, Christopher provides ongoing culinary and operational support across the Marco Pierre White restaurant portfolio — working alongside senior leadership, operations teams, procurement and site management to drive consistency, commercial performance and brand standards across a national estate that has included up to 46 restaurants and hotel venues.
His responsibilities include leading seasonal menu development, recipe specification, menu engineering, food costing, gross profit and cash margin analysis — ensuring every dish is commercially viable, operationally achievable and consistent across multiple restaurant concepts. He also oversees allergen and calorie compliance, supplier management, product sourcing and procurement support, maintaining both legislative compliance and brand integrity.
A significant part of the role focuses on developing people and supporting operations — chef and front-of-house training, recipe specification days, development cook-offs, operational roadshows, restaurant openings and menu launches — working closely with Head Chefs and General Managers to improve standards, develop teams and drive operational performance.
The role also includes organising food photography and promotional campaigns, producing operational manuals and training documentation, reviewing supplier performance and supporting strategic commercial decisions. By combining culinary creativity with operational leadership and commercial thinking, Christopher helps ensure every restaurant consistently delivers the high standards expected of one of the UK's most recognised hospitality brands.
- —Seasonal Menu Development
- —Menu Engineering
- —Food Costing & GP
- —Allergen & Calorie Compliance
- —Procurement & Suppliers
- —Training & Roadshows
- —Openings & Launches
- —Led the development and rollout of seasonal menus across a national restaurant portfolio of up to 46 venues.
- —Delivered chef training, operational roadshows and brand audits across the UK.
- —Supported new restaurant openings, menu launches and national marketing campaigns.
- —Worked closely with procurement and supplier partners to improve food quality, compliance and commercial performance.
- —Developed commercially driven menu strategies that increased gross profit, cash margins and operational efficiency — while maintaining brand standards and enhancing the guest experience.
