Venue Manager - Durham

Venue Manager - Durham

Who We Are…

“If you go to Durham City and fancy a bite to eat, there’s a very strong chance that you’ll be enjoying a sandwich, burger or some seriously fine Asian fusion dining at one of the Zen Group’s restaurants, bistros or coffee shops”. (Insider Media; Nov 2023).

A locally owned hospitality group with serious aspirations, there couldn’t be a more exciting time to join Zen Group. We own 4 of Durham’s most popular and exciting venues; Zen, Tango, The Rabbit Hole and Whitechurch. We are investing and expanding. Along with recently acquiring Whitechurch Durham, we have relocated Tango to a brand new venue and renovated The Rabbit Hole. We are passionate about our venues and our people and are investing in both.

What We Need…

We are looking for a motivated and hardworking Venue Manager to join us at Whitechurch, in the heart of Durham City Centre. With a premium food offering, rapidly expanding events offering and some of the best crafted coffees in Durham, Whitechurch is a bustling and vibrant venue that attracts a range of customers. From loyal local trade to busy seasonal student trade, Whitechurch is a versatile venue, maintaining a truly independent feel. Whitechurch has undergone huge changes already and we are looking for someone who can build upon the foundations we have built and continue to offer the very best in relaxed, but special, dining.

We are looking for someone passionate about food and drink and exceptional guest service, who truly leads from the front. A skilled people manager who can bring in labour to forecast, flex labour to staff the venue correctly and train and motivate a young, but enthusiastic team.

We are passionate about our people and can offer a great basic salary commensurate with your role and responsibilities, TRONC/Service Charge on top of your salary and a genuine path for progression with a company who are going places.

You will have strong financial and commercial knowledge, push your kitchen team for high GP and your team for high sales and be a fantastic people manager. You will be expected to lead and inspire your team, working the floor and pushing everyday to achieve outstanding results and guest satisfaction.

What we can offer you…

• A competitive salary


• TRONC/Service charge on top of your salary


• Heavily subsidised meals on shift


• Discount across all venues

To apply for this role please hit the apply button and send us your CV and tell us a little bit about yourself. Our team are looking forward to hearing from you!

While our job adverts outline the ideal qualities, skills, and prior experience for the role, we believe in people, individuality and potential. If you do not meet every desired criteria but feel you have the skills and experience to thrive in this role as well as a genuine interest in working for Zen Group and you can demonstrate an alignment with our values, we would encourage you to apply.

We welcome applications from a diverse range of individuals and will consider any reasonable adjustments to enable candidates to perform as well as possible during the recruitment process.