Café Manager

Job Description

Job title:
Reports to:
Wage / Salary:
Full Time:

Café Manager
Hospitality Manager
£30,000
40 hours per week

Fruitmarket Vision, Mission and Values
To provide inspiration and opportunity for artists and audiences in a public space
for culture right in the centre of Edinburgh – free and open seven days a week,
with a diverse, international programme of artistically excellent exhibitions,
commissions, publications, performances, events and engagement activities; an
attractive, relevant and profitable bookshop; and a destination café with great
coffee and affordable, delicious and sustainably sourced food, staffed by engaged
and engaging people.

To be an inclusive, sustainable, socially-committed organisation that centres artists
and empowers audiences. To combine the professionalism and reach of a
large organisation with the warmth, flexibility and entrepreneurial spirit of a small
one.

This post

The Fruitmarket Gallery staff are a team of 55, including 17 office staff, 16 café
and kitchen staff, 22 information assistants, as well as regular freelance
technicians and teaching artists.

The Café Manager is responsible for managing the Fruitmarket café’s food and
beverage business operations, including catering for events. This post holder
manages the day-to-day operation of the café and its staff working closely with the
Hospitality Manager to maximize income and audience satisfaction.

The Café Manager ensures appropriate staffing support in the café and timely and
accurate completion of administrative work. The Café Manager line manages the
café front of house team and is responsible for their development.

Café Manager, March 2026

Key Result Areas and activities
Customer Service

Events

Business Development and
Financial Management

Line Management

Café Manager, March 2026

•  Deliver on, and lead your team in a high
standard of customer experience for café
visitors, the Fruitmarket’s events audiences,
corporate clients, guests and VIPs
•  Support a joined-up experience for

Fruitmarket visitors, ensuring café staff are
able to provide basic information about
Fruitmarket activities

•  Ensure consistency of service through

training and coaching the team

•  Coordinate responses to café customer

queries, complaints and feedback

•  Support the Hospitality Manager to plan,
cost up and deliver catering for external
hires and Fruitmarket hosted events
•  Deputise for the Hospitality Manager as
required to meet clients and maintain
appropriate communication with them in the
run-up to and delivery of their event

•

•  Support the Hospitality Manager to develop
the catering strategy and sales materials
Identify suppliers and manage these
relationships
Improve the product range using F&B trends
and café data

•

•  Deliver against financial targets, as set and

reviewed by the Hospitality Manager

•  Maintain records of income and expenditure
•  Do monthly banking of café takings and tips
•  Provide reports as requested, using the

café’s electronic systems, including audits
and stocktakes

•  Work with the Marketing and Design Teams

to ensure the proactive promotion and
marketing of the café, including through café
social media accounts

•  Recruit and train café front of house team
•  Manage the café team rota and ensure

adequate staffing levels including sickness
cover

Operations

•  Manage the café team performance and
with Hospitality Manager carry out staff
appraisals

•  Prepare accurate and timely payroll

information

•  Be responsible for standards of cleanliness
and presentation within the café and liaise
with Environmental Health officials as
required

•  Ensure that the café provides a welcoming,
safe and secure environment for staff and
visitors, adhering to health & safety and
other relevant procedures

•  Be responsible for operational café waste

management, working towards Fruitmarket’s
sustainability targets

•  Hold a Personal License (or work towards it)
and ensure staff are working within licensing
rules and have correct training

•  Maintain a thorough knowledge of all

relevant license requirements for the café to
ensure compliance

•  Liaise with Hospitality Manager on servicing

and maintenance of café equipment

•  Work to support the Fruitmarket’s policies,
including the Equalities, Diversity and
Inclusion plan

Person specification:

•  Proven management experience in hospitality
•  Target-driven, with ability to evaluate the commercial implications of

decisions

•  Self-motivated with excellent time-keeping, time-management and the

ability to effectively prioritise tasks

•  Ability to manage & motivate a team, ensuring high standards of service
•  Experience of till systems and of reconciling takings
•  Excellent communicator able to work calmly under pressure
•  Availability to work variable hours, including evenings, weekends and bank

holidays

•  Networked within the catering sector
•  Appreciation of the Fruitmarket’s cultural work

Hours of work
A total of 40 hours a week including lunch breaks, with events requiring working
outwith regular café hours.

Café Manager, March 2026

You will manage your own schedule of work, recording your shifts on the
Fruitmarket’s electronic rota management system.

For any additional hours worked at peak times an equivalent amount of time-off-in-
lieu (TOIL) may be taken, as agreed in advance with Line Manager. TOIL hours
should be taken within four weeks of being worked or be forfeited

Terms and Benefits

•  Discount on Limited editions and ability to pay in instalments interest free
•  Meals on shift
•  Uniform provided
•  Discount of 25% in the bookshop and café
•  Salary Sacrifice (Tax Efficient) schemes through Enjoy Benefits including

the Bike to Work scheme

•  Salary sacrifice employer pension contributions of 4-6%
•  Starting allocation of 22 days Annual Leave and 9 (tbc) Bank holidays

Café Manager, March 2026