About us

We speak the language of the kitchen.

ChefConnect is the recruitment portal of IKKI Group, the Heidelberg-based hospitality company. We connect chefs from across Europe with restaurants throughout Germany, Austria and Switzerland — and because we run venues ourselves, we know exactly what a good hire feels like on the line.

500+
Partner restaurants
DACH
DE · AT · CH
All
Levels & styles
48h
First reply
Who we are

Built inside a working hospitality group.

ChefConnect is part of IKKI Group, a hospitality company in the heart of Heidelberg. We run two à la carte restaurants — Schilling and The DJNGL No9 — the Frauenbad as an events location for gala dinners, dinner shows and banquets, and the Ginsburg as our bar. We're in the thick of it every day.

Through our startup Gastronaut we're in constant exchange with restaurants, hotels, franchises and independent groups — a network of 500+ restaurant partners across Germany, Austria and Switzerland. That's how we can search all three countries for the right place for you, and reach decision-makers fast.

We know the pain from the restaurant side: you're forever looking for capable people who aren't right around the corner. We lived it ourselves — and that's exactly why we became the networking platform we always wished existed.

Inside an IKKI Group venue
À la carte

Schilling

Our à la carte restaurant in Heidelberg.

À la carte

The DJNGL No9

Our second à la carte concept.

Events

Frauenbad

Event location for gala dinners, dinner shows and banquets.

Bar

Ginsburg

Our bar location.

What we believe

A better way to staff a kitchen.

No middlemen

Direct & fair

Chefs are placed directly with restaurants. We never take a cut from a chef's wage, and there are no fees to apply.

Vetted

Every profile, by hand

We read and verify every CV and profile before it reaches a restaurant. No open database, no unfiltered stacks.

EU-first

Free movement

We focus on EU, EEA and Swiss citizens with the right to work across the Union — so placements move quickly.

The network

One portal, the full spectrum of German kitchens.

IKKI Group is building a network of partner restaurants across Germany — and they don't all look alike. Whether your craft lives at the pass of a tasting-menu room or the heat of a high-volume line, there's a station for it.

Fine diningBistroCasual & volume
Professional chef at work

Whether you cook or you hire — start here.

Chefs build a profile in minutes. Restaurants post a role and get a vetted shortlist.

Two ways in

Pick the door that fits you.

Apply nowPost a role