Thank you to our team

We are  absolutely thrilled to have been named ‘Best Operations Team’ for 2026 at The Publican Awards! 

“Incredibly proud of the team, coming away from the fantastic Publican Awards, with the award for Best Operations Team.” Ben Rushworth, our Hickory's Managing Director.

We couldn't be prouder of our Ops Team, and equally every team member at Hickory's. It was a tough & robust judging process, with some incredible finalists. So the fact that Hickory's has been named Best Operations Team is a real honour. 

It's down to all our team...

“Authentic” is a core Hickory’s value and we encourage our teams to be their true authentic self. We have always looked for real people with real personality. Not because of fancy CV’s or impressive qualifications and that will never change.

We have an incredible team and we are committed to educating & supporting our teams and continuously improving our D&I. All our management teams are trained on discrimination & all team complete an Equality, Diversity and Inclusion training module. We offer a course that teaches our team about different learning styles and how to tailor individuals' training to their learning style.

There are 72 Certified Wellbeing Champions who drive our ‘Authentically You’ (D&I) strategy within the restaurants. Each month our Wellbeing Champions run engagement initiatives aligned to the topic in the Wellbeing calendar. We have achieved our Disability Confident Committed Level 1 employer certificate, which demonstrates our commitment to being an inclusive workplace.  

The Hickory's family...

Everything we do at Hickory's is fuelled by a desire to deliver an exceptional guest experience. It's our team who do this & we are immensely proud of every team member.  Our Ops Team lead this passion for our guest experience but it's thanks to the whole team that Hickory's has been name Best Operations Team.  They have been hand-picked for their passion & personality, and we love supporting our teams to grow & progress within Hickory's.

We like to do things differently and our team development is no exception. We invest heavily in learning, leadership and progression pathways, through our Hickory’s Academy and with external experts. Our key programmes (amongst many) include Public Speaking & Complaint Handling to Coaching & Cultural Leaderships courses to extensive programmes such as “Yes Chef Apprenticeships”. Nurturing culinary talent within the business to ensure we have strong internal chef progression. “Grow Your Own” - developing future leaders.

It’s our commitment to training & development and our focus on immersing team in the taste, smells and sounds of the Southern States that really set them apart. Looking after our team is every bit as important as looking after our guests too. We have a long list of thank yous including a packed calendar of trips (200+ enjoyed a trip in 2025), both locally & internationally from the Southern States to Southern France, enrichment trips & road trips. Check out our latest road trip here..

Our incredible team...

It doesn’t stop here though we will continually strive to be even better as we love our team and love what we do.  It's an exciting time to be part of Hickory's. We've got plans to open more smokehouses, new smokin' BBQ & cocktails on our menu, road trips in the calendar. Plus lots of opportunities for team to develop & grow in their roles. If you'd like to be part of Hickory's family check out our current opportunities. We're always looking for incredible people to join the team.