Cafeteria cook vs institutional cook

The differences between cafeteria cooks and institutional cooks can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a cafeteria cook and an institutional cook. Additionally, an institutional cook has an average salary of $30,403, which is higher than the $30,395 average annual salary of a cafeteria cook.

The top three skills for a cafeteria cook include culinary, cleanliness and kitchen equipment. The most important skills for an institutional cook are food handling, kitchen equipment, and culinary.

Cafeteria cook vs institutional cook overview

	Cafeteria Cook	Institutional Cook
Yearly salary	$30,395	$30,403
Hourly rate	$14.61	$14.62
Growth rate	16%	16%
Number of jobs	130,702	106,958
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 50%	High School Diploma, 36%
Average age	38	38
Years of experience	2	2

Cafeteria cook vs institutional cook salary

Cafeteria cooks and institutional cooks have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Cafeteria Cook	Institutional Cook
Average salary	$30,395	$30,403
Salary range	Between $25,000 And $36,000	Between $24,000 And $37,000
Highest paying City	Falmouth, MA	Santa Barbara, CA
Highest paying state	Utah	California
Best paying company	National Pancake House	Compass Group USA
Best paying industry	Hospitality	-

Differences between cafeteria cook and institutional cook education

There are a few differences between a cafeteria cook and an institutional cook in terms of educational background:

	Cafeteria Cook	Institutional Cook
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 50%	High School Diploma, 36%
Most common major	Culinary Arts	Culinary Arts
Most common college	-	-

Cafeteria cook vs institutional cook demographics

Here are the differences between cafeteria cooks' and institutional cooks' demographics:

	Cafeteria Cook	Institutional Cook
Average age	38	38
Gender ratio	Male, 39.0% Female, 61.0%	Male, 73.0% Female, 27.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.2% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 15.6% Asian, 8.5% White, 60.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1%	Black or African American, 5.7% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 18.2% Asian, 6.7% White, 63.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between cafeteria cook and institutional cook duties and responsibilities

Cafeteria cook example responsibilities.

Operate mixers and manage ingredients to meet product quality and uniformity standards.
Prepare and serve nutritional meals to the before and after school kids.
Inspect equipment for cleanliness in functional operation.
Supervise the culinary arts participants in juvenile detention facility.
Maintain cafeteria cleanliness, stock condiments, Pepsi machine syrup replacement.
Ensure customers convenience are met/exceed by accommodating and notifying customers of ingredients that may trigger food allergies or intolerance.

Institutional cook example responsibilities.

Operate mixers and manage ingredients to meet product quality and uniformity standards.
Ensure customers convenience are met/exceed by accommodating and notifying customers of ingredients that may trigger food allergies or intolerance.
Provide leadership that promotes and exemplifies excellent customer service.

Cafeteria cook vs institutional cook skills

Common cafeteria cook skills

Culinary, 21%
Cleanliness, 18%
Kitchen Equipment, 14%
Food Service, 12%
Food Handling, 11%
Quality Standards, 7%

Common institutional cook skills

Food Handling, 32%
Kitchen Equipment, 23%
Culinary, 15%
Slicers, 7%
Mixers, 7%
Broilers, 4%

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Food Preparation and Restaurant Industry
Cafeteria Cook
Cafeteria Cook vs Institutional Cook

Updated January 8, 2025

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