What does a chef manager do?
The primary role of a Chef Manager is to supervise food preparation. They may work in varies settings, such as restaurants, schools, and hospitals.
Chef manager responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real chef manager resumes:
- Manage day to day operation and supervise the staff FOH & BOH.
- Manage the daily activities and schedules of the other cooks, dishwashers, and prep support.
- Manage kitchen staff, delegates responsibilities, place groceries order, prepare menus and prepare food base on recipes.
- Supervise and train all.associates in food preparation, HACCP in-service training and sanitation and safety procedures.
- Maintain FIFO, daily account of labor vs sales.
- Receive orders/check invoices, rotate according to FIFO and organize walk in/freezer.
- Train kitchen staff under ServSafe guidelines and help develop an ordering and receiving system.
- Certify in servsafe to insure all staff is equipped with the knowledge of sanitation procedures.
- Train service directors and bookkeepers on POS systems as well as all internal operational operating software.
- Monitor daily census of patients and staff to increase or reduce the production and avoid food waste.
- Work hands on with all employee's to insure top quality meals for employee's and patients.
- Ensure proper staffing levels, by hiring, training and developing cooks, dishwashers and bus personal.
- Utilize industry contacts, and expertise to create a solid vendor network, including full integration on POS system.
- Develop a culinary team through appropriate coaching, training and mentoring; identify and implement continuous quality improvement procedures.
- Originate and implement a culinary internship program that prepares participants, through practical work experience, for fine-dining food-production positions.
Chef manager skills and personality traits
We calculated that 19% of Chef Managers are proficient in Culinary, Fine Dining, and Customer Service. They’re also known for soft skills such as Creativity, Dexterity, and Sense of taste and smell.
We break down the percentage of Chef Managers that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Culinary, 19%
Collaborated with my culinary team to create attractive signature presentations as central components on the menu, substantially increasing repeat business.
- Fine Dining, 14%
Innovated seasonal fine dining menus to optimize local and organic ingredients.
- Customer Service, 8%
Scheduled and monitored equipment maintenance* Experienced in customer service, compliance, sanitation, cash handling, scheduling and communication.
- ServSafe, 8%
Proctored managers seeking ServSafe Food Protection Managers certification.
- Quality Standards, 8%
Completed opening and closing cafeteria procedures according to facility quality standards.
- HACCP, 6%
Supervised and trained all.associates in food preparation, HACCP in-service training and sanitation and safety procedures.
Common skills that a chef manager uses to do their job include "culinary," "fine dining," and "customer service." You can find details on the most important chef manager responsibilities below.
Creativity. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for a chef manager to have is creativity. Their role and responsibilities require that "chefs and head cooks need to develop and prepare interesting and innovative recipes." Chef managers often use creativity in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "market cafe specials via social media & coordinate potential client meetings; ensure proper inventory and ordering; build client/vendor relationships"
Dexterity. Many chef manager duties rely on dexterity. "chefs and head cooks need agility to handle knives properly for cutting, chopping, and dicing.," so a chef manager will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways chef manager responsibilities rely on dexterity: "intern program- incorporating hands on experience and generating credits needed to get culinary degree. "
Sense of taste and smell. This is an important skill for chef managers to perform their duties. For an example of how chef manager responsibilities depend on this skill, consider that "chefs and head cooks must have a keen sense of taste and smell in order to inspect food quality and to design meals that their patrons will enjoy." This excerpt from a resume also shows how vital it is to everyday roles and responsibilities of a chef manager: "identified opportunities to increase revenue, decrease kitchen expenses and maximize departmental productivity without compromising guest satisfaction. ".
Time-management skills. A big part of what chef managers do relies on "time-management skills." You can see how essential it is to chef manager responsibilities because "chefs and head cooks must ensure efficiency in meal preparation and service, especially during busy hours." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical chef manager tasks: "delegated and supervised employees during daily food production, to be ready for service on time. "
Business skills. Another crucial skill for a chef manager to carry out their responsibilities is "business skills." A big part of what chef managers relies on this skill, since "executive chefs and chefs who run their own restaurant need to know how to budget for supplies, set prices, and manage workers so that the restaurant is profitable." How this skill relates to chef manager duties can be seen in an example from a chef manager resume snippet: "investigate and resolve quality and service complaints, ensuring guest satisfaction and repeat business. "
Communication skills. While "communication skills" is last on this skills list, don't underestimate its importance to chef manager responsibilities. Much of what a chef manager does relies on this skill, seeing as "chefs must convey their instructions clearly and effectively to staff so that patrons' orders are prepared correctly." Here is a resume example of how this skill is used in the everyday duties of chef managers: "worked with owner to maintain positive client relationships through excellent service and effective communication. "
The three companies that hire the most chef managers are:
- Compass Group USA257 chef managers jobs
- Aramark192 chef managers jobs
- Sodexo Management, Inc.31 chef managers jobs
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Compare different chef managers
Chef manager vs. Pastry cook
The Pastry Cook's responsibilities include preparing quality pastry items such as breakfast items, desserts, breads, ice creams, creams, simple syrups, amenities, and others. They are also responsible for minimizing waste and maintaining control to attain forecasted food cost.
While similarities exist, there are also some differences between chef managers and pastry cook. For instance, chef manager responsibilities require skills such as "servsafe," "kitchen operations," "customer satisfaction," and "cost control." Whereas a pastry cook is skilled in "food safety," "wine," "banquet events," and "executive pastry chef." This is part of what separates the two careers.
Pastry cooks tend to make the most money working in the hospitality industry, where they earn an average salary of $36,443. In contrast, chef managers make the biggest average salary, $57,814, in the professional industry.On average, pastry cooks reach similar levels of education than chef managers. Pastry cooks are 0.9% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.0% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Chef manager vs. Head cook
A head cook is responsible for organizing the food preparation, organizing the kitchen operations, and ensuring the quality of the food presented. Head cooks' duties include monitoring the food inventory, creating new recipes, researching current market trends, responding to guests' inquiries and complaints, distributing kitchen tasks to the staff, and maintaining budget goals while maintaining the highest food quality. A head cook must always adhere to the sanitary procedures and hygienic standards, as well as have a broad knowledge of the food industry.
In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, chef manager responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "culinary," "fine dining," "customer service," and "haccp." Meanwhile, a head cook has duties that require skills in areas such as "meal preparation," "food service," "food products," and "food storage." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.
On average, head cooks earn a lower salary than chef managers. Some industries support higher salaries in each profession. Interestingly enough, head cooks earn the most pay in the manufacturing industry with an average salary of $43,083. Whereas chef managers have higher pay in the professional industry, with an average salary of $57,814.head cooks earn similar levels of education than chef managers in general. They're 1.2% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.0% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Chef manager vs. Catering supervisor
A catering supervisor oversees and spearheads the daily operations of a catering business, ensuring efficiency and client satisfaction. They primarily meet with clients or representatives to identify their catering needs and develop menus according to their budget and preferences. From there, a catering supervisor coordinates with staff, develops plans, sets goals and guidelines, delegates responsibilities among teams, and secures the necessary supplies. They also maintain an open communication line with clients, updating them regularly. Moreover, they lead and encourage employees to reach goals, supervising all procedures to ensure they comply with the industry standards and regulations.
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a chef manager is likely to be skilled in "servsafe," "kitchen operations," "sanitation standards," and "patients," while a typical catering supervisor is skilled in "food service," "quality service," "exceptional guest," and "food safety."
Catering supervisors earn the best pay in the hospitality industry, where they command an average salary of $36,948. Chef managers earn the highest pay from the professional industry, with an average salary of $57,814.Most catering supervisors achieve a similar degree level compared to chef managers. For example, they're 0.7% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.0% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Chef manager vs. Executive chef
Executive chefs are considered the lead chefs in a restaurant. They manage the restaurant's kitchen, including all other chefs employed by the restaurant. Executive chefs are in charge of creating menu items and ensuring that the restaurant's menu is in line with the restaurant's identity. They handle the management of the pantry and ensure that it is well-stocked. They also ensure that all kitchen equipment and fixtures are working well. Executive chefs are responsible for training new chefs on the job to ensure consistent food quality.
Types of chef manager
Updated January 8, 2025
