Cook vs grill cook

The differences between cooks and grill cooks can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a cook and a grill cook. Additionally, a grill cook has an average salary of $31,895, which is higher than the $31,803 average annual salary of a cook.

The top three skills for a cook include food handling, food service and cleanliness. The most important skills for a grill cook are sanitation standards, kitchen equipment, and safety standards.

Cook vs grill cook overview

	Cook	Grill Cook
Yearly salary	$31,803	$31,895
Hourly rate	$15.29	$15.33
Growth rate	16%	16%
Number of jobs	184,818	184,603
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 45%	High School Diploma, 48%
Average age	38	38
Years of experience	4	4

What does a cook do?

Cooks are responsible for preparing meals for guests or employers. They must be knowledgeable about the different recipes and ingredients needed. They are also responsible for managing the inventory and ensuring that the pantry is well-stocked. They prepare meals from scratch, cutting ingredients, measuring them, and following recipes. Cooks should be creative, especially when ingredients are lacking, and they must find alternatives that will not compromise the food taste. They should be precise, imaginative, and patient. Cooks should also have good time management skills and decision-making skills.

What does a grill cook do?

A grill cook's primary role is to take charge of grilling food in restaurants or a similar establishment. Aside from grilling different kinds of food, they are also responsible for the plating, ensuring that it looks presentable and mouth-watering. Moreover, grill cooks have other duties such as preparing supplies and ingredients, maintaining the cleanliness of the work area, and training new members of the workforce. It is also essential to coordinate with other restaurant staff at all times as the operations can be fast-paced and will require accuracy and speed.

Cook vs grill cook salary

Cooks and grill cooks have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Cook	Grill Cook
Average salary	$31,803	$31,895
Salary range	Between $25,000 And $40,000	Between $25,000 And $39,000
Highest paying City	Seattle, WA	Seattle, WA
Highest paying state	Hawaii	Washington
Best paying company	University of California, Berkeley	St. Petersburg Yacht Club
Best paying industry	Government	Hospitality

Differences between cook and grill cook education

There are a few differences between a cook and a grill cook in terms of educational background:

	Cook	Grill Cook
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 45%	High School Diploma, 48%
Most common major	Culinary Arts	Culinary Arts
Most common college	-	-

Cook vs grill cook demographics

Here are the differences between cooks' and grill cooks' demographics:

	Cook	Grill Cook
Average age	38	38
Gender ratio	Male, 70.2% Female, 29.8%	Male, 76.9% Female, 23.1%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.2% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 17.2% Asian, 8.5% White, 58.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2%	Black or African American, 10.5% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 16.2% Asian, 8.5% White, 58.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between cook and grill cook duties and responsibilities

Cook example responsibilities.

Achieve completion to cook, prep and dish meticulous meals to an immense amount of customers with proficient dexterity quality.
Organize production and set up broiler station for lunch shift, manage grill with 30-40 steaks at varying temps and cuts.
Lead cook line and instruct cooks and other workers in the preparation, cooking, garnishing, and presentation of dishes.
Operate mixers and manage ingredients to meet product quality and uniformity standards.
Develop ability to manage multiple stations simultaneously while maintaining high levels of culinary excellence.
Operate large volume cooking equipment such as grills, deep fryers, and griddles.

Grill cook example responsibilities.

Manage portions of grill food items and garnish them, regulate temperature of broilers, grills and roasters.
Operate mixers and manage ingredients to meet product quality and uniformity standards.
Utilize for relief management, new hire training, inventory control and profitable aspects of people and service.
Maintain station clean food preparation areas; operate large volume cooking equipment such as grills, deep fryers, or griddles.
High-Pace business catering to the consumer needs using hospitality and culinary expertise to provide proper customer satisfaction.
Cook foods by baking, roasting, broiling, frying, saut? ing, steaming and grilling.

Cook vs grill cook skills

Common cook skills

Food Handling, 14%
Food Service, 10%
Cleanliness, 10%
Kitchen Equipment, 9%
Basic Math, 7%
Culinary, 6%

Common grill cook skills

Sanitation Standards, 16%
Kitchen Equipment, 14%
Safety Standards, 13%
Food Handling, 9%
Math, 7%
Dexterity, 5%

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Cook vs Grill Cook

Updated January 8, 2025

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