How to hire a cooking chef

How to hire a cooking chef, step by step

Here's a step-by-step cooking chef hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a cooking chef job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new cooking chef
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a cooking chef do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring a cooking chef, identify what type of worker you actually need. Certain positions might call for a full-time employee, while others can be done by a part-time worker or contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   Hiring the perfect cooking chef also involves considering the ideal background you'd like them to have. Depending on what industry or field they have experience in, they'll bring different skills to the job. It's also important to consider what levels of seniority and education the job requires and what kind of salary such a candidate would likely demand.

   This list presents cooking chef salaries for various positions.

   Type of Cooking Chef	Description	Hourly rate
   Cooking Chef	Chefs and head cooks oversee the daily food preparation at restaurants and other places where food is served. They direct kitchen staff and handle any food-related concerns.	$11-23
   Food Service Worker	Foodservice workers are employees at restaurants, food trucks, or any outlet that provides food to customers. They may be assigned to welcome customers, take food orders, prepare food orders in the kitchen, serve food, handle customer payments, clean up the tables once the guests leave, or maintain the whole store's cleanliness... Show more	$10-17
   Chef De Cuisine	A chef de cuisine, also known as an executive chef, oversees a kitchen's daily operations in public and private establishments to ensure food quality and efficient services. Their duties require cooking and leadership skills because they involve leading menu development and meal preparation, coordinating staff, delegating responsibilities, selecting and sourcing ingredients, and handling customer issues and concerns promptly and professionally... Show more	$17-35

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Food Service
   • Food Handling
   • Kitchen Equipment
   • Culinary
   • Cleanliness
   • Dishwashers
   • Steamers
   • Fine Dining
   • Nursing Home
   • Safety Standards
   • Quality Standards
   • Food Products
   • Cooking Meals
   • Food Quality

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage a kitchen of military personal and Japanese civilian chefs.
   • Assist culinary instructor in food preparation.
   • Cook foods by baking, roasting, broiling, frying, saut? ing, steaming, grilling.
   • Travel to various locations throughout the city to perform culinary task.
   • Obtain in-depth experience working on grills, ranges, and steamers.
   • Experience with baking, broiling, frying, roasting and grilling.

   More cooking chef duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your cooking chef job description is a great way to entice the best and brightest candidates. A cooking chef salary can vary based on several factors:

   • Location. For example, cooking chefs' average salary in idaho is 49% less than in new jersey.
   • Seniority. Entry-level cooking chefs earn 51% less than senior-level cooking chefs.
   • Certifications. A cooking chef with a few certifications under their belt will likely demand a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for a prestigious company or an exciting start-up can make a huge difference in a cooking chef's salary.

   Average cooking chef salary

   $16.81hourly

   $34,973 yearly

   ---

   Entry-level cooking chef salary

   $24,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 30, 2026

   Average cooking chef salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	New Jersey	$47,492	$23
   2	California	$46,859	$23
   3	Massachusetts	$43,804	$21
   4	Oregon	$43,365	$21
   5	Pennsylvania	$40,808	$20
   6	Michigan	$40,428	$19
   7	New York	$39,222	$19
   8	Minnesota	$39,035	$19
   9	Ohio	$37,052	$18
   10	Texas	$36,603	$18
   11	Colorado	$36,579	$18
   12	Maine	$36,534	$18
   13	Indiana	$33,909	$16
   14	Georgia	$33,801	$16
   15	Missouri	$33,240	$16
   16	Arizona	$32,607	$16
   17	Nebraska	$32,070	$15
   18	Florida	$31,846	$15

   Average cooking chef salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Memphis Country Club	$46,352	$22.28
   2	Encompass Health	$43,893	$21.10	2
   3	American Senior Benefits	$43,143	$20.74	2
   4	Life Care Centers of America	$42,698	$20.53	3
   5	Root Insurance	$42,217	$20.30
   6	Chefs International Inc	$42,111	$20.25
   7	Bonaventure Senior Living	$40,657	$19.55	4
   8	Life Care Solutions	$40,595	$19.52	22
   9	Princeton Health & Rehab Center Inc	$40,563	$19.50
   10	Hospital for Special Care	$40,180	$19.32
   11	Powder Springs, Georgia	$39,838	$19.15
   12	Sunrise Senior Living Management Inc	$39,713	$19.09	10
   13	Commonwealth Senior Living	$39,702	$19.09	1
   14	Waters	$39,635	$19.06	4
   15	The Sanctuary Golf Club	$39,612	$19.04	2
   16	Century Park Associates	$39,593	$19.04
   17	Meridian Bank	$39,504	$18.99
   18	The Waters Senior Living	$39,271	$18.88	2
   19	Topgolf	$39,197	$18.84	64
   20	Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts	$39,026	$18.76	16

4. Writing a cooking chef job description

   A job description for a cooking chef role includes a summary of the job's main responsibilities, required skills, and preferred background experience. Including a salary range can also go a long way in attracting more candidates to apply, and showing the first name of the hiring manager can also make applicants more comfortable. As an example, here's a cooking chef job description:

   Cooking chef job description example

   The truly unique entertainment complex, Belterra Park Gaming , features an expansive facility on 122 acres just minutes east of downtown Cincinnati. The facility features six food & beverage outlets, 1,500 Video Lottery Terminals (VLTs), and maintains the only turf track in Ohio. Best of all, guests can expect the same high level of service at Belterra Park as they receive at Belterra Casino Resort.

   Belterra Park Gaming

   6301 Kellogg Rd

   Cincinnati, OH 45230

   What would it be like to be a Boyd Gaming Team Member?:

   Boyd Gaming Corporation has been successful in gaming jurisdiction in which we operate in the United States and is one of the premier casino entertainment companies in the United States. Never content to rest upon our successes, we will continue to evolve and retain a position of leadership in our industry.
   
   Our past success, our current business philosophies and our sound business planning, combine to position Boyd Gaming Corporation to maximize value for our shareholders, our team members and our communities.
   
   Corporate Mission
   We, as members of Boyd Gaming Corporation, operate with only the highest degree of integrity, and rely on the competence and friendliness of each person in our organization to provide entertainment and service to satisfy our customers' wants.
   
   Through teamwork, we strive to maximize shareholder value, to be among the leading companies in our industry and to provide opportunities for all while we support and enhance our communities.
   
   Company Vision
   Boyd Gaming is one of the nation’s leading casino entertainment companies. But we’re so much more – a Fortune 1000 company that retains the philosophy of a family-owned business, focused on creating long-term, sustainable growth for our shareholders. This philosophy defines and separates us from the competition, making us unique in our industry.
   
   From our earliest beginnings in the 1970s, we made a commitment to our shareholders and our team members to create an operating style built around family. In a highly competitive industry, our Boyd Style of hospitality has come to define us in a most unique way.
   
   Forging ahead in the coming years, we will remain focused on our three main goals: improving our operating performance, continuing to execute on our current growth strategy, and demonstrating our branding initiatives.
   
   We remain confident in the strength of our Company to successfully meet whatever challenges lie ahead.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are a few common ways to find cooking chefs for your business:

   • Promoting internally or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to meet candidates with the right educational background.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to recruit passive job-seekers.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your cooking chef job on Zippia to find and recruit cooking chef candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   During your first interview to recruit cooking chefs, engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. During the following interview, you'll be able to go into more detail about the company, the position, and the responsibilities.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new cooking chef

   Once you have selected a candidate for the cooking chef position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the agreement with a contract.

   It's equally important to follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new cooking chef. Human Resources and the hiring manager should complete Employee Action Forms. Human Resources should also ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc., and that new employee files are created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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How much does it cost to hire a cooking chef?