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The differences between culinary managers and food service managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a culinary manager and a food service manager. Additionally, a culinary manager has an average salary of $51,100, which is higher than the $43,564 average annual salary of a food service manager.
The top three skills for a culinary manager include culinary, food safety and kitchen operations. The most important skills for a food service manager are customer service, sanitation standards, and cleanliness.
| Culinary Manager | Food Service Manager | |
| Yearly salary | $51,100 | $43,564 |
| Hourly rate | $24.57 | $20.94 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 104,953 | 160,740 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 48% | Bachelor's Degree, 42% |
| Average age | 39 | 39 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
Culinary managers oversee the organization's, institution's, or restaurant's foodservice operations. They ensure food service operations meet the federal requirements and state requirements and follow the required procedures and policies. Besides planning for and purchasing the required food, culinary managers also keep the required records like personal records, meal counts, income or expense, food production, and inventory. Other duties performed by culinary managers include planning menus, preparing and serving food, planning budgets for future food, hiring, recruiting, and training employees.
A food service manager's role is to oversee and supervise all operations in a restaurant or a similar setting. They are primarily responsible for ensuring customer satisfaction through optimal foodservice, an efficient workforce, and a safe and healthy environment. A food service manager must also greet customers, escort them to their tables, handle any issues and concerns, manage the employees, train new hires, manage the payroll and budget, and coordinate with all restaurant personnel. Furthermore, a food service manager must delegate tasks among employees and assign their schedules accordingly.
Culinary managers and food service managers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Culinary Manager | Food Service Manager | |
| Average salary | $51,100 | $43,564 |
| Salary range | Between $37,000 And $69,000 | Between $28,000 And $66,000 |
| Highest paying City | Newark, NJ | New York, NY |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | Rhode Island |
| Best paying company | Boston Public Schools | Kern Community College District |
| Best paying industry | Hospitality | Government |
There are a few differences between a culinary manager and a food service manager in terms of educational background:
| Culinary Manager | Food Service Manager | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 48% | Bachelor's Degree, 42% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Cornell University | Cornell University |
Here are the differences between culinary managers' and food service managers' demographics:
| Culinary Manager | Food Service Manager | |
| Average age | 39 | 39 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 74.4% Female, 25.6% | Male, 45.8% Female, 54.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.9% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 16.3% Asian, 8.8% White, 57.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% | Black or African American, 11.5% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.2% Asian, 8.5% White, 58.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% |
| LGBT Percentage | 10% | 10% |