Food service associate vs pastry cook

The differences between food service associates and pastry cooks can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a pastry cook has an average salary of $34,858, which is higher than the $31,642 average annual salary of a food service associate.

The top three skills for a food service associate include patients, food handling and excellent interpersonal. The most important skills for a pastry cook are culinary, cleanliness, and food handling.

Food service associate vs pastry cook overview

	Food Service Associate	Pastry Cook
Yearly salary	$31,642	$34,858
Hourly rate	$15.21	$16.76
Growth rate	2%	16%
Number of jobs	64,167	136,754
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 35%	Associate Degree, 51%
Average age	37	38
Years of experience	-	4

What does a food service associate do?

A food service associate performs fundamental functions in the food industry. Food service associates prepare and serve food items. They cater to special events, which involve facility preparation, food presentation maintenance, and setting up tables. Their duties include cleaning preparation and service equipment. They restock the work stations for the essential supplies. The skills they need to perform their job include customer service, teamwork, work with diverse cultural, ethnic, and academic backgrounds, and learn safety and health regulations.

What does a pastry cook do?

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.

Food service associate vs pastry cook salary

Food service associates and pastry cooks have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Food Service Associate	Pastry Cook
Average salary	$31,642	$34,858
Salary range	Between $25,000 And $39,000	Between $27,000 And $44,000
Highest paying City	Washington, DC	Seattle, WA
Highest paying state	Rhode Island	Hawaii
Best paying company	Maine Health/maine Mental Health Partners	Sailfish Club of Florida
Best paying industry	Technology	Hospitality

Differences between food service associate and pastry cook education

There are a few differences between a food service associate and a pastry cook in terms of educational background:

	Food Service Associate	Pastry Cook
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 35%	Associate Degree, 51%
Most common major	Business	Culinary Arts
Most common college	-	Cornell University

Food service associate vs pastry cook demographics

Here are the differences between food service associates' and pastry cooks' demographics:

	Food Service Associate	Pastry Cook
Average age	37	38
Gender ratio	Male, 38.0% Female, 62.0%	Male, 29.8% Female, 70.2%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 11.9% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 16.6% Asian, 7.3% White, 58.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%	Black or African American, 10.4% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 22.5% Asian, 9.6% White, 51.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.4%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between food service associate and pastry cook duties and responsibilities

Food service associate example responsibilities.

Experience using a cash register and POS system to manage food orders.
Maintain pantry, follow USDA guidelines for proper food storage, and maintenance on equipment.
Help track inventory using FIFO.
Stock product according to date, using the FIFO method.
Perform complex math calculations using fractions, percentile, probabilities and/or ratios.
Rank one of the top math and technology schools in the nation.

Pastry cook example responsibilities.

Manage cold kitchen production for a luxury hotel with a Michelin star restaurant
Clean steamers, hot @ cold line.
Serve customers ordering at the bistro.
Work in dining room during Sunday brunch and buffets serving desserts.
Engage in meetings including an annual board presentation of USDA budget.
Focuse on maintaining budget while meeting USDA and BSA nutrition requirements.

Food service associate vs pastry cook skills

Common food service associate skills

Patients, 14%
Food Handling, 12%
Excellent Interpersonal, 11%
Cleanliness, 7%
Math, 6%
Kitchen Equipment, 6%

Common pastry cook skills

Culinary, 17%
Cleanliness, 10%
Food Handling, 10%
Quality Standards, 7%
Fine Dining, 6%
Food Safety, 6%

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Food Service Associate
Food Service Associate vs Pastry Cook

Updated January 8, 2025

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