What does a food service specialist 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.

These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a food service specialist are more likely to require skills like "preventive maintenance," "mos," "patients," and "servsafe." On the other hand, a job as a pastry cook requires skills like "culinary," "quality standards," "food safety," and "food preparation." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.

Line cooks are responsible for preparing meals for guests or employers. The term line cook brings to mind an assembly line. This is apt because line cooks are usually assigned to a specific station to work on a specific part of a meal or a preparation process. They are part of a bigger group of cooks in the restaurant. This is done so that meal preparation is more efficient. Line cooks are responsible for preparing ingredients, ensuring that the pantry is well-stocked, and doing their assigned activity in the line. They are expected to be good team players, have experience as a cook, and be able to follow recipes and provide alternatives when necessary.

Each career also uses different skills, according to real food service specialist resumes. While food service specialist responsibilities can utilize skills like "preventive maintenance," "mos," "patients," and "servsafe," line cooks use skills like "culinary," "team work," "quality food," and "quality standards."

A kitchen manager or chef is someone who oversees the overall operations in the kitchen as well as the food operations. Kitchen managers make certain that food and related products are well prepared, cooked, and served to customers. They maintain a fully-stocked kitchen inventory and comply with the cleanliness and safety standards. It is their responsibility to manage the kitchen staff and aid them in delivering quality food at the right time. They need to possess management skills, leadership skills, and attention to detail.

The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, food service specialists are more likely to have skills like "preventive maintenance," "mos," "customer service," and "cleanliness." But a chef/kitchen manager is more likely to have skills like "kitchen operations," "culinary," "wine," and "quality standards."

Shift leaders are tenured or experienced employees who are assigned to oversee employees in specific work shifts. They manage team members who are assigned in their shift. They also ensure that business goals are met. Shift leaders check whether team members are working, and they ensure that they always comply with company policies and guidelines. They also monitor the performance of their employees and coach them should the employees need help in any area of their work. Shift leaders should have good communication skills, decision-making skills, and interpersonal skills.

Even though a few skill sets overlap between food service specialists and shift leaders, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a food service specialist might have more use for skills like "kitchen equipment," "preventive maintenance," "mos," and "food handling." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of shift leaders require skills like "customer complaints," "cash handling," "management," and "store operations. "