Food service supervisor vs kitchen manager

The differences between food service supervisors and kitchen 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 food service supervisor and a kitchen manager. Additionally, a kitchen manager has an average salary of $50,448, which is higher than the $32,763 average annual salary of a food service supervisor.

The top three skills for a food service supervisor include good judgment, safety practices and food production. The most important skills for a kitchen manager are customer service, kitchen equipment, and cleanliness.

Food service supervisor vs kitchen manager overview

	Food Service Supervisor	Kitchen Manager
Yearly salary	$32,763	$50,448
Hourly rate	$15.75	$24.25
Growth rate	10%	10%
Number of jobs	139,403	151,781
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 36%	Associate Degree, 31%
Average age	39	39
Years of experience	4	4

What does a food service supervisor do?

A Food Service Supervisor oversees employees engaged in serving food. They establish quality standards for foods and keep facilities clean in accordance with state and local regulations.

What does a kitchen manager do?

A kitchen manager is responsible for supervising overall kitchen operations duties, checking food storage, and distributing appropriate kitchen staff tasks. Kitchen managers' jobs also include monitoring food preparation, ensuring that all orders and serving portions are correct, organizing menu prices, researching current market trends of the food industry, and maintaining the highest sanitation procedures. Kitchen managers should also assist guests with their inquiries, manage concerns, and handle complaints. They should have excellent communication and leadership skills to lead the kitchen staff in providing the best customer experience.

Food service supervisor vs kitchen manager salary

Food service supervisors and kitchen managers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Food Service Supervisor	Kitchen Manager
Average salary	$32,763	$50,448
Salary range	Between $25,000 And $41,000	Between $37,000 And $67,000
Highest paying City	Boston, MA	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	Minnesota	Rhode Island
Best paying company	Ncar - The National Center For Atmospheric Research	Hillstone Restaurant Group
Best paying industry	Health Care	Hospitality

Differences between food service supervisor and kitchen manager education

There are a few differences between a food service supervisor and a kitchen manager in terms of educational background:

	Food Service Supervisor	Kitchen Manager
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 36%	Associate Degree, 31%
Most common major	Business	Culinary Arts
Most common college	Cornell University	Cornell University

Food service supervisor vs kitchen manager demographics

Here are the differences between food service supervisors' and kitchen managers' demographics:

	Food Service Supervisor	Kitchen Manager
Average age	39	39
Gender ratio	Male, 43.2% Female, 56.8%	Male, 72.0% Female, 28.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 12.3% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 16.1% Asian, 8.5% White, 57.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%	Black or African American, 10.8% Unknown, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 16.1% Asian, 7.6% White, 59.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	10%	10%

Differences between food service supervisor and kitchen manager duties and responsibilities

Food service supervisor example responsibilities.

Manage inventory, ordering and delivery of groceries.
Icomply to all HACCP standards and is ServSafe certify.
Compile staff schedules, prepare money for cash drops, operate register and POS.
Perform culinary decision making as it pertain to food inventory, menus, and production methods.
Facilitate training on production equipment and GMP's travele to multiple sites with employees to complete training.
Monitor and document HACCP sanitation standards.

Kitchen manager example responsibilities.

Manage the daily operations of the kitchen, providing professional leadership and direction to all personnel.
Supervise cooks and manage the preparation, portioning, garnishing, and storage of all food items.
Manage kitchen staff and cook, develop new recipes, inventory and ordering, and fill in for bartending.
Manage kitchen staff, delegates responsibilities, place groceries order, prepare menus and prepare food base on recipes.
Prepare bills for orders, manage cash register, help with accounting using adding machine, POS software and programs.
Manage the daily operation of food production for patients, guests and employees as well as all internal and external catering.

Food service supervisor vs kitchen manager skills

Common food service supervisor skills

Good Judgment, 15%
Safety Practices, 11%
Food Production, 10%
Customer Service, 8%
Food Handling, 8%
Patients, 7%

Common kitchen manager skills

Customer Service, 15%
Kitchen Equipment, 13%
Cleanliness, 9%
Food Handling, 9%
Fifo, 8%
Food Waste, 6%

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Food Service Supervisor vs Kitchen Manager

Updated January 8, 2025

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