Grill cook/prep vs kitchen cook

The differences between grill cook/preps and kitchen cooks can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a grill cook/prep and a kitchen cook. Additionally, a grill cook/prep has an average salary of $32,842, which is higher than the $31,452 average annual salary of a kitchen cook.

The top three skills for a grill cook/prep include food handling, quality food and kitchen equipment. The most important skills for a kitchen cook are dishes, food handling, and cleanliness.

Grill cook/prep vs kitchen cook overview

	Grill Cook/Prep	Kitchen Cook
Yearly salary	$32,842	$31,452
Hourly rate	$15.79	$15.12
Growth rate	16%	16%
Number of jobs	106,095	250,354
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 48%	High School Diploma, 44%
Average age	38	38
Years of experience	4	4

Grill cook/prep vs kitchen cook salary

Grill cook/preps and kitchen cooks have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Grill Cook/Prep	Kitchen Cook
Average salary	$32,842	$31,452
Salary range	Between $26,000 And $40,000	Between $25,000 And $38,000
Highest paying City	-	Boston, MA
Highest paying state	-	Massachusetts
Best paying company	-	Hilltop Ski Area
Best paying industry	-	Retail

Differences between grill cook/prep and kitchen cook education

There are a few differences between a grill cook/prep and a kitchen cook in terms of educational background:

	Grill Cook/Prep	Kitchen Cook
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 48%	High School Diploma, 44%
Most common major	Culinary Arts	Business
Most common college	-	-

Grill cook/prep vs kitchen cook demographics

Here are the differences between grill cook/preps' and kitchen cooks' demographics:

	Grill Cook/Prep	Kitchen Cook
Average age	38	38
Gender ratio	Male, 72.7% Female, 27.3%	Male, 65.8% Female, 34.2%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.5% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 16.3% Asian, 8.8% White, 58.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1%	Black or African American, 8.5% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 17.7% Asian, 9.1% White, 58.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between grill cook/prep and kitchen cook duties and responsibilities

Grill cook/prep example responsibilities.

Operate mixers and manage ingredients to meet product quality and uniformity standards.
Load dishwashers and hand- wash items such as pots, pans, and knives.
Maintain standards of quality, cooking times and presentation of food, service, restaurant cleanliness and sanitation and safety.
Job duties include waiting on customers, filling salad bar, maintaining cleanliness of work space, preparing food and portioning.
Leverage teamwork to fully utilize kitchen staff to generate remarkable food and service to ensure customer satisfaction.
Display leadership abilities and responsibility by training new employees.

Kitchen cook example responsibilities.

Operate mixers and manage ingredients to meet product quality and uniformity standards.
Inspect clean and utilize ovens, grills, fryers, mixers, etc.
Experience on grills, fryers, knife handling and slicers.
Experience with fryers, weigh machines, slicers and other similarities.
Used electric ovens and electric stoves.
Regulate temperature of ovens, broilers, grills, and roasters.

Grill cook/prep vs kitchen cook skills

Common grill cook/prep skills

Food Handling, 68%
Quality Food, 21%
Kitchen Equipment, 3%
Fresh Food, 2%
Fryers, 1%
Cleanliness, 1%

Common kitchen cook skills

Dishes, 13%
Food Handling, 11%
Cleanliness, 8%
Math, 8%
Basic Math, 8%
Culinary, 7%

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Food Preparation and Restaurant Industry
Grill Cook/Prep
Grill Cook/Prep vs Kitchen Cook

Updated January 8, 2025

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