Kitchen chef vs pastry cook

The differences between kitchen chefs and pastry cooks can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become a kitchen chef, becoming a pastry cook takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a kitchen chef has an average salary of $37,579, which is higher than the $34,858 average annual salary of a pastry cook.

The top three skills for a kitchen chef include culinary, food handling and quality standards. The most important skills for a pastry cook are culinary, cleanliness, and food handling.

Kitchen chef vs pastry cook overview

	Kitchen Chef	Pastry Cook
Yearly salary	$37,579	$34,858
Hourly rate	$18.07	$16.76
Growth rate	15%	16%
Number of jobs	33,785	136,754
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 34%	Associate Degree, 51%
Average age	42	38
Years of experience	6	4

Kitchen chef vs pastry cook salary

Kitchen chefs and pastry cooks have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Kitchen Chef	Pastry Cook
Average salary	$37,579	$34,858
Salary range	Between $24,000 And $57,000	Between $27,000 And $44,000
Highest paying City	-	Seattle, WA
Highest paying state	-	Hawaii
Best paying company	-	Sailfish Club of Florida
Best paying industry	-	Hospitality

Differences between kitchen chef and pastry cook education

There are a few differences between a kitchen chef and a pastry cook in terms of educational background:

	Kitchen Chef	Pastry Cook
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 34%	Associate Degree, 51%
Most common major	Culinary Arts	Culinary Arts
Most common college	Stanford University	Cornell University

Kitchen chef vs pastry cook demographics

Here are the differences between kitchen chefs' and pastry cooks' demographics:

	Kitchen Chef	Pastry Cook
Average age	42	38
Gender ratio	Male, 70.0% Female, 30.0%	Male, 29.8% Female, 70.2%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.6% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 18.4% Asian, 12.7% White, 53.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	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	9%	6%

Differences between kitchen chef and pastry cook duties and responsibilities

Kitchen chef example responsibilities.

Integrate key culinary leaders into casino and food and beverage operations, achieving positive results and industry awards.
Create and prepare international cuisine for executive clientele by using ingenuity, organization, efficiency in production and attention to detail
Cook menu items on a grill, broiler, and used a deep fryer, oven, stove, and toaster.
Monitor the buffets, organize inventory, purchase orders, record temperatures, make chocolate sculptures, and sugar sculptures.

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.

Kitchen chef vs pastry cook skills

Common kitchen chef skills

Culinary, 16%
Food Handling, 13%
Quality Standards, 11%
Kitchen Equipment, 6%
Fine Dining, 5%
Food Storage, 5%

Common pastry cook skills

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

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Kitchen Chef
Kitchen Chef vs Pastry Cook

Updated January 8, 2025

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