Meal cook vs short order cook

The differences between meal cooks and short order 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 meal cook and a short order cook. Additionally, a meal cook has an average salary of $33,089, which is higher than the $30,734 average annual salary of a short order cook.

The top three skills for a meal cook include food safety, food preparation and companionship. The most important skills for a short order cook are food handling, customer service, and food preparation equipment.

Meal cook vs short order cook overview

	Meal Cook	Short Order Cook
Yearly salary	$33,089	$30,734
Hourly rate	$15.91	$14.78
Growth rate	16%	16%
Number of jobs	147,104	176,187
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 40%	High School Diploma, 43%
Average age	38	38
Years of experience	4	4

Meal cook vs short order cook salary

Meal cooks and short order cooks have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Meal Cook	Short Order Cook
Average salary	$33,089	$30,734
Salary range	Between $26,000 And $41,000	Between $24,000 And $38,000
Highest paying City	-	Anaheim, CA
Highest paying state	-	Washington
Best paying company	-	Columbia University in the City of New York
Best paying industry	-	Health Care

Differences between meal cook and short order cook education

There are a few differences between a meal cook and a short order cook in terms of educational background:

	Meal Cook	Short Order Cook
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 40%	High School Diploma, 43%
Most common major	Culinary Arts	Culinary Arts
Most common college	-	-

Meal cook vs short order cook demographics

Here are the differences between meal cooks' and short order cooks' demographics:

	Meal Cook	Short Order Cook
Average age	38	38
Gender ratio	Male, 32.0% Female, 68.0%	Male, 65.1% Female, 34.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 8.3% Unknown, 5.2% Hispanic or Latino, 18.5% Asian, 7.5% White, 59.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.4%	Black or African American, 10.3% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.7% Asian, 8.1% White, 61.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between meal cook and short order cook duties and responsibilities

Meal cook example responsibilities.

Develop ability to manage multiple stations simultaneously while maintaining high levels of culinary excellence.
Assist with heavy lifting and drive car to help with groceries and other supplies.
Verify patient information, new medications and allergies educate patients by providing medication and diet information.
Create pizzas for customers as listed or request and run a large pizza oven.

Short order cook example responsibilities.

Operate mixers and manage ingredients to meet product quality and uniformity standards.
Ensure that ovens and stoves remain at appropriate temperatures.
Clean kitchen including wiping down grills, slicers and deep-frying equipment.
Develop teamwork skills with cooks, dishwashers and wait staff, through efficient clean up and preparation of food.
Prepare guest food orders as they are either transmit via the POS system or orally convey at the counter.
Cook foods on the grill station, oven, barbecue grill, deep fryers, and other industrial cooking apparatus.

Meal cook vs short order cook skills

Common meal cook skills

Food Safety, 29%
Food Preparation, 22%
Companionship, 10%
Doctor Appointments, 8%
Food Orders, 6%
Administer Medications, 5%

Common short order cook skills

Food Handling, 20%
Customer Service, 14%
Food Preparation Equipment, 11%
Kitchen Equipment, 9%
Food Service, 7%
Safety Standards, 7%

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Meal Cook vs Short Order Cook

Updated January 8, 2025

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