Salad chef vs head chef

The differences between salad chefs and head chefs can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a salad chef and a head chef. Additionally, a head chef has an average salary of $45,470, which is higher than the $36,674 average annual salary of a salad chef.

The top three skills for a salad chef include salad station, cleanliness and customer service. The most important skills for a head chef are kitchen operations, culinary, and dinner service.

Salad chef vs head chef overview

	Salad Chef	Head Chef
Yearly salary	$36,674	$45,470
Hourly rate	$17.63	$21.86
Growth rate	15%	15%
Number of jobs	19,674	27,331
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 34%	Associate Degree, 43%
Average age	42	42
Years of experience	6	6

Salad chef vs head chef salary

Salad chefs and head chefs have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Salad Chef	Head Chef
Average salary	$36,674	$45,470
Salary range	Between $24,000 And $55,000	Between $28,000 And $71,000
Highest paying City	-	Wellesley, MA
Highest paying state	-	Hawaii
Best paying company	-	Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics
Best paying industry	-	Health Care

Differences between salad chef and head chef education

There are a few differences between a salad chef and a head chef in terms of educational background:

	Salad Chef	Head Chef
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 34%	Associate Degree, 43%
Most common major	Culinary Arts	Culinary Arts
Most common college	Drexel University	Drexel University

Salad chef vs head chef demographics

Here are the differences between salad chefs' and head chefs' demographics:

	Salad Chef	Head Chef
Average age	42	42
Gender ratio	Male, 54.4% Female, 45.6%	Male, 79.8% Female, 20.2%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.5% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 17.4% Asian, 10.1% White, 56.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 9.8% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.8% Asian, 11.2% White, 56.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%
LGBT Percentage	9%	9%

Differences between salad chef and head chef duties and responsibilities

Salad chef example responsibilities.

Used strong organizational skills to manage steamers efficiently for both eat-in and take-out services.
Handle cash, checks and cards, while using the POS system.
Perform maintenance and cleanliness operations.
Detail cleanliness and sanitation regulations to follow.
Prepare and cook food at a high intensity culinary establishment using a newly acquire set of culinary techniques.
Maintain HACCP sanitation standards, recognize trouble areas, and respond accordingly

Head chef example responsibilities.

Hire, train, and manage a staff of cooks, also train servers and cross train dishwashers.
Manage a kitchen of military personal and Japanese civilian chefs.
Supervise, coordinate and direct all culinary activities within the food service department.
Work manned omelet and brunch stations in dining room.
Develop HACCP plans for every fresh item carry on premises.
Assist with setup and break down of equipment for parties, meetings and brunch.

Salad chef vs head chef skills

Common salad chef skills

Salad Station, 37%
Cleanliness, 22%
Customer Service, 22%
Food Products, 10%
Prep Food, 2%
POS, 1%

Common head chef skills

Kitchen Operations, 27%
Culinary, 9%
Dinner Service, 6%
Food Service, 5%
Cuisine, 3%
Safety Standards, 3%

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Salad Chef vs Head Chef

Updated January 8, 2025

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