Sous chef vs food service coordinator

The differences between sous chefs and food service coordinators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a sous chef has an average salary of $48,716, which is higher than the $32,085 average annual salary of a food service coordinator.

The top three skills for a sous chef include culinary, food handling and food preparation. The most important skills for a food service coordinator are food preparation, customer service, and food handling.

Sous chef vs food service coordinator overview

	Sous Chef	Food Service Coordinator
Yearly salary	$48,716	$32,085
Hourly rate	$23.42	$15.43
Growth rate	15%	2%
Number of jobs	22,393	79,537
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 51%	Bachelor's Degree, 47%
Average age	42	37
Years of experience	6	-

What does a sous chef do?

A sous chef is responsible for directing food preparation and general kitchen tasks with the supervision of an executive chef. A sous chef duties also include customizing healthy menus, maintaining quality check for foods, adhering to the highest sanitation procedures and standards, monitoring food and equipment supplies, suggesting new specialties, assisting customer's inquiries, and managing client's complaints. A sous chef must have excellent communication and decision-making skills, as well as updated with the current food trends to provide the best services for the customers.

What does a food service coordinator do?

Food service coordinators are responsible for organizing the food preparation for a considerable section of a huge operation such as the bakery, catering, and pantry section. They arrange, prepare, and synchronize the preparation of main entrees. Also, they coordinate and prepare all snacks and meals at a distinct facility as well as supervise the performance of food service specialists and student assistants in preparing food. Qualifications for the job include agility and physical strength to lift and reach kitchen materials and supplies as well as working in a hot environment while standing for a long period.

Sous chef vs food service coordinator salary

Sous chefs and food service coordinators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Sous Chef	Food Service Coordinator
Average salary	$48,716	$32,085
Salary range	Between $33,000 And $70,000	Between $23,000 And $43,000
Highest paying City	Atlantic City, NJ	Sacramento, CA
Highest paying state	Hawaii	Rhode Island
Best paying company	RH	Ashland MA Police
Best paying industry	Government	Media

Differences between sous chef and food service coordinator education

There are a few differences between a sous chef and a food service coordinator in terms of educational background:

	Sous Chef	Food Service Coordinator
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 51%	Bachelor's Degree, 47%
Most common major	Culinary Arts	Business
Most common college	Drexel University	-

Sous chef vs food service coordinator demographics

Here are the differences between sous chefs' and food service coordinators' demographics:

	Sous Chef	Food Service Coordinator
Average age	42	37
Gender ratio	Male, 82.1% Female, 17.9%	Male, 35.1% Female, 64.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.2% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 17.8% Asian, 11.3% White, 54.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 11.2% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 18.0% Asian, 7.5% White, 57.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%
LGBT Percentage	9%	6%

Differences between sous chef and food service coordinator duties and responsibilities

Sous chef example responsibilities.

Manage FOH duties, along with customer relations.
Train, mentore, manage and discipline lead chefs, associate chefs, prep cooks, pastry assistants and dishwashers.
Manage a staff of 45 union personnel in preparation of meals for hospital patients and cafeteria patrons for three meals daily.
Control food and payroll costs to achieve maximum profitability.
Manage people and oversee production of high-volume establishment for this upscale restaurant specializing in Mexican cuisine.
Train and manage all culinary personnel, supervise and coordinate all culinary activities, estimate food consumption and manage food cost.

Food service coordinator example responsibilities.

Manage and coordinate the workload of the release team members and are responsible for organizing and hosting all production release windows.
Enhance and enrich HACCP knowledge and practices.
Record each meal recieve into the POS system.
Work with staff to provide culinary and nutritional teaching to club members.
Perform food samples and laboratory testing, and prepare corresponding reports following HACCP guidelines.
Monitor patients diets and patient satisfaction.

Sous chef vs food service coordinator skills

Common sous chef skills

Culinary, 15%
Food Handling, 8%
Food Preparation, 7%
Customer Service, 5%
Fine Dining, 5%
Food Service, 5%

Common food service coordinator skills

Food Preparation, 9%
Customer Service, 8%
Food Handling, 7%
Meal Preparation, 6%
Food Safety, 5%
Kitchen Equipment, 5%

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Sous Chef vs Food Service Coordinator

Updated January 8, 2025

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