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Kitchen Manager vs Chef
- A kitchen manager oversees a restaurant’s entire kitchen staff and operations. They ensure food and service quality, manage budgets and menus, and ensure health and safety compliance. Kitchen managers also train and supervise staff, manage inventory, and coordinate purchasing.
- Chefs are trained professional cooks proficient in all aspects of food preparation, often specializing in a particular cuisine. They create new dishes, oversee preparation and presentation, and manage a team of cooks.
Head Chef Responsibilities
- A head chef is most similar to a kitchen manager. Generally, they have the same responsibilities, with the chef also handling menu management which is time-consuming. The kitchen manager answers to the head chef, managing daily kitchen activities and staff while adhering to regulations. The head chef creates menus, controls costs, and manages kitchen staff, sometimes leaving cooking to the sous chefs.
Qualifications and Salary
- To function as a chef or kitchen manager, you must multitask, resolve conflicts, work extensively, and plan menus. You should know various recipes and have team management and organizational skills. Specific degrees are not required, but restaurant management or culinary certification is preferred. Licensing shows understanding of kitchen health and safety regulations. The average annual salary for a chef or kitchen manager is $48,583, ranging from $38,000 to $61,000.
