Cook: What is the cost of hiring?

Why hire a cook?

Cooks prepare meals and help organize kitchen staff to make sure your business runs efficiently. They are the liaison between the kitchen staff and servers and are in charge of organizing the kitchen and ensuring public safety measures. They can make sure your kitchen runs smoothly and produce high-quality food.

Contributions of a great cook:

• Accommodate specific requests from customers
• Train all kitchen staff and sometimes in charge of hiring
• Maintain and manage all equipment
• Maintain cleanliness and order of the kitchen
• Develop recipes

What are the different types of cook?

There are usually two other types of cooks that you can find in the kitchen. The first would be a prep cook or kitchen assistant who would be responsible for preparing all the food to be cooked and making sure all the pots and pans and other kitchen equipment is ready to be used. The prep cook would also be in charge of making sure everything is clean before cooking begins and other basic cleaning duties. Prep cooks do not need to have any formal education in the culinary arts, but should have a basic understanding of how to prepare ingredients for cooking.

The other type of cook is a line cook, who supports the head cook or chef in preparing and cooking meals. The line cook might be in charge of one particular aspect of the meal, for example, preparing all the salads. Line cooks usually work directly under the head cook and allow the kitchen to run more smoothly. Depending on the establishment, a line cook might not have any formal culinary education or might be a new graduate of a culinary institute.

• Prep cook: Duties include preparing food for cooking, cleaning workstations, and preparing kitchen equipment for use.
• Line cook: Duties include preparing and cooking food to be used in the meals and supporting the head cook.

Where to find a cook

To find the right cook for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

• Apprenticeship program: Trade schools will have the ability to point you in the right direction for new graduates or help you set up an apprenticeship program. Since cooking is a hands-on type of skill, a lot of schools require students to hold an apprenticeship before obtaining their certificate. This means you can get quality help for less money and have the possibility of then hiring that student once they have graduated.
• Referrals/networking: Finding a reliable and talented cook can be made a lot easier when you ask other people in your industry to help. Having a good relationship with a few people in your industry can make it easier for you to find workers and know that they have the skills you are looking for.

Post your job online: Try posting your cook job on Indeed to find and attract quality cook candidates.

Skills to look for in a great cook

A great cook candidate will have the following skills and attributes as well as work experience that reflects:

• preparing and cooking food for the entire meal or dish
• maintaining a clean and safe working environment
• training staff on food preparation
• organizing the kitchen, including ingredients and equipment
• clear communication between kitchen staff and servers

Writing a cook job description

A thoughtful description is important for finding qualified cook candidates. A cook job description includes a compelling summary of the role, a detailed list of duties and responsibilities, and the required and preferred skills for the position.

When writing your cook job description, consider including some or all of the following keywords to improve the visibility of your job posting. These are the most popular search terms leading to clicks on cook jobs, according to Indeed data:

• Cook
• Kitchen
• Restaurant
• Line cook
• Camp cook
• Food service
• Kitchen helper

Interviewing cook candidates

Strong candidates for cook positions will be confident answering questions regarding:

• preparing and cooking methods, including the use of different equipment
• managing kitchen staff
• dealing with a rush of services
• cleaning and safety procedures
• inventory

Need help coming up with interview questions? See our list of interview questions for examples (with sample answers).