As a professional chef, you know that your job is very different from the one that appears on TV or in the movies. There are long hours of grueling, high speed work involved. Now you’re ready to move up to the top rank of the ladder as an executive or head chef. These jobs require more knowledge and commitment than a typical “head chef” position, but you’re ready to tackle that next step.
Ready to become master of the kitchen ? You’ve watched them on TV programs like Iron Chef and Food Network. Now you’ve decided to move from the “line” to become one of the elite of the restaurant world. But what are your options. Here’s an overview of the top types of chef jobs:
Executive chef jobs
An executive chef is in charge of running a kitchen for a restaurant or other established eating place. Most executive chef jobs are considered to be a bit more exalted than a head chef position, which is why you typically find executive chef jobs in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles or San Francisco — places where food culture is established and the best restaurants are.
Star Chef Jobs
An executive chef who has made his mark in a major metro area has the potential to move up into a star chef job. Star chefs are the personalities often seen on TV shows or the Food Network. They have established reputation for their particular type of cuisine or have created signature dishes that critics rave over. Star chefs often have their own restaurants or even hold executive chef positions over a number of restaurants.
Country club chef jobs
Country club chef jobs are somewhat similar to executive chef positions, but there are some essential differences. Club chefs tend to specialize in a certain type of repeat style of food that customers want. As a result, experimentation is in less demand; clients tend to like a certain style of food and rely on it being prepared in a consistent manner.
Resort Chef Jobs
A variation on the country club job is the retirement or resort community chef job. No joke here—today’s modern assisted living communities field top flight chefs to provide gourmet level meals to their well-off and discerning clientele. As the “baby boomer” generation reaches retirement age, these exclusive communities; essentially resort communities, will demand great food—and have the resources to pay for it.
Pastry Chef Jobs
Since the foundation of high-end bakeries in the 1990’s, the role of the pastry chef has become a place for skilled chefs to become restaurant superstars. Many top chefs started out in pastry, where their luscious desserts gained worldwide following. Top pastry chefs now compete for prizes and glory on Food Network shows, while celebrities, corporations and the wealthy vie to have top bakeries create confections for events.
Working Conditions
If you have problems with loud noise, lots of yelling, flying tools and cookware and a high pressure, non-stop atmosphere, kitchen work won’t be for you. The executive chef gets top contend with all these issues, plus the mind numbing pressure of relentless deadlines, endless decisions, temperamental staff, customer problems, wait staff disasters, and other travails of the trade. The executive chef not only designs the menu for each service, but also must handle selecting the best ingredients, dealing with suppliers, stocking and storing, preparation and training, employee hire-fire issues—the list is endless. But if you ask anyone who has mastered the fine art of executive chef work and enjoys running a finely honed kitchen crew, there’s nothing better.
Qualifications
Over the past 20 years, a large number of cooking schools have been established to provide the skills needed to become a good professional chef. However, no cooking program can replace the experience needed to go for a top ranked chef position. A minimum of ten years working in the restaurant trade as the head chef or sous (second in command) chef level is a good baseline, although some talented superstars have skipped past this requirement through their innovative skills.
Earnings
While executive chefs who own their own restaurants can make over $100,000 a year, typical media wages for head cooks averaged $34,370, with the top 10% making $60,730. Based on Bureau of Labor statistics for 2006, average Executive Chef salaries ranged from $62,670 to $98,009. This estimate can vary wildly depending on location and the ranking of the particular restaurant.
Employment Outlook
Openings for chefs and related professions are expected to remain high through the next decade, with a high competition for top positions in metropolitan markets. Most openings will come from the high turnover rate in this demanding profession. Head chef and executive chef positions may show some additional expansion, with the advent of many new cooking channels and the explosive interest in the celebrity aspects of the profession, but expect competition to be extremely high.
How to Find Jobs
Although the typical way to move up the restaurant ladder involves years of practice and scut work until you reach the head chef level, there’s no one way to move into the higher ranks of the cooking elite. Many of the best opportunities are spread via word of mouth, so it’s important to keep your networking chops up to date. Make sure that when your executive chef moves on to a higher level position that you stay in touch and try to move with him as soon as possible. Higher end jobs rarely show up in the want ads, although head chef and executive positions are listed on some specialized sites.
