A head chef is in charge of a kitchen’s operations. In most cases, the kitchen staff reports directly to either the head chef or an assistant. In general, she will determine what equipment is required and what ingredients must be kept on hand. In some cases, the head chef will design the menu, select the specials, and decide on portion sizes and presentation. She may also be in charge of keeping the kitchen’s costs within a set budget, managing employees, forecasting restaurant industry trends, and maintaining a safe kitchen in accordance with local health codes. Restaurants, hotels, catering companies, retirement communities, and other commercial dining establishments employ head chefs.
Creating a menu is usually one of the most enjoyable tasks for a head chef. Depending on the type of restaurant, catering company, resort, spa, private party, or organization where she works, she may be in charge of locating and utilizing specific ingredients. She might be asked to use only seasonal, local, or organic ingredients, for example. Depending on the chef’s employer’s overall style, she may be asked to prepare a vegetarian menu or a menu with wild game as the meat selection.
In some cases, a head chef’s budget may be a factor to consider. Her employer may, for example, give her a weekly, monthly, or annual budget. She might also be asked to set a price point for the menu items. She may be required to conduct field research on occasion. For example, if she decides to add a new item to the menu, she may need to research whether other competing restaurants offer a similar item, how the competition prices it, and whether it appears to sell well.
A full kitchen staff is sometimes required a head chef to ensure that the kitchen runs smoothly. She may need to hire assistants to help her with various aspects of the food preparation in some cases. One assistant may be required for desserts, another for pastas, and a third for side dishes, for example. She may need to train her employees on occasion, laying out her goals and expectations. The chef is ultimately responsible for the quality of the food, so if an assistant is not performing as expected, the chef may take disciplinary action.
Food must be consumed quickly in order to maintain its high quality and avoid spoilage. In many cases, the head chef is in charge of overseeing the food, making sure that all of the ingredients for the menu items are in stock, and negotiating the best prices for those ingredients. She may need to assess whether she purchased too much or too little of a particular ingredient at times. She may also have to make decisions about what to do with spoiled, bruised, or low-quality food.
People hope that when they eat food prepared someone else, the health codes will be followed. A safe and clean working environment is usually the responsibility of the head chef. Ability to do heavy lifting, stand for long periods of time, read, write, communicate effectively, compute mathematical calculations, and, of course, cook are a few other skills that may be useful to her. Head chefs frequently have degrees or certificates from culinary schools, though formal education isn’t always required. For some employers, years of kitchen experience may be enough to compensate for a lack of formal education.