placeholder
Stuart Gentle Publisher at Onrec

Hiring a Chef for Family Restaurant: a Thorough Guide

It doesn't matter if you plan on opening a restaurant or a small cafe – you definitely need the help of a chef.

If in the case of the restaurant you need a chef on an ongoing basis, with a small cafe you will only need to invite him once a season or quarter to draw up a menu. The chef is an administrator in the kitchen. Therefore, it is one of the main people in the family restaurant. Find out the main tips that will help you choose the right chef for your restaurant.

What Should a Chef Be Able to Do?

Before making up your mind and hiring a new chef, you should make sure that he is qualified to do the following tasks:

  • Make up the entire menu: regular, banquet, buffet, children's, seasonal.
  • Be familiar with the modern equipment such as babycakes donut maker and teach other cooks on its use.
  • Update the menu. Usually, in a restaurant, it is done once a quarter.
  • Develop more profitable meals. The task of reducing the cost of dishes should be given by the manager or owner.
  • Monitor incoming product deliveries. Check the quality of the products and immediately return items that do not meet the standards.
  • Train cooks on the peculiarities of the cooking process, as well as on the rules of storage and preparation. Most workers usually have their training requirements in order, but in case they are starting in the industry, a food handler training course will be needed to meet your state's requirements.
  • Conduct a presentation when developing a new menu for the owner.
  • Buy and update kitchen equipment and utensils.
  • Select cooks for interviews.
  • Prepare meals. An obvious point, but there are precedents when a chef takes on only the duties of a kitchen manager and practically stops cooking personally.
  • Control the delivery of cooked meals.

How to Find a Good Chef for a Family Restaurant?

If we are talking about a permanent chef, a professional is rarely doing nothing. Therefore, giving an announcement and waiting for one of them to come to you for an interview is not the best option. There is a chance that he has recently quit his job in one of the restaurants and is looking for a new one, but the chances for that are slim.

However, there is another way. As there are lists for the best kitchen appliances on jonsguide.org, there are lists of the best chefs in different towns. You can use it to get familiar with professionals in your town. They are usually ready to switch places if the conditions are better.

When choosing, you should not make compromises. A chosen chef should fully meet your requirements as he will bear a lot of responsibility. Even though a chef is a creative person with his/her vision, he/she should have the ability to adapt the skills to the characteristics of your restaurant.

If you have received an instant refusal, ask if he/she has any colleagues whom he/she could recommend and who do not mind changing workplaces. It is also possible to place an announcement of a competition for a vacancy on near-restaurant web portals, in print media or in Facebook groups.

Another option is cooking shows and chef schools. Such institutions are very popular now and many young talents can be found there. Take a closer look at the finalists, learn more about them: perhaps some of them are from your region or city, and you can invite them for an interview.

In this perspective, we hope that choosing the chef using our tips will be as easy as choosing a doughnut maker at jonsguide. We are sure that you will be able to find a perfect chef that will be a great addition to your family restaurant.