What Does A Head Chef Do? How to Hire A head Chef?

Chef when I already have an Executive Chef? Are these questions in your mind? Find out what the Head Chef position is all about and how crucial it is for making a huge success of your restaurant business.

Here are information and insights provided by top chef headhunters. What is a headhunter chef? Headhunters are recruitment specialists in a particular industry for top roles or highly-paid positions. A chef headhunter is an ideal agent who can help you understand everything about all kinds of top chef roles in a restaurant business and how and when to hire for which positions.

Let’s first understand key facts about the Head Chef position before we explore “what does a Head Chef do or what chefs do.”

Understanding The Head Chef Position

The Head Chef is the mighty force in the kitchen that controls it and drives it forward. They are highly-skilled culinary professionals that supervise the food preparation operations of the kitchen. They need to be armed with a sufficient skill set to confront the challenges of the stressful culinary environment.

They’re like wizards with their innovative approaches to bringing particular flavors, tastes, and consequently, the demand for the items prepared.

A Head Chef is not the same as an Executive Chef. The Executive Chef carries out managerial tasks while the Head Chef focuses on everything to do with the culinary side of the business.

In the hierarchical arrangement, the Head Chef comes second to the Executive Chef. It’s still a lot of responsibility, though! Managing the kitchen staff, constructing the menu, and controlling expenses fall under the ambit of the Head Chef, while the Executive Chef dons the hat of supervisor and manager of the establishment.

The Head Chef’s presence is required in the kitchen all the time, but it’s not required of an Executive Chef. If you’re clear of the distinction now, let’s delve into the numerous duties of a Head Chef.

What chefs do differs from what a head chef does.

There are different kinds of chefs in a restaurant, depending on what is there on the menu. When you ask the question of what chefs do, the answer depends on what kind of chef you are referring to. Fish chefs are those who specialize in seafood. Meat and roast chefs are the ones managing the cutting, cleaning, and preparation of different meat-based dishes. Vegetarian chefs specialize in the plant-based food items of the styles they specialize in.

What Does A Head Chef Do?

There is a lot that a Head Chef does. A brief answer to the question, “what does a Head Chef do,” is they give the restaurant its reputation for its culinary offerings and the orders they need to run the business. Here are some of the key activities managed by the Head Chefs.

Curating Menus

Menus are arguably the most important part of a restaurant. The effort in the kitchen goes unrewarded if the menu is not well-crafted. It is the Head Chef’s duty to skillfully construct menus keeping the customers in mind. A permanent menu does not help the restaurant’s business.

The Head Chef also has to update it, taking changing customer preferences into consideration. Innovative menus are important to draw customers into restaurants.

It is no easy task to curate the perfect menu, but the Head Chef is responsible for creating one that will benefit the establishment greatly. Preferences change rapidly. Keeping up with the trends is necessary to produce a menu that will ensure success. Weekly, Monthly, Seasonal and Long-Term menus must be crafted carefully to suit the tastes of customers.

Picking the Right Ingredients

It is not enough that the Head Chef creates the menu. They must also choose the perfect ingredients for all items they’re going to serve. They’re in charge of food preparation from its initial levels to when it’s presented on the table. They’ll need to assess the inventory and pick ingredients that go into the dishes they’ve picked to cook.

The right ingredients have an immense impact on the taste of the food. Keeping in mind the quality that the restaurant has guaranteed to the customers, the ingredients must be picked carefully by the Head Chef to live up to expectations.

Supervision of Ingredients

After choosing what ingredients go into a particular dish, the Head Chef is also entrusted with the responsibility of supervising whether the purchased ingredients are of sufficient quality. Low-standard ingredients affect the taste of the dish considerably.

The Head Chef has to make sure that the quality of ingredients is top-notch to be added into food. High-quality, fresh ingredients make a notable difference. A failure to pay attention to ensuring quality will affect the overall caliber of culinary performance of the restaurant.

The perfect ingredients can bring magic to the plate and make the customer’s mouth water. The lack of high-quality ingredients will hinder the chef’s capabilities, no matter their effort.

Compliance with Safety Regulations and Health Standards

Safety regulations and Health standards should be prioritized in a restaurant. Violating safety requirements could cause a health hazard! The Head Chef is responsible for ensuring that the food production in the kitchen complies with rules and regulations. Strict enforcement of safety measures and supervision is required to deliver safe and healthy dishes to the table. A restaurant’s reputation is dependent on the cleanliness of the food that reaches the consumers. Under no circumstances can the kitchen staff compromise with hygiene.

The Head Chef should have a detailed understanding of local and state safety regulations. A small error in this responsibility could bring about the closing down of the restaurant itself. In pursuit of deliciousness, the Head Chef must never forget the importance of safety, health, and hygiene protocols.

Pick the right preparation style

It falls on the Head Chef to decide on the best processes to produce a dish and figure out the best methods. There are several steps to food preparation, and each step must be paid individual attention to by the Head Chef.

Choosing the best strategy for cooking is necessary to make sure that all chances of unfavorable outcomes can be discarded and that the kitchen functions efficiently. The methods that the staff follows should match the quality that the restaurant promises to its customers.

The preparatory style that complements each article of food varies. The Head Chef needs to be well-versed in identifying the best processes that suit each dish.

Designing and Decorating Dishes

As we said, the Head Chef is in charge of the food that reaches the tables. They have to make sure that the food is appealing and enticing visually. First impressions can matter a lot. Individual attention to each dish is desired to assure that they dazzle the customer.

Decoration and design can boost a customer’s interest in the dish. It is the Head Chef’s duty to pick the right style and processes that go into food preparation along with choosing the best way to present it. A lot depends on their choices!

Aesthetic appeal helps in increasing customer demand. The beauty in presenting a dish raises the chances of a customer ordering the dish.

Minimize Food Wastage and Spoilage

Food wastage equals a crime, and any evidence of large amounts of food wastage leads to bad press and huge criticisms across media sources. Not only that, food waste harms the environment and causes the spread of contagious bacteria and germs when it accumulates in landfills.

The Head Chef is responsible for making sure that the restaurant produces no large excess of food. They should devise a plan to minimize food wastage and spoilage. Food must be made according to efficient planning and prediction of customer demands. The Head Chef must live up to the challenge and work out an environmentally conscious method to prevent food wastage while maintaining its quality.

Proper Maintenance of Inventory of Ingredients

A lot of money goes into collecting the best ingredients available in the market. Ingredients that have been purchased require secure storage. Different ingredients require varying conditions to preserve. The Head Chef is in charge of overseeing its storage and safety. They are also required to keep an inventory of ingredients to see to it that nothing is misplaced or missing.

An awareness of the inventory allows the Head Chef to order ingredients as per the requirement so that they do not face immediate scarcity while cooking a dish. To maximize the restaurant’s profit margin, the Head Chef has to develop smart techniques of storage and preservation.

Manage Kitchen Staff

A good team in the kitchen means great food on the table. The Head Chef has a role to play in hiring and training chefs and cooks to live up to their responsibilities. They have to supervise the work of the staff and the assistants to ensure its effectiveness.

It’s not just their management but also their identity as a team that the Head Chef has to focus on. To create a harmonious workspace, the Head Chef has to make certain that no strain of conflict threatens the team. They should foster a climate of fellow-being and coordination to extract the best results.

Leadership qualities and effective communication are key to bringing about feelings of unity in the kitchen. Teamwork means a lot in the culinary world!

Accept Feedback and Implement Changes

Even though a person is trained and experienced for several years, there are always changes they can accommodate to help them grow. Receiving feedback is an important part of a Chef’s duties.

Accepting constructive criticism gracefully must come as second nature to a Head Chef. Response to customer feedback makes a difference in the culinary world. The Head Chef must heed the advice they receive and make sufficient changes to improve upon the dish. Even the smallest of details matter!

Conclusion

You have found the answer to the question, “What does a Head Chef do?” One of the best ways to hire the best head chef is to know “what is a headhunter chef?” These are the professionals who connect restaurants with the right candidates to fill the position of Head Chef. With the help of chef headhunters, you can find the ideal head chefs.

Alliance International

Alliance International is a trusted name to help you hire the best professionals in the field. They have the finest chef headhunters available in the market, and their services are unparalleled. For staffing solutions, Alliance International is the leading hospitality recruitment agency with a specialized chef recruitment arm. The company has over 12 years of experience helping thousands of clients in the hospitality industry find the ideal staff. To know more about “what is a headhunter chef,” consult with us!