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Chef resume example

Chefs are hired on skill, consistency and control of the kitchen. A chef resume should show the kind of kitchens you've worked in, your station or rank, the cuisines you cook, the covers you handle, and the numbers behind good kitchen management: food cost, wastage, hygiene audits and the team you lead.

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Why this resume works

  • Every bullet starts with a verb and ends with a result, most with a number.
  • The skills a chef job post asks for appear in the Skills section and again inside the bullets.
  • A single, standard layout (Elegant) that applicant tracking systems read top to bottom.
  • Standard headings (Summary, Work Experience, Education, Skills) so the ATS files each part correctly.

Anthony D'Souza

Sous Chef

anthony.dsouza@email.com · +971 50 555 0384 · Dubai, UAE · linkedin.com/in/anthonydsouzachef

Professional Summary

Sous chef with 9 years in hotel and restaurant kitchens across India and the UAE, now second in command of a 140-seat Mediterranean restaurant in a 5-star hotel. Runs the kitchen on the head chef's days off, leads a brigade of 16, serves up to 350 covers on busy nights, and keeps food cost under 30% while holding top hygiene audit grades.

Work Experience

Sous Chef

2022 – Present

Olive Terrace, Marlin Bay Hotel

  • Run daily service for a 140-seat Mediterranean restaurant serving 220–350 covers a night, leading a brigade of 16.
  • Brought food cost from 34% to 29% by re-costing every dish, tightening portion control and changing 3 suppliers.
  • Created 2 seasonal menus a year with the head chef; 5 dishes became permanent best sellers.
  • Kept the kitchen at the highest grade in every municipal food safety inspection and internal HACCP audit.

Chef de Partie

2017 – 2022

Saffron Coast Hotels

  • Ran the grill and banquet hot sections, cooking for events of up to 600 guests.
  • Trained 8 commis chefs on knife skills, mise en place and station standards.
  • Cut banquet food wastage by 20% with better forecasts from event managers and batch cooking.

Education

B.Sc., Hospitality and Hotel Administration

2013 – 2016

Institute of Hotel Management, Goa, Goa

Skills

Kitchen: Mediterranean, Continental and Indian cuisine, grill, sauces, menu development, food costing, portion control, inventory and ordering, banquet production, plating

Management and safety: Brigade leadership, rostering, training commis chefs, HACCP, food safety audits, supplier management, recipe cards

Certificates

HACCP Level 3, Highfield

2021

Person in Charge (PIC) Food Safety Certificate, Dubai Municipality

2022

Languages

English (Fluent) • Hindi (Fluent) • Konkani (Native)

Example chef resume · Elegant template · made-up person

Chef resume summary examples

Two or three lines at the top: your years of experience, your strongest skills, and the result you are known for.

This example

Sous chef with 9 years in hotel and restaurant kitchens across India and the UAE, now second in command of a 140-seat Mediterranean restaurant in a 5-star hotel. Runs the kitchen on the head chef's days off, leads a brigade of 16, serves up to 350 covers on busy nights, and keeps food cost under 30% while holding top hygiene audit grades.

Commis chef

Commis chef with a hotel management diploma and 1 year in a busy hotel kitchen, rotating through the cold kitchen, bakery and Indian sections. Fast and clean at prep, follows recipe cards closely, and is ready to take on a station as a demi chef de partie.

Experienced

Executive chef with 18 years across luxury hotels and restaurant groups, leading kitchens of up to 60 chefs across 4 outlets. Opened 3 restaurants, set menus and food cost targets for each, and has held top hygiene ratings throughout.

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Chef resume bullet points

Use them as a pattern, not a copy: swap in your own numbers. If you don't have a number, describe the before and after.

  • Run service for a 140-seat restaurant serving up to 350 covers a night with a brigade of 16.

  • Brought food cost from 34% to 29% with re-costed dishes, portion control and new suppliers.

  • Created 2 seasonal menus a year; 5 dishes became permanent best sellers.

  • Held the highest grade in every food safety inspection and HACCP audit.

  • Cooked for banquets of up to 600 guests on the grill and hot sections.

  • Trained 8 commis chefs on knife skills, mise en place and station standards.

  • Cut banquet wastage by 20% with better forecasts and batch cooking.

  • Wrote recipe cards with photos for 60 dishes so every shift plates them the same way.

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Skills and ATS keywords for a chef resume

Skills that often appear in chef job posts. Add only the ones you really have, in the same words the post uses, and check every job post for its own.

  • Chef
  • Sous chef
  • Chef de partie
  • Kitchen management
  • Menu development
  • Food costing
  • Portion control
  • Food safety
  • HACCP
  • Hygiene standards
  • Inventory management
  • Ordering
  • Brigade leadership
  • Mise en place
  • Banquets
  • À la carte
  • Plating
  • Wastage control
  • Recipe development
  • Staff training
Cover letter examples →See which keywords your resume is missing for a real job →

How to write a chef resume

  1. 01

    State your rank and kitchen type

    Commis, chef de partie, sous chef or head chef, and whether it's a hotel, fine-dining, casual or banquet kitchen. These set your level in one line.

  2. 02

    Name your cuisines and stations

    Mediterranean, Indian, pastry, grill, tandoor. Kitchens hire for specific skills, so make yours obvious.

  3. 03

    Give covers and cost

    Covers per night, banquet sizes and food cost percentage show you can handle volume and money. Head chefs and owners care about both.

  4. 04

    Put hygiene in writing

    Inspection grades, HACCP and food safety certificates are often required. A clean record is a strong selling point.

Chef resume, section by section

Header

Anthony's title is his current rank, "Sous Chef". Phone, email, city and LinkedIn follow; add a portfolio or Instagram link if you have one with good photos of your work.

Summary

It gives his years, kitchen types and countries, his current role and restaurant, the brigade and covers he runs, his food cost and hygiene record. A head chef or hotel recruiter knows his level at once.

Work experience

The sous chef role covers service volume, food cost, menu creation and hygiene. The chef de partie role shows banquet volume, training and wastage, which are a solid base for the step up.

Skills

Kitchen skills (cuisines, stations, costing) and management skills (brigade, rostering, safety). Splitting them shows he can both cook and run a kitchen.

Certifications

HACCP and a local food safety certificate with years. In the UAE and many other places, a local permit is required, so it's worth listing.

Education and languages

A hotel management degree in one line. Languages help in multinational kitchens, where brigades often come from many countries.

Entry-level to senior chef resume bullet points

Commis chef (0–2 years)

  • Prepped vegetables, sauces and garnishes for 3 stations before every service.
  • Rotated through cold kitchen, bakery and Indian sections in my first year.
  • Labeled and stored food correctly, with no issues in internal hygiene checks.
  • Helped plate up to 400 meals for weekend brunch buffets.

Chef de partie (2–6 years)

  • Run the grill station alone during service, sending up to 120 plates a night.
  • Order and manage stock for my section, keeping waste low.
  • Train and supervise 2 commis chefs on my station.
  • Suggest specials each week using seasonal and surplus ingredients.

Sous chef / head chef (6+ years)

  • Lead a brigade of 16 to 25 chefs and plan their rosters.
  • Own the kitchen's food cost, ordering and supplier relationships.
  • Create menus with the general manager and cost every dish before launch.
  • Run the kitchen's food safety system and prepare it for every inspection.

Mistakes to avoid on a chef resume

  • Only listing cuisines

    "Expert in Continental, Chinese and Indian" says little about level. Add your rank, the covers you handle and the results you've achieved.

  • No numbers

    Covers, banquet sizes, food cost and wastage are all measurable. Without them, your experience is hard to compare.

  • Leaving out hygiene

    Food safety is non-negotiable. A missing certificate or record can raise doubts, even for a talented cook.

  • A design-heavy resume

    Kitchens are busy, and chefs and recruiters read resumes quickly. A clean, simple layout works best; save creativity for your plates.

Key takeaways

  • State your rank, kitchen type and cuisines up front.
  • Give covers, banquet sizes and food cost.
  • Show your hygiene record and certificates.
  • Include the chefs you've trained and led.

Questions about chef resumes

Should a chef include a photo portfolio?
A link to an Instagram or portfolio of your plates can help, especially for creative roles. Keep the resume itself plain and add the link in the header.
How do I describe the restaurants I've worked in?
Give the type of kitchen, the cuisine, the number of seats or covers and any recognized standard, like a 5-star hotel. That tells the reader more than the name alone.
What certifications should a chef list?
Food safety and HACCP certificates are the most useful, plus any local permit needed to work in that country's kitchens. Culinary diplomas and short courses in pastry or specific cuisines can go in education.
How do I move from hotel kitchens to restaurants, or the other way?
Highlight what carries over. From hotels: volume, banquets and systems. From restaurants: à la carte speed, creativity and cost control. Show you understand the new setting's pace.
Should I list every kitchen I've worked in?
List the last 10 to 15 years. Short stints can be grouped, like "commis chef roles in 3 Goa hotels, 2014–2016", so your recent experience stands out.

Sources

Duties, pay, education and job outlook for chefs and head cooks in the US: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook.

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