What is the Salary Range for Chefs?

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Different chefs receive different salaries and depending on the rank, experience, place and your boss, your possible salary will vary. The usual chef salary range goes as low as $35,000 to as high as $90,000. These payment rates always have the capacity to improve, provided you work hard enough.

Executive Chef Level

The executive chef is the active chef, the one in charge and the one to which all the other chefs report to. He or she is responsible for all the inner working and activities in the kitchen and the connection between the kitchen and the rest of the place. This is why his or her salary is the largest and its minimum is already a stunning $50,000 annually.

Sous Chef Level

Responsible for the kitchen’s efficient work when the executive chef is not present, the sous chef has to be good at three different things: operating within a kitchen, knowing how to cook skilfully, and being able to give correct orders to the staff. The sous chef’s salary can vary between $35,000 and $40,000, if you are just starting.

Pastry Chef Level

The pastry chef is the one who is responsible for all the baked dishes and meals. Becoming one requires training in an institute or a school, up to four years. It is a job that is held in special regard particularly because the pastry chef is supposed to deliver works of beauty when it comes down to working with food. Therefore, as a pastry chef, you should expect a salary range of $35,000 to $50,000. The pastry chef can also make good use of additional bonuses for more extravagant nature of his or her duties.

Assistant Chef Level

An assistant chef’s main role is active participation within the building of the menu alongside whoever the main chef is. Apart from that, the assistant chef should also be fully aware of the cleaning, cooking and ordering activities in the kitchen and must be able to cope with them at any given time. What the assistant does is support the main chef at anything, regardless if it is work, dishes, meals, opinions or compliments. This is the lowest paid type of chef and his or her usual chef salary is close to $35,000.

Sushi Chef Level

The sushi chef is the one who has the most distinctive knowledge. His or her main concern is cooking fish. The art of the Japanese cuisine is an essential piece of knowledge for every sushi chef. Cooking fish needs to be anatomically accurate and yet it requires specific touches and experimentation in order to make the sushi equally safe and delicious. Although the sushi chef salary starts at merely $25,000 a year, it can reach as high as $70,000.

There are various avenues to pursue in this industry you clearly love. By taking a strong career focus, you can ensure that you are adequately—even generously—paid, rather than simply working a nine to five cooking job.