HIERARCHY AREA OF DEPARTMENT AND KITCHEN

CHAPTER-3 HIERARCHY AREA OF DEPARTMENT AND KITCHEN

One of the most important achievement of Chef Escoffier is the reorganization of kitchen.This division was based on the kind of foods being prepared. The kitchen was thus divided into department or stations. The station chef was made in-charge of every department. In small operation ,the station chef is the only chef working in the department and in large operations many assistants would be required.

The same system is being followed with many variations especially in kitchens which produce traditional dishes and follow traditional service,till today.

The major posts are as follow:

  1. Chef/Executive Chef-In large kitchen The Chef is the in-charge of the kitchen.In large establishments,this post has the title of Executive Chef.This post is managerial post and the chef is responsible for overall aspects of food production.He does
  • Menu planning
  • Purchasing
  • Costing
  • Planning work schedules
  • Hiring ; and
  • Training
  1. Chef de Cuisine/Chef de Partie-He/she is person who reports to Executive Chef.When food service operation is large having formal set-up of dining room,casual dining room and a catering department or it has several operational units in different locatins in or off campus then each kitchen will have Chef de cuisine for each unit.

 

  1. Sous Chef-The word Sous(pronounced as soo in French) means “under” in French language.So Sous Chef is chef working directly under Executive Chef or Chef de Cuisine.He is directly inchrge of the production in kitchen and is assistant to the Executive Chef or Chef de Cuisine.Since the executive Chefs most of their time in Office to meet their managerial work,the Sous Chef is directly responsible for executing the production of dishes and minute-by-minute supervision of staff.

 

  1. Station Chefs/Chefs de Partie-These chefs are the in-charge of particular area of production,namely;

 

  • The SAUCE CHEF/SAUCIER(so-see-ay)-He prepares sauces,stews and hot hors d’oeuvres and sautés foods to order.This is usually the top position of all the stations.
  • The FISH COOK/POISSONIER(pwah-so-nyay)-Prepares fish dishes.in some of the kitchen operations this station is handled by the saucier/The sauce Chef.
  • The VEGETABLE COOK/ENTREMETIER(awn-truh-met-yay)-This chef prepares vegetables,soups,starches and eggs.These duties are divided among the vegaetable cook,the fry cook and the soup cook in large kitchen.
  • The ROAST COOK/ROTISSEUR(ro-tee-sur)-Prepares braised and roasted meats and their gravies.They also broil meat and other items to order.If it is a large kitchen,they may have a separate Broiler Cook or Grillardin(gree-ar-dan) to handle the broiled items.He/she may also prepare deep fried meats and fish.
  • The PANTRY CHEF/GARDE MANGER(gard-mawn-zhay)-He/She is responsible for cold food items,salads and dressings,pates,cold horsdoeuvres and buffed food items.
  • The PASTRY CHEF/PATISSIER(pa-tees-syay)-He/she prepares pastries and desserts.
  • The RELIEF COOK/SWING COOK/TOURNANT(toor-nawn)-He/she replaces other station chefs as and when required.
  • The EXPEDITER/ABOYEUR(ab-bwa-yer)-He/She accepts orders from waiters and passes the information to the cooks on line,rather shouts about the food orders.He/she also calls ,when to finish and plate the order with proper time as well as inspect each plate before passing it on to service staff.Some times this position is taken by HEAD CHEF or SOUS CHEF.
  1. COOKS AND ASSISTANTS-In each station or department the cooks and assistants help with the duties assigned to them.For example the assistant or cook may be assigned the duty of preparing vegetables for green salad.With experience assistants may be promoted to station cooks and then to station chefs.

 

 

 

 

B. Modern staffing in various category hotels

The large hotels may require a classical brigade as described further larger establishments may need even larger number of staffs,like assistant chefs,banquet chef,butcher,baker separate day and night sous chefs and so on.

 

Many establishments today are much smaller that the above two so they club two or more positions as per the convenience or the kind of food prepared in the kitchen and workload.For example second cook may be handling the duties of sauce cook,fish cook,soup cook and vegetable cook.

 

Medium size operations may require a chef,second cook,a broiler cook,a pantry cook and cook helpers.

 In an organization where the workload doesn’t require Executive Chef,a Working Chef is appointed.He/She along with being the in-charge of the kitchen

 

 

 

C. Roles of executive chef

 

Title                                   Executive Chef

Managerial Level               Senior Managerial Level

Reports To                 General Manager/Food & Beverage Director

Job Summary

1.Consistently preparing innovative and creative food items of a specific cuisine or multiple cuisines.

2.Maintenance of highest quality,presentation and flavours of food items for various outlets of a hotel including banquets and outdoor caterings.

3.Overall smooth running of the of the department.

4.Managing profit,stock,cost control,HACCP and training ,hiring and control of kitchen staff.

Roles of Executive Chef/Duties & Responsibility of Executive Chef

1.Training,developing and motivating staff to maintain food quality and quantity consistently according to established standards.

2.Teaching staff how to prepare food items according to well defined recipes.

3.Following-up and discussing with staff how to improve the food at the property.

4.Displaying exceptional leadership quality to keep the work-environment calm,progressive and healthy for delivering world class food preparations.

5.Directing and briefing staff on day to day basis.

6.Managing rota and assigning duties & responsibilities to staff as per the requirement.

7.Setting performance standards and monitoring performance of the staff.

8.Clearly defining goals and objectives of the department.

9.Reviewing staffing levels to maintain guest satisfaction,service,operational needs and financial objectives.

10.Menu development.

11.Maintaining,updating,managing costing of all dishes being sold.

12.Determining food presentation and display.

13.Recognizing superior qualities of raw materials,presentations & flavours.

14.Ensures maintenance of highest pre-determined standards of food handling and sanitation.

15.Ensuring compliance of food handling and right temperatures of all food products.

16.Ensuring proper maintenance of all equipments of the kitchen.

17.Ensuring that all equipments are in proper working condition.

18.Planning & Reviewing guest comment cards for required data and then improving guest satisfaction as per the data.

19.Co-ordinating with purchasing department for the acquisition of goods and services as per required specifications.

20.

 

  1. Duties and responsibilities of various chefs

E. Co-operation with other departments