Short Order Cook Job Description
Short order cooks prepare cook-to-order foods that require only a short time to prepare. Some may take orders directly from customers as well as serve the food they have prepared to customers. Typical foods prepared by short order cooks include hot and cold sandwiches, side dishes and salads. The type of restaurant and the size of its kitchen determine the specific duties of the short order cooks who work there. Some may even be required to cook dinner specials.
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Duties
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Duties of a short order cook include prep work (getting food ready for cooking via chopping, dicing, slicing, etc.), stocking and strong attention to cleanliness. Short order cooks must store unused food properly following restaurant and U.S. Department of Health sanitation guidelines, including writing the date and the name of the food being stored on the storage container. Short order cooks must follow personal cleanliness rules and, sometimes, maintain a professional appearance.
Skills
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Short order cooks are expected to know how to safely use food service equipment such as knives, ovens, grills and fryers. Most benefit from on-the-job training; however, some short-order cooks arrive at the job with some culinary background. Short order cooks are standing for most, if not their entire, shift. They must be able to occasionally pull, push, carry and lift.
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Potential
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Short order cooks gain culinary experience by becoming line cooks or grill cooks; depending upon the restaurant they wish to work in or the cuisine, attending a culinary institute is required to move into a different cook position.
Salary
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Salaries offered to short order cooks vary greatly depending upon the employer, the location, the experience of the applicant, etc. However, short order cooks make roughly $19,000 per year, according to Simplyhired.com and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Misconceptions
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The type of establishment a short order cook works in determines the job responsibilities. For example, a short order cook at a mom-and-pop restaurant may be required to prep salads and bake pie as well; whereas a short order cook at a higher-end establishment in a larger city may have to prepare a handful of food items repeatedly.
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