Kitchen Hand Resume Sample & Writing Guide

When you are scouting for a big break in the world of culinary and catering careers, have a look at our top-notch Kitchen Hand resume sample. As a support resource, getting a job as a Kitchen Hand is highly advisable to learn the ins and outs of kitchen conduct. Gaining kitchen experience will provide you with a great foundation if you want to progress into Chef’s role later on in your career.

The competition in this field is stiff, so you need to ensure that your application gets noticed by sending a kick-ass resume to potential employers.

Kitchen Hand Resume Samples

(Free sample downloads are at the bottom of this page)

Kitchen Hand Resume Writing Guide

Resume Sections

1. Contact Information:

  • First Name
  • Last Name
  • Address
  • Mobile Number
  • Email Address

2. Profile Summary: The recipe for success starts with your resume summary. No faux pas allowed as these three little lines at the top of your resume page could be the difference between landing the job or not.

3. Qualifications Summary: Getting a job as a Kitchen Hand does not require any qualifications part from a high school diploma, but if you want to progress up the culinary ladder, diplomas and associate degrees could significantly boost your career growth. Provide accurate details about the certifications and qualifications you have completed with the institution, qualification name, and dates.

4. Relevant Kitchen Experience: Provide details about your employment history in reverse chronological order starting with your current position first. If you have done any internships or apprenticeships related to the culinary sector, include these details under your working experience too. Remember you are not writing a recipe, see your job description more like a list of ingredients and use bulleted sentences rather than paragraphs.

5. Other Employment Experience: This will include events or work history outside of the formal culinary field, but which may be important for the employer to know about, like part-time server or waitering gigs or working at the school canteen This section is particularly important if you are looking for your first without having formal experience as a Kitchen Hand.

6. Skills Summary/Key Skills: Keywords from the job posting are like SEO for your resume. Incorporate them throughout your job descriptions, profile summary, and accomplish statements to reinforce your compatibility with the role.

7. Education/Licenses/Certifications/Relevant Coursework/Training: There are numerous training and development programs and courses available for Kitchen Hands to supplement their practical experience with theoretical knowledge Start with your formal catering certifications and post-school diplomas or accreditations if you are a member of a Culinary Training Institute. List any additional professional development courses that better prepared you to work in the culinary field like food preparation, wine pairing, or kitchen safety.

What to Highlight in a Kitchen Hand’s Resume

Kitchen hand photo round

Kitchen Hands are instrumental in maintaining the workflow of the kitchen, especially regarding prepping and cleaning processes. Regardless of your years of working experience in restaurants, hotels or catering events, employers and recruiters would be looking for specific things in your resume document to ensure that you are the right fit for their team.

The first aspect to highlight is the type of Kitchen Hand experience you have. You may be assigned to prepping duties or washing dishes as your main responsibility. With other roles in smaller establishments, your duties may overlap with that of a line cook where you also prepare salads and sauces. In top tier restaurants, Kitchen Hands could be solely responsible for cleaning and sanitizing duties. The Kitchen Hand’s duties can change depending upon the style and theme of the restaurant.

Secondly, you may want to indicate your level in the ‘’food chain’’ of the kitchen environment. Some Kitchen Hand is assisting the Head Chef, while others may be assigned to a Senior Cook or Pastry Chef. Restaurant Managers will also use Kitchen Hands to help with stock take, removing old stock and unloading new supplies and food items from delivery vehicles.

Next, you need to elaborate on your work environment. The role of a Kitchen Hand in a food truck will differ greatly from someone employed as one of Gordon Ramsey’s restaurant chains. Kitchen Hands can work in many different settings, including restaurants, corporate business canteens, fast-food outlets, hotel kitchens, hospitals, military services, and school cafeterias. Make sure that you highlight the types of industry areas you have worked at within your resume summary and in each job description.

*Cool Tip for a stellar resume

You can create an excellent first impression by showing them what you can do by giving by categorizing your primary duties and then providing concrete examples of how you would conduct those duties in your everyday job.

Below we have given a few examples of how to uniquely pitch your core kitchen skills that will grab the attention of hiring managers in an instant.

  • Clean Kitchen

Instead of just writing that you clean and sanitize all surfaces and floor areas, give specific details. For example, that you adhere to OHSA standards, are familiar with safely mixing cleaning chemicals. Also, mention the areas that you clean individually for instance work station areas, entire serving line, dining room, dish pits lunch room, storeroom, loading dock, and the cold storage container.

  • Wash Dishes

A monotonous task but absolutely vital to ensure the patron’s health and safety by preventing contamination of dishes and cutlery. To wash dishes properly, you need to maintain adequate water temperatures and use sufficient sanitizing liquid whether the washing is done by hand or in an automatic dishwasher. You could also be responsible for polishing silverware and do chemical dips of kitchen equipment.

  • Assist with Food Preparation

Food prepping is another function that deserves its own explanation. Are you peeling, dicing, and cutting vegetables or cracking eggs onto the grill? When assisting the pastry chef you may be required to mix dry items like flour, baking powder in sugar in exact quantities for which you would need to know about weighing ingredients, following recipes and of course, a steady hand. In some restaurants, Kitchen Hands could have full responsibility for preparing certain food items, therefore mention if you are tasked with preparing salads or sauces and desserts.

  • Maintain Kitchen

Kitchen maintenance is typically on the to-do list for most Kitchen Hands. If you are responsible for minor repairs on equipment, mention them by name, for instance, slicing and juicing equipment, hot racks, ovens or deep freezers. Supply and inventory management forms part of maintaining kitchen flow. Are you the person responsible for signing off supplier deliveries and updating inventory records on the system? Do you conduct a weekly stocktake of items such as condiments, baking supplies, or liqueurs and complete order forms for stock that needs to be replenished?

Make sure to include the following details

  • The locations you are available to work in and whether you are willing to travel to events if required
  • The results you have received during your culinary schooling if applicable
  • Special skills like equipment maintenance, inventory management systems, commercial safety practices, sushi prepping, or creating basic recipes
  • Ability to lift 10-15 pounds or 50 pounds for that matter
  • Any additional languages that you have a good command of
  • Safety certifications and food worker cards
  • Willingness to work shifts, during weekends, or in holiday periods.
  • As a last point list examples of the equipment or catering tools, you can use such as juicers automatic mixers, pasta rolling machines, chipping machines, specialty knives, coffee grinders, cutting and slicing equipment

Kitchen Hand Career Summary & Examples

F&B (Food and Beverage) Managers usually receive many candidate applications for permanent as well as vocational roles. Your resume needs to peak their interest instantly, and you can make that happen by lodging a picture-perfect career summary at the top of your resume page (this summary should be in bold and in a bigger font than the rest of your resume to be immediately visible).

A career summary consists of three parts: industry exposure, years of experience, and a wow factor (special accomplishment, multilingual, reputable accreditation). Also, keep this concise and to the point, in one paragraph containing between three and six sentences at most.

Examples of Kitchen Hand Career Summaries:

Career Summary 1

Dedicated Kitchen Hand with an impeccable work ethic of over five years and used to the long hours of a 24-hour fast food and dining establishment. Bringing meticulous cleaning and sanitation skills supplemented by an advanced certificate in Restaurant Safety and Hygiene Practices.

Career Summary 2

A confident, trustworthy, and diligent Kitchen Hand who takes great pride in facilitating zero-disruption workflow processes in high-volume commercial kitchen environments. A specialist in cutting and slicing, gained from a decade of work tenure and numerous culinary courses and workshops. Conversant in Mandarin, which assists significantly in collaborative communication between Korean kitchen staff and the restaurant manager.

Career Summary 3

Highly adept Kitchen Hand in the areas of kitchen cleanliness and inventory management. Demonstrated capabilities of maintaining stock and inventory records. Holds an Associates Degree in Culinary Arts. Also, comfortable in substituting for line cooks where needed in the preparation of gourmet pastries and desserts.

Kitchen Hand Job Descriptions, Responsibilities and Duty Examples

An employer would expect to see the following proven foundational duties and skill sets within an applicant’s resume, depending on educational level and career stage.

Examples

A General Kitchen Hand may: 
  • Transfer food items between storage cupboards and workstations
  • Sort and remove trash and place them in the appropriate recycling bins
  • Responsible for sweeping and mopping keeping kitchen floor surfaces spotless at all times
  • Remove stacked dishes and hot trays after each service and place them in the dishwashing pit
  • Wrap sandwiches, burritos, and rotis for lunchtime deliveries
  • Fill beverage containers and brew coffee and tea on an hourly basis
  • Unload supplier trucks and carry items to relevant storage spaces
  • Clean fridges and freezers weekly disposing of expired items appropriately
A Prep Kitchen Hand in Cleaning and Sanitation activities may:
  • Scrub, wipe, and polish kitchen counters, dishwasher areas, melanin floors, wooden chairs, and tables regularly
  • Sanitize dishwashing equipment, kitchen machinery and cold storage areas with an appropriate amount of chemicals
  • Clean individual workstations during and after service
  • Use a high-pressure washer to wash and rinse pots, pans, utensils, plates, and glasses
  • Wash, dry and polish cutlery, glasses, and dishes
A Head Kitchen Hand involved in Prepping activities may:
  • Assist cooks and chefs in meal preparation
  • Place all necessary ingredients on each workstation according to the cooking or baking needs of each area
  • Prepare cold and warm salads in accordance with predetermined recipes
  • Create sauces and toppings from scratch
  • Read out food order slips to the cooks and chefs
  • Place completed orders on serving trays for the serving staff
  • Slice, cut and dice vegetables before the cooking process commences
  • Place bulk food trays over hot racks in the dish-up and plating area
  • Use manual and electrical appliances for cleaning, peeling, slicing and trimming of fruits and vegetables
  • Weigh, measure and mix baking ingredients as per the Pastry Chef’s instructions

Highlight Your Accomplishments

When writing your accomplishment section, you may be tempted to copy and paste the list of duties you performed as detailed in your job description. Keep in mind that there is a considerable difference between accomplishments and activities. To ideate, your accomplishments, think about what you are most proud of what you have achieved in your previous roles that resulted in positive feedback from your supervisor.

The impact of accomplishments statements can be amplified by quantifying your achievements into numerical values, specified time frames, frequencies, or improvement percentages.

When writing down your accomplishments, try to answer questions such as “How much?” or “How many?”

Examples:

  • Provided kitchen hand services to three service events simultaneously, every day of the week achieving a zero error result.
  • Researched alternatives for manual dishwashing equipment which led to the purchase of a fully automated commercial dishwashing machine resulting in a 50% reduction of dishwashing time.
  • Streamlined Kitchen Workflow procedures, by changing the prepping food order which shortened the food processing time with 30%.

Kitchen Hand Education Section Example

The education section in your Kitchen Hand resume should still receive the appropriate amount of attention even if you do not have formal degrees or diplomas. Professional development programs courses, workshops, and even in-service training may be listed in your education section.

In short, indicate What, Where and When regarding your qualifications, certifications or courses or workshops completed.

This is how you may list your qualifications: First, the start and finish date, then the qualification’s title, followed by the institution name, city, and state abbreviation.

List your high school diploma details similarly, but only include this when you have less than five years of working experience.

Here are some examples of a Kitchen Hand’s Resume in terms of education:

2018 – ServSafe Certified, Udemy, Online

2016 – 2018 Associate Degree in Culinary Arts, Kingsborough Community College, Brooklyn, NY

2015 – First Aid/CPR Diploma, Red Cross Academy, Online

2015 Food Service Supervisor (FS), American Culinary Federation, LA

2014 Cook’s Helper Certificate, Oasis College, Shelton, CT

2012 Food Handler Certification, Texas State University, Swan Community and Technical College, WA

2011 – Certificate in Advanced Culinary Techniques, Tampa Chefs Academy, FL

Kitchen Hand Skills

The catering field requires specific technical skills, but prospective employers would also be looking for other skills, called soft skills. These are the main types of skills that will speak to your fit as a potential employee who will add value to the establishment and be a valuable asset to the kitchen team.

Technical Skills Examples

  • Educational Attainment: A university degree is not required to become a Kitchen Hand, but if you want to have a better chance of moving up into a Chef or Food and Beverage Manager role later, it will be an advantage to have some form of tertiary education in the culinary or hospitality industry. Bachelors in Hotel Management or Culinary Arts.
  • Technical Aptitude: Food hygiene knowledge and familiarity with proper cleaning and sanitizing procedures are crucial for a Kitchen Hand position. Then comes verbal communication skills, not only shouting out ‘’yes Chef!” a few hundred times per day, but also relaying messages and giving feedback during the prepping process. Kitchen Hands typically work long hours, and physical dexterity, fitness, and endurance are essential. Numerical and mathematical adeptness is required for counting stock, measuring, and weighing ingredients. You also need to be highly task-orientated as the job can be quite monotonous at times (and the carrots you dice at the beginning, and the end of your prep should be the same size). You would also need excellent vision and eye-hand coordination for obvious reasons when one is working with knives, cutters, and slicers all day long.
  • Other Technical Skills: Food Ingredients, Food Storage, Food Characteristics, Specialty Knives, Kitchen Workflow Processes, Slicing, Cutting and Dicing Equipment, Inventory management, Booking systems, Physically fit, Budgets, Project Management, Spreadsheets, Mixing Ingredients, Food Preparing, Sanitation Chemicals, Industrial Dishwashers and Power Cleaners Quality Control, Kitchen Safety Requirements, Dexterity, Sense of Taste, Sense of Smell, Kitchen Management, Prioritizing Order, Task Allocation, Culinary Equipment, Recipes, and Menus.

Soft Skill Examples

  • Social Orientation
  • Team Player
  • Reliable
  • Hardworking
  • Communication
  • Independent
  • Stress Tolerance
  • Stamina
  • Personal Hygiene
  • Multitasking
  • Enthusiastic
  • Diplomatic
  • Accountable
  • Deadline Driven
  • Energetic
  • Collaborative
  • Cooperative
  • Customer Service
  • Detail Orientated
  • Process Driven

Qualifications/Certifications associated with Kitchen Hands

Young Apprenticeship in Hospitality Certificate in Food Hygiene Certified Culinarian (CC)
Culinary Techniques Course Diploma in Food Production Principles of Dining Room Service
Bachelor in Culinary Arts Professional Kitchen Hand Certificate ServSafe Food & Safety Training
Project Management Diploma Baking and Pastry Specialist CertificateHigh School Diploma

Action Verbs for your Kitchen Hand Resume

Coordinating
Scheduling

Making

Checking
Problem Solving
Improving
Organizing
Preparing
Cleaning
Mopping
Sanitizing
Slicing
Sweeping
Cutting
Mixing
Plating
Labeling
Storing
Creating
ListeningPrioritizing

Industries using Kitchen Hands:

  • Restaurants
  • Pubs
  • Holiday Resorts and Wedding Venues
  • Event Companies
  • Catering Consultants
  • Hospitals
  • Corporate Facilities
  • Trade Shows
  • Exhibitions
  • Conventions
  • Hotels
  • Diners
  • Office Canteens
  • School Cafeterias

Professional information on Kitchen Hands

Sectors: Food & Beverage, Hospitality, Events, Tourism, Government, Education
Career TypeFunctional, Preparation, Sanitation
Person type:  Worker, Assistant, Helper, Prepping Worker, Washer
Education levelsFrom High School Diploma to Bachelor’s Degree
Salary indication$26,140 and $34,760 per annum (Salary.com)
Labor market: Subject to 8% growth from 2016 – 2026 (BLS)
Organizations: Hospitals, Restaurants, Pubs, Hotels, Catering Venues, Holiday Resorts, Fast Food Establishments, Schools, Military Establishments

Download Kitchen Hand Resumes in PDF

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