Head chefs must come out of the kitchen, warns survey

Head chefs are increasingly required to be the face of their restaurant, a study has concluded.

The survey of 45 chefs by Chess Partnership also found that they need to act as financially savvy partners in the business.

The role of head chef has changed over the years and being a leader in the kitchen is no longer enough on its own, said Chess.

Customers are increasingly sophisticated and want more open communication between the kitchen, service teams and themselves, it argued.

"Diners are now armed with more information then ever before and have greater expectations of their ‘meal experience'," it said.

"Diners are becoming more savvy and seek a restaurant where the chef is both visible and accessible," it added.

The survey also found that the industry is still dogged by skills shortages and saddled with an image of long-hours, low pay and poor working conditions.

The skills gap remains a serious concern, with the current number of trained and qualified chefs still not meeting demand. And there are worries that NVQ courses are simply not producing people of the right calibre or with the right skills.

Tighter revenue controls have forced businesses to reduce training and development costs and streamline their workforce, compounding the problem.

"As an industry whose kitchen brigades have been streamlined to reduce headcounts, the working-time directive has had little impact, pay is inconsistent and split-shifts are still common-practice," said the Chess study.

"There is a lack of consistency in the use of the traditional culinary titles which do not fairly reflect the experience required or salary paid," it added.

by Nic Paton

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