You Won’t Get Rich Cooking, But You Might Die Trying

Published on Monday, October 11, 2010, by Joyce Slaton / Edit Post

Chef Salaries

For a career that requires a lot from its workers—expensive degrees, unpaid internships, bone-crunchingly long days—being a cook pays pretty crappy. On average, annual salaries are about $57K for chefs de cuisine and $42K for sous-chefs, according to StarChefs.com's 2009 salary survey. Huh, that doesn't sound that bad! But wait. StarChefs.com's respondents are drawn from particularly high-end restaurants: 69 percent of them come from "small group" or single-unit independent restaurants. In other words, fine dining, not the Cheesecake Factory. This is what a group of fairly elite cooks make.

Break it down hourly and the picture gets pretty depressing. Especially when you realize you could make about the same amount of money driving a school bus. And get summers off.

 

ALLFood Media
POST A COMMENT |6 Comments

COMMENT

  • "the whole idea of a chef is terrible."

    intheweeds, did you perhaps flunk out of culinary school? or perhaps you are a server that has suffered far to much abuse from drug crazed or hungover chefs?

  • "Especially when you realize you could make about the same amount of money driving a school bus. And get summers off."

    Well, math was not the specialty of this article's author. School bus drivers make the about same amount PER HOUR as chefs but work only half the hours. This does NOT mean "make about the same amount of money". On an annual basis school bus drivers make half what chef's make...+READ

    "Especially when you realize you could make about the same amount of money driving a school bus. And get summers off."

    Well, math was not the specialty of this article's author. School bus drivers make the about same amount PER HOUR as chefs but work only half the hours. This does NOT mean "make about the same amount of money". On an annual basis school bus drivers make half what chef's make and have summers off.-COLLAPSE

  • actually some cooks are terribly underpaid. there are more and more people with serious food allergies that insist on dining out, and a cook can accidentally send one to the hospital. yes there are lots of cooks addicted to drugs or alcohol due to the high stress situations, but this happens at ANY job. and for the people working 60 to 80 hours a week, they are insane! there is so much more to...+READ

    actually some cooks are terribly underpaid. there are more and more people with serious food allergies that insist on dining out, and a cook can accidentally send one to the hospital. yes there are lots of cooks addicted to drugs or alcohol due to the high stress situations, but this happens at ANY job. and for the people working 60 to 80 hours a week, they are insane! there is so much more to life than just working like crazy...they need to lighten up, delegate their duties, and trust their fellow cooks to uphold the same standards.-COLLAPSE

  • this is irrelevant, and a bad comparison...

    bus drivers are responsible for the lives of hundreds of kids a day.

    chefs cook food for pretentious shitty foodies and ass hole yelp reviewers.

    the whole idea of a chef is terrible. make food for people who can, only afford it. waste a whole bunch of product during "refinement", and not to mention all of the alcohol and drugs that are a part of...+READ

    this is irrelevant, and a bad comparison...

    bus drivers are responsible for the lives of hundreds of kids a day.

    chefs cook food for pretentious shitty foodies and ass hole yelp reviewers.

    the whole idea of a chef is terrible. make food for people who can, only afford it. waste a whole bunch of product during "refinement", and not to mention all of the alcohol and drugs that are a part of every kitchen in the world.

    Fine dining is as selfish as it gets. Bus drivers deserve more. I think chefs and cooks wages are pretty accurate, even over paid. Granted, they do a alot of work, but really, when it boils down to it, its just food, no ones harmed. Oh, send back that over cooked steak? Chances are its gonna get thrown out and refired. Congratulations on wasting food.-COLLAPSE

  • Dude. nobody does 17 and a half hours 7 days a week. Top end places in Australia give you a 60-80 hour week.

  • Especially because the working week for a high-end restaurant is more like 100-120 hours (at least in Australia)
    enjoy your coke habit