Kitchen Hand duties and responsibilities

The primary duty of a Kitchen Hand is to ensure the kitchen and service areas are clean and working efficiently to deliver excellent service to diners. Some of their main duties and responsibilities include:

• Washing, disinfecting and polishing dishware based on company procedures
• Maintaining order and cleanliness of the kitchen, food preparation areas and service areas based on industry and company standards
• Cleaning general utensils and kitchen equipment
• Cooking, toasting and heating food under the supervision of Line Chefs
• Assembling and preparing food ingredients for cooking
• Restocking kitchen supplies and maintaining equipment as needed
• Packing food and drinking trays for serving
• Weighing, transferring, checking and storing food ingredients

Kitchen Hand skills and qualifications

A successful Kitchen Hand candidate will have various prerequisite skills and qualifications needed to perform duties effectively. These include:

• Knowledge of dining room setup
• Solid understanding of food handling, sanitation and prevention of food-borne illnesses
• Ability to work well with their hands
• Excellent hand-eye coordination
• Physical strength and the ability to lift heavy loads
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills

Kitchen Hand experience requirements

Kitchen Hand positions often have no experience requirements because the job is an entry role. However, some employers prefer candidates who have experience in the hospitality and food business. Candidates who have worked in restaurants, fast food, commercial kitchens and catering are ideal for the role as they often have experience with food preparation and sanitation. Kitchen Hand candidates can gain valuable experience through volunteering and social work. Those that have professional training usually complete some fieldwork as part of their studies.

Kitchen Hand education and training requirements

Kitchen Hand candidates have no specific education or training requirements for employment. However, some employers prefer applicants who have qualifications related to the food industry. Acceptable qualifications include a Level 1 Award in Introduction to Employment in the Hospitality Industry, Level 1 Certificate in General Hospitality and Level 1 Certificate in General Cookery. Employers also consider applicants who have completed a Hospitality Team Member intermediate apprenticeship. Some organisations will accept candidates who have experience working in a kitchen if they have GCSEs at grades 9 to 2 in English and maths.

Kitchen Hand salary expectations

According to Indeed Salaries, the average salary for a Kitchen Hand in the UK is £8.72 per hour. Actual salary may depend on the employer, industry, location, qualifications, exact job duties and responsibilities and experience.

Job description samples for related positions

Here are job description samples for related positions if you are not looking to recruit Kitchen Hands:

• Kitchen Manager
• Kitchen Porter