Work Environment
Commis Chefs typically work in the following Career Sectors:
Videos & Interviews
Videos on the Web
- Commis Chef- from: Youtube Search
Most commonly reported Work Activities
- Developing and Building Teams Encouraging and building mutual trust, respect, and cooperation among team members.
- Organising, Planning, and Prioritising Work Developing specific goals and plans to prioritise, organise, and accomplish your work.
- Coaching and Developing Others Identifying the developmental needs of others and coaching, mentoring, or otherwise helping others to improve their knowledge or skills.
- Making Decisions and Solving Problems Analysing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
- Training and Teaching Others Identifying the educational needs of others, developing formal educational or training programs or classes, and teaching or instructing others.
- Scheduling Work and Activities Scheduling events, programs, and activities, as well as the work of others.
- Thinking Creatively Developing, designing, or creating new applications, ideas, relationships, systems, or products, including artistic contributions.
- Coordinating the Work and Activities of Others Getting members of a group to work together to accomplish tasks.
- Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
- Getting Information Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
The Work
A Commis Chef is essentially a trainee position, working in a kitchen environment to learn about cooking techniques through practice.
The work of a Commis Chef is all about attention to detail. Commis Chef's will start by learning basic knife skills, basic sauces, salads and cold dishes and progress to more complicated dishes through time.
Work also involves responsibility for checking food stocks - reporting on shortages, throwing out food that is close to expiry and keeping the larder areas in good order.
At all times a Commis Chef is expected to work to established health and safety guidelines. This includes keeping the work and food preparation areas impeccably clean and ensuring spillages are dealt with immediately. Personal hygiene must be maintained to high standards at all times throughout the working shift.
All food must be prepared promptly and presented to a high standard for the customer. Commis Chefs spend long hours on their feet in a hot busy kitchen environment, which can be very satisfying for those with a passion for their work.
Work is likely to involve early morning starts or late night finishes depending on the type of restaurant.
Employment as a Commis Chef can be found in a variety of hospitality environments including; hotels, restaurants, pubs, cruise ships and cafes.
Most commonly reported Work Tasks
- Monitor sanitation practices to ensure that employees follow standards and regulations.
- Check the quality of raw or cooked food products to ensure that standards are met.
- Determine production schedules and staff requirements necessary to ensure timely delivery of services.
- Check the quantity and quality of received products.
- Supervise or coordinate activities of cooks or workers engaged in food preparation.
- Determine how food should be presented and create decorative food displays.
- Analyse recipes to assign prices to menu items, based on food, labor, and overhead costs.
- Instruct cooks or other workers in the preparation, cooking, garnishing, or presentation of food.
- Prepare and cook foods of all types, either on a regular basis or for special guests or functions.
- Recruit and hire staff, such as cooks and other kitchen workers.
Further Information
- Commis Chef - from: N.C.S. [UK]
Qualities - Commis Chef
A genuine passion for food and cooking is necessary to really thrive in this position. It is important to show creativity and originality in your food presentation and be open to learning from other Chefs in the kitchen.
As with all chef positions, Commis Chefs are expected to follow health and safety guidelines and maintain personal hygiene to high standards.
In this line of work it is vital to be able to listen and communicate effectively within a team environment to ensure the kitchen runs smoothly and efficiently.
Being organised and able to multitask is key to keeping on top of your work in this fast paced environment. Attention to detail is also an important quality.
Interests - Commis Chef
This occupation is typically suited for people with the following Career Interests:
Naturalist
Not surprisingly, some aspect of the natural sciences will run through the Naturalist's interests - from ecological awareness to nutrition and health. People with an interest in horticulture, land usage and farming (including fish) are Naturalists.
Some Naturalists focus on animals rather than plants, and may enjoy working with, training, caring for, or simply herding them. Other Naturalists will prefer working with the end result of nature's produce - the food produced from plants and animals. Naturalists like solving problems with solutions that show some sensitivity to the environmental impact of what they do. They like to see practical results and prefer action to talking and discussing.
Enterprising
Enterprising people like situations that involve using resources for personal or corporate economic gain. Such people may have an opportunistic frame of mind, and are drawn to commerce, trade and making deals. Some pursue sales and marketing occupations. Many will eventually end up owning their own business, or in management roles in larger organisations. They tend to be very goal-oriented and work best when focused on a target. Some have an entrepreneurial inclination.
Creative
Creative people are drawn to careers and activities that enable them to take responsibility for the design, layout or sensory impact of something (visual, auditory etc). They may be atrracted to the traditional artistic pursuits such as painting, sculpture, singing, or music. Or they may show more interest in design activities, such as architecture, animation, or craft areas, such as pottery and ceramics.
Creative people use their personal understanding of people and the world they live in to guide their work. Creative people like to work in unstructured workplaces, enjoy taking risks and prefer a minimum of routine.
Entry - Commis Chef
Apprenticeship Route
The official entry route for a Commis Chef is through undertaking an apprenticeship.
Click here to find information on the Commis Chef apprenticeship
Pathways into Commis Chef
FET Traineeship Patisserie & Confectionary City & Guilds level 3 FET Traineeship search
FET Centre PLC search courses Culinary arts & Professional Cookery NFQ level 5-6 Search our PLC Coursefinder
Apprenticeship Commis Chef NFQ level 6 over 2 years Search apprenticeships
Higher Education CAO college entry A culinary arts degree with an Institutes of Technology/ Tech Universities. Courses generally include modules in culinary techniques, pastry, baking and desserts, food and nutrition, food science, health and safety, meal service and international cuisine among others Search CAO courses
There are also a range of private courses, such as the Professional Three Month Certificate Cookery Course run by Dublin Cookery School, Blackrock which is widely recognised as a credible and practical route to acquiring the expertise and skills needed to pursue a career in the food industry.
Professional Development
The next step for a Commis Chef is to Chef de Partie who is solely responsible for one area of the kitchen and all the chefs working in that area. This could be the hot section serving up the mains, the pantry, desserts, starters, pastry or a number of other sub-sections depending on the particular kitchen. To qualify for promotion, a Commis Chef would be expected to have served 4 - 5 years in a busy kitchen and it may also improve your chances if you have a qualification such as BA in Culinary Arts.
If you eventually want to keep climbing the chef career ladder, you may aspire to be a Sous chef or head chef one day, and these positions requires a great deal of experience in the kitchen.
Professional organisations sometimes also offer training or promote training providers.
Restaurants Association of Ireland Irish Hospitality Institute
Last Updated: October, 2023
Pay & Salary - Commis Chef
Salary Range (thousands per year)* €28k - €38k
Salaries vary by employer, location, duties. role, experience, and location.
Commis 1st Year €28,000 €30,000 €32,000
Commis 2nd Year €30,000 €32,000 €33,000
Commis 3rd Year €31,000 €33,000 €34,000
Commis 4th Year €35,000 €36,000 €38,000
Data Source(s):
Excel / Indeed/ Glassdoor
Last Updated: March, 2024
* The lower figures typically reflect starting salaries. Higher salaries are awarded to those with greater experience and responsibility. Positions in Dublin sometimes command higher salaries.
View Salary information from Indeed.ie
Note: data not aways available
Labour Market Updates - Commis Chef
This occupation has been identified as a Job in Demand by the most recent National Skills Bulletin.
This information has been derived from the Solas National Skills Bulletin (2023).
The five-year employment growth rate was negative for chefs; despite a growth of over 5,000 persons employed since 2021, employment levels in 2022 remained below pre-COVID-19 levels. One half of those employed as chefs were non-Irish citizens, far exceeding the national average of 19%. The number of employment permits issued grew from an average of approximately 500 per annum between 2019 and 2021 to over 2,100 in 2022; this is in line with the overall increase in employment permits issued in 2022.
A high volume of vacancies advertised through DSP Jobs Ireland (primarily for chef de partie roles), and the increased volume of advertised vacancies in the OVATE data, indicate that demand was strong for chefs in 2022. However, it should also be noted that there was a relatively high share of jobseekers registered with the DSP in December 2022 who indicated that they had previously been employed in food preparation trades. Despite an increase between 2020 and 2021, output from the further and higher education and training system has been, in the main, declining in recent years. As such, skill shortages persist.
Useful Contacts - Commis Chef
-
Fáilte Ireland
- Amiens Street, Dublin 1
- (01) 884 7700
- [email protected]
- Click Here
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Restaurant's Association of Ireland
- 11 Bridge Court, Citygate, St Augustine Street, Dublin 8
- 01 6779901
- [email protected]
- Click Here
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Irish Hotels Federation
- 13 Northbrook Road, Dublin 6
- 01 497 6459
- [email protected]
- Click Here
