Tag: Chef Interview Tips

Laurence Rogers- Excel Recruitment Senior Hospitality Consultant

Why Chefs Should Use LinkedIn More

Posted on | by Aisling Rafferty

Senior Hospitality Consultant Laurence Rogers on why chefs need to be making the most of their LinkedIn profiles and his top tips for getting started…

 

I spend quite a lot of my time as a Recruiter on LinkedIn and it always surprises me how hospitality people, and especially Chefs, seem to put the bare minimum into their profiles on the platform. Funnily enough, the content that I enjoy the most comes from Chefs who do use LinkedIn to their advantage and showcase the foods, brands, and concepts that they are currently working on. It helps me keep in touch with culinary trends both nationally and internationally while putting industry experts as well as up and coming talent on my radar. But why do I recommend LinkedIn over other social media platforms….

Online Community

For one, LinkedIn gives you access to an online community of likeminded people working in your industry. You can join groups, build a network of professional chefs, swap ideas, pictures, recipes, techniques, projects… the list goes on! You get an opportunity to interact with industry experts and peers as well as the chance to become a mentor and influencer and build your own personal brand. LinkedIn is the only platform that allows you to engage with your industry on a professional level.

Find Jobs

This is a fantastic way to find a new job as LinkedIn is like an interactive jobs board! Not only can you see what jobs are available, you can also see who is already working there, what kind of food they produce and what kind projects they are working on. You no longer have to use a job advert to try and work out what the company would be like to work for, you can just pop on to their company page and do all your research on LinkedIn.

Career progression

LinkedIn will, without doubt, give you access as a professional to a lot more opportunities. If you can get your talent and experience across on your LinkedIn profile, it will open all sorts of doors for you. The best profiles will get noticed first but how do you make sure that your profile gets noticed…

Profile Tips

  1. Profile picture – keep it professional, make sure your chef whites are spotless and make sure you are smiling or at least look happy!
  2. Keep your dates of employment up to date – this is essential, we know chefs are not known for their amazing CVs so this is a great way around it.
  3. Add specific skills and interests – Cooking techniques, pastry skills, butchery, zero waste… the list goes on! Let people know what makes you stand out.
  4. Content, content, content… – Like posts from other Chefs, post links to videos and articles, post pictures of your own dishes, share recipes… The more active you are online, the more doors it will open for you.

Chef Job Interviews: The Do’s and Don’ts

Posted on | by Aisling Rafferty

Excel’s General Manager Shane Mclave began his career as a chef before making the move into chef and hospitality recruitment. He’s been interviewing chefs for years and has seen it all in terms of the dos and don’ts. Read his top tips for chef job interviews here-

I have now been interviewing chefs for almost as many years as I was a chef myself and I can safely say that when it comes to certain really common questions, 50% of all chefs don’t have the answers. Many chefs, while great at what they do in the kitchen, don’t have the tools they need to prove their ability to manage a kitchen in a job interview. So what are the must-haves when going for an interview, or for that matter, what do you need to know to be able to build yourself a successful career as a chef?

Know your numbers

I understand that costs will vary from restaurant to restaurant depending on what you sell but you don’t need to be an accountant to have a basic understanding of costings. This is crucial in an interview. In broad terms:

If you are selling lobster for €30 euro, which costs you €12 to make, and sell a pizza, that costs you €2.50, for €28euro it goes without saying you will make a lot more money selling pizza then you will selling lobster. This is why pizza restaurants are everywhere and lobster restaurants are not.

When it comes to food and labour cost there is no exact formula but if you follow the rough rule of “a third, a third, and a third” you’ll be headed in the right direction. Slightly better again, would be “30, 30, 40”. This means meaning no more than 30% food cost (25%-27% would be optimal) keeping labour costs 30% and the rest should cover the cost of running the business and if you’re lucky, a profit at the end of the year.

For chefs trying to keep the kitchen running at less than 30% food cost, this works more or less in reverse i.e., if a starter costs you €3.00 to make then you multiply this by 3.5 and sell it for €10.50, if something costs you €10, then you sell it for €35.

With the numbers taken care of now comes the most important thing of all-

The Food

It’s amazing how many interviews I have sat through with chefs who don’t mention food at all. While HACCP and how you work in a team are important, when people hire a chef they above all want someone with a genuine love and passion for food and who’ll bring that enthusiasm into their kitchen. If you don’t have a passion for food perhaps you need a change of career or at least a change in kitchens.

I always ask chefs in interview ‘what the last restaurant that you ate in?’ or ‘what do you like to cook at home if you’re entertaining?’ and it’s staggering how many times I am met with a blank stare. I’ve gotten this response when interviewing seriously established head chefs from the likes of 4* hotels. Personally, I’m far more interested and excited to interview a second-year commis chef who goes foraging on their days off or grows herbs and vegetables at home and the same will be true for any potential employer so be sure to make the food central to everything you discuss in an interview.

Dress for success

Just because you wear whites all week doesn’t mean you can’t dress to impress in an interview. All good chefs are neat and clean in the kitchen and if you can’t groom yourself or dress in a professional manner then what are the chances won’t keep the kitchen neat and tidy or at least that is what a potential employer will think of you.

Chef Trials- the Do’s and Don’ts

Posted on | by Aisling Rafferty

Interviews for chef jobs often take the form of a working interview. This type of interview can take many forms including an on the job trial. This can be daunting but is also a great opportunity to see first-hand how well you would fit into your potential new job.

The Basics

While the procedure might be a little different from a traditional job interview, there are still basics that are crucial to interview success. Don’t be late, look presentable with hair tied back, clean nails and shoes and maintain a polite and professional demeanour at all times.

When you get asked to come for a trial ask for as much information as you can. What should I wear? or Should I bring my own knives? might sound like trivial, even silly, questions but the Head Chef will appreciate that you care enough to ask and knowing the right answer will mean you trial will get off on the right foot and you don’t start the shift stressed out looking for a spare knife!

Research

Research the restaurant/ hotel- the menu, the reviews, their social media platforms. Having as much information as possible and understanding the business, the type of food served, how it’s presented etc. before you even start your trial will help ease your nerves and means you can hit the ground running when you get into the kitchen.

Keep Your Eyes Open

The Head Chef will take you on a tour of the kitchen before you start working and introduce you to fellow Chefs. This is an excellent opportunity to understand the culture of the kitchen and also learn where everything you will need on your trial, like ingredients or utensils are kept. Take in as much as you can, it will save time later and try to call fellow Chefs by their names. It will leave a positive impression that you will fit quickly and it will make asking questions easier.

Be On Your Toes

Wash your hands the minute you enter the kitchen. Although this should be really obvious, kitchen jitters may get the better of you. Don’t forget to do this often. As soon as the Head Chef assigns you a work station, wash it and prepare whatever tools you need. Clean continuously throughout the shift.

Ask questions, it’s easier to ask someone rather than presume something, get it wrong and have to do something again or wander around the kitchen looking for utensils, wasting time. Take note of the answers and don’t ask the same questions repeatedly. Again, the Head Chef will take note of your initiative and your ability to adapt quickly.

Work quickly

Understand how long a particular task should take you and focus on completing it in that timeframe. Work as speedily as you can but remember the quality of your end product is more important than the time you did it in. Taking a bit longer to complete a job is better than trying to show the Chef how fast you can work and end up with a product that cannot be served. Ask the Chef specifically how he/she wants things prepared or served. Immediately after you finish a job, clean down your section and ask what else you can help with.

The number one rule- do not stand around and do nothing. Show initiative and an eagerness to work hard and be helpful.

Remember that this trial is a two way street. The trial is about figuring whether you are a good fit for the kitchen, and whether the kitchen is a good fit for you. Do you like the culture and policies, could you see yourself working here?

Good luck!

 

Tips For Chef Interviews

Posted on | by admin

Tips for before the interview:

  1. Visit the company website and social media pages to get a good understanding of the business and think of some questions.
  2. Plan your route to the interview so you don’t get lost and turn up late!
  3. Prepare your clothes the night before- chefs should look neat.
  4. Look at the existing menus and have dishes in mind that you would add to it.
  5. Have a number saved in your phone that you can ring should you get lost.
  6. Aim to be there 10 minutes early.

During the interview:

  1. When the interviewer enters the room stand up and shake their hand.
  2. Have your mobile off and put away.
  3. Listen to everything the interviewer says and never interrupt them.
  4. Always say thank you and please if you are offered something like a class of water.
  5. If you are given a tour of the kitchen, walk alongside them, not on front and not behind.
  6. Keep slang and abbreviations for more casual conversation- you’re not a CDP you’re a chef de partie, unless they use the former.

Working interviews:

Some chef interviews require the potential candidate to showcase some of their skills in a “working interview”. They are usually in one of the following formats.

Ready Steady Cook: Some interviewers will give you some product on a tray and ask you to cook a dish within a certain amount of time. This is to test your creative side and to see how well you work under time pressure.

Trial: Sometimes you will be asked to work a full or half shift in the hotel, bar or restaurant. Make sure that you ask if you are unsure how to cook something and make it apparent that you are part of the team. Look interested and ask for jobs if you run out of things to do.

Menu: Some businesses will ask you to prepare a menu prior to the interview and cook it there. Ensure that the dishes on your menu fit into the theme of the restaurant- don’t cook enchiladas if you are interviewing for an Indian place!

Trade test: This one is favoured by a lot of places. You might get asked to cook a classic or basic dish with your own twist. The purpose of this is test out your knowledge of how different foods work together and how they can be amended for modern tastes.

Questions:

You don’t get away with not having to answer questions about your career in a chef interview so we suggest you think about the following questions and how you would answer them for the formal part of the interview.

  • Why do you want the job?
  • What has been your biggest achievement in cheffing?
  • What are your weaknesses?
  • How do you manage time during busy periods?
  • What do you think you could add to our kitchen?

After the interview:

When you leave make sure you thank the people who have interviewed for their time and for asking to meet with you.

If we have set the interview up there is no need to go back to the company to ask for feedback, we’ll get it for you. Call us when you are finished your interview and let us know how you think it went; we’ll then get in touch and get some feedback on the other side.