Every professional kitchen runs on a ladder of titles, and the person reading your CV already knows what each rung means. A commis who writes “head chef duties” or a sous chef who never says how big the kitchen was gives the reader a reason to doubt the rest.
A chef CV is the document that records your kitchens, your rank in each and your qualifications, usually in two pages or fewer. These 12 chef CV examples run from commis to executive chef and include pastry, private, cruise ship, hotel and pub kitchens. They are written for the markets where “CV” is the normal word for a job application, including the UK, Ireland, Australia, the Gulf and Singapore, and each one opens in the Wensa CV builder from the button on its card.
How Employers Read a Chef CV
A head chef or hiring manager skims for three answers before reading anything else.
Which rung are you on?
Say it with your title, in the header and on every job. Titles do not map one-to-one across countries: a UK head chef often runs a single kitchen the way a US chef de cuisine does, while an executive chef usually sits above several kitchens. If your title is unusual for the region you are applying to, add a short descriptor in brackets.
What kind of kitchen was it?
Hotel, fine dining, gastropub, contract catering, cruise galley and test kitchen are different jobs. Start each entry with the type and size of the operation: seats, covers, outlets or passengers.
Who will vouch for you?
Kitchens are small worlds, and a phone call to a former head chef is normal. Include two referees from recent kitchens, or say that references are available on request when your current employer does not know you are looking.
12 Chef CV Examples, Commis to Executive Chef
Ranks and specialties alternate, so you can see how the same skills read at each step of the brigade.
Commis Chef
Commis is the bottom rung of the brigade, so this CV leans on training and reliability: a City & Guilds Level 2 Diploma in Professional Cookery, a Level 2 Award in Food Safety in Catering, and a year of real service in a hotel kitchen.
Callum is honest about scope. He assisted on sections, and he names what he owned outright: the breakfast mise en place and the staff meal.
- Qualifications are listed with the awarding body, so the reader can verify them
- A placement and a paid year both appear, so he is not just a student
- Scope is stated plainly, with no inflated job titles
Pastry Chef
Sophie splits her pastry work into viennoiserie and bakery output on one side and plated restaurant desserts on the other, then gives the volume for each. UK pastry employers range from hotel patisseries to bakery-cafes, so naming the type of unit helps the reader place you.
Her personal statement is two sentences, with the detail left for the career history.
Chef de Partie
A chef de partie owns a section (sauce, fish, larder, pastry) and trains the commis who work it. Aisha’s CV names the sections she has run, the commis she has trained and her Level 3 Diploma in Advanced Professional Cookery, which is what gets a CdP considered for a junior sous role.
Each job entry opens with the kitchen’s type and size, then the section she held.
Cruise Ship Chef
Ship galleys are production kitchens at scale: thousands of meals a day, tight storage and brigades drawn from many countries. Ravi’s CV leads with passenger numbers and team size, then shows the food-safety systems and audits he worked under.
Each contract is listed separately with ship class and dates, so gaps between contracts do not read as unexplained.
- Passenger and crew numbers establish scale in the first line
- Contract dates are explicit, which answers the gap question before it is asked
- Languages are listed with levels, which matters on mixed-nationality brigades
Chef
The plain “Chef” CV for a cook with about eight years behind them and real responsibility for a kitchen. Liam runs the pass most nights in a 70-seat restaurant, and the CV shows exactly how much of the kitchen is his.
A short career summary at the top, then reverse-chronological history, then qualifications: the structure employers across the UK and Ireland expect.
- Responsibilities are separated from results, so duties do not bury achievements
- Rank progression is visible from the job titles alone
- Two referees are named at the end, with their kitchens
Hotel Chef
Hotel kitchens in the Gulf recruit across the world, so Omar’s CV leads with the standard of the property, the outlets he covered and a multi-cuisine brigade, plus the languages he works in.
Hotels are listed by group and property, with title and scope beside each, so a recruiter scanning for a particular brand finds it fast.
Sous Chef
A sous chef CV has to show you can run the kitchen in the head chef’s absence. Charlotte’s personal statement states it directly, and her career history backs it with services led, rotas written and gross profit held.
Costs appear in pounds and gross profit rather than percentages of sales alone, the way many UK kitchens report them.
- Gross profit and wastage are quantified for the kitchen she ran
- Rota and ordering duties are named, not implied
- A brief stage entry shows she keeps learning from other kitchens
Private Chef
Private chef roles are chosen on discretion and range. Mateo’s CV describes clients without naming them, lists the dietary requirements he has cooked for and keeps his Certificate III in Commercial Cookery and Certificate IV in Kitchen Management in a clear qualifications block.
References are offered on request, which suits roles where clients value privacy.
Head Chef
Head chef means you own the kitchen: menu, team, costs and compliance. Oliver’s CV opens with that scope and proves it in numbers: gross profit, staff turnover and a clean inspection record.
He keeps it to two pages by trimming the commis years to a single line.
- Menu ownership and financial targets are stated up front
- Food hygiene rating and compliance are shown as results
- The earliest roles are compressed into one line, so recent work gets the space
Development Chef
Development chefs work in test kitchens, taking dishes from concept to something a factory can make. Mei-Ling’s CV lists products launched, trials run and cost per portion targets, along with the lab-style documentation she keeps.
It is a good example of moving from restaurants into food manufacturing without losing the culinary credibility.
Executive Chef
An executive chef CV is a management document. Thomas leads with venues overseen, annual food revenue and team size, then lists menu and sustainability projects as achievements rather than duties.
Titles are explained where they differ by country, so a reader outside Australia still understands the level.
Pub Chef
Pub kitchens run lean: a small brigade, a big menu and a Sunday that makes the week. Gareth’s CV shows covers for Sunday roasts, local sourcing and the team he runs, in a tone as direct as the job.
Real numbers (Sunday covers, local suppliers, food cost) beat adjectives every time.
Copy These Chef CV Personal Statements
A personal statement is two to four lines at the top of the CV. These three suit different stages; replace the bracketed details with your own facts.
A commis or junior chef statement
Use it when your experience is short and your training is the strongest evidence.
Commis chef with a City & Guilds Level 2 Diploma in Professional Cookery and [12] months in a [hotel] kitchen, rotating through [breakfast, larder and pastry]. Reliable on early starts, careful with allergens and keen to move up to chef de partie within [two years].
A head chef statement
Lead with the kitchen you own and the numbers you answer for.
Head chef with [11] years’ experience, currently running a [60]-cover restaurant with a brigade of [8]. Holds gross profit at [70%], writes [four] seasonal menus a year and maintains a Food Hygiene Rating of [5]. Looking to lead a larger, produce-led kitchen.
A statement for working abroad
If you are applying across borders, make your availability clear and keep the claims factual.
Chef de partie with [6] years in [five-star hotel] kitchens, fluent in [English and Arabic], and experienced in [multi-cuisine banquet production for up to 600 guests]. Available from [date]; [state your work-permit status in a short clause].
Writing a Chef CV, Section by Section
Most chef CVs follow one order: personal statement, key skills, career history, qualifications and training, referees. Two sections carry most of the weight.
One career-history entry
Open with the kitchen, give your rank, then three to five lines of scope and results. Keep the structure identical for every job so the reader can scan it.
[Sous Chef] | [Restaurant or hotel name], [Town] | [Mon YYYY] – [Present]
[Type of kitchen, e.g. 80-cover modern British restaurant, brigade of 9]
• [Responsibility, e.g. ran dinner service in the head chef’s absence]
• [Result with a number, e.g. cut wastage by 14% by tracking it daily]
• [People result, e.g. trained 4 commis to section standard]
Qualifications and training
List the awarding body, the level and the year. Put the credentials a kitchen will ask about first, such as your food safety award, at the top.
City & Guilds Level 3 Diploma in Advanced Professional Cookery, [College], [Year]
Level 2 Award in Food Safety in Catering, [Provider], [Year]
Allergen awareness training, [Provider], [Year]
Chef Qualifications by Country
Credentials differ by country, so name each one fully and say who awarded it. Here is what to look for in the markets where CVs are used most.
| Country | Common credential | What it shows | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| UK | City & Guilds Level 2 Diploma in Professional Cookery, then Level 3 Diploma in Advanced Professional Cookery | Core professional cookery skills, then advanced skills with supervision units | Level 3 builds on Level 2 or an equivalent qualification plus experience |
| Australia | SIT30821 Certificate III in Commercial Cookery; SIT40521 Certificate IV in Kitchen Management | Recognition as a trade cook, then a supervisory or team-leading role | Both belong to the national Tourism, Travel and Hospitality Training Package |
| Canada | Red Seal endorsement for the Cook trade | Skills recognised across provinces and territories | Cook carries Red Seal designation in every province and territory |
| Applying from the US | ServSafe Manager; ACF certifications | US food-safety and level credentials | Name the issuer in full, since readers elsewhere may not know them |
Sources: City & Guilds, training.gov.au and the Red Seal Program.
A local-authority guide states that in the UK food handlers do not have to hold a food hygiene certificate to prepare or sell food, but that food handlers, supervisors and managers must be adequately trained or instructed for their role, and the business must be able to show it (Westminster City Council). A current Level 2 Award is the simplest proof.
Getting Your Titles Right Across Borders
Titles are the most common source of confusion for chefs applying internationally. Use the one on your contract, then clarify the scope next to it.
- Executive chef. In hotels and groups it usually means oversight of several kitchens. State the number of venues.
- Head chef. Common in UK restaurants for the person running one kitchen. Add the covers and the brigade size.
- Chef de partie. A section chef. Name the section (sauce, fish, larder, pastry).
- Commis. A junior chef working under a chef de partie. If you were promoted, show both titles with dates.
Should I list a stage or a trial shift?
Yes, if it was in a kitchen whose name carries weight with the employer you are targeting. Give it one line with the kitchen, the dates and what you worked on, and keep it out of your main career history.
Chef CV Length, Photos and Format
Two pages is the sensible ceiling for most chefs, and one is enough for a commis or a first chef de partie job. Norms on photos and personal details differ by country and hotel group, so follow the application instructions: if a posting asks for a photo or date of birth, include it, and if it does not, leave them off.
Choose a clean layout. Our professional CV templates and one-page CV templates keep things simple, and our test of 602 templates found plain single-column layouts the most reliable for attaching the right title and dates to each job. Not sure whether you need a CV or a resume? Our CV vs resume guide explains it. Applying to a US employer? Use the chef resume examples instead.
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Chef CV FAQ
What should a chef CV include?
A short personal statement, key skills, reverse-chronological career history with the type and size of each kitchen, qualifications and training, and two referees. Add languages if you are applying abroad.
Is a chef CV different from a chef resume?
The content is the same: rank, kitchens, results and qualifications. The difference is convention. A CV is the standard word in the UK, Ireland, Australia and much of Europe and Asia, and it tends to carry a personal statement and referees. In the US the same document is called a resume.
How do I write a CV with no chef experience?
Lead with training and placements: your college diploma, kitchen placements, weekend jobs and the Level 2 food safety award. Describe what you did in numbers (covers, trays, shifts) and say what you want to learn next. The commis example above is a model.
Do I need a Level 2 food hygiene certificate to work as a chef in the UK?
Not by law. A local-authority guide states that food handlers do not have to hold a certificate, but businesses must make sure staff are adequately trained for their work and be able to show it. A current award is the simplest proof, so most CVs list one.
How should I list seasonal or short contracts?
Give each contract its own line with the venue and dates. Cruise and resort chefs often list every contract so that the gaps between them are explained. Group very short stints under one heading only if they were genuinely similar.
Can I use an overseas qualification in the UK or Australia?
List it with the awarding body, country and year, then add what it covers in a short clause. Do not assume it will be matched to a local level: employers decide for themselves, and licensing rules differ by country, so check the requirements for the job you are applying to.
Need a resume instead of a CV? See our Resume example for Chef.
