Line Cook

This reading sits behind the What a Trade Is panel for the trade named below. The panel gives the trade in 250 words; this gives the trade its context — what the work is, how it is learned here, and what it costs and pays.

The panel text

What. A line cook turns an order ticket into a plate in minutes, a hundred times a night, to the same standard every time. The kitchen is a factory that runs on knives and timing.

Tools. Chef's knife, paring knife, sheet pans, sauté pans, tongs, thermometer, the mise en place — everything cut, measured and within reach before service.

A day. Prep from 1 pm: stocks, sauces, vegetables, proteins portioned. Service from 5: read the tickets, fire, plate, wipe the rim, call "hands." Break down, clean, log temperatures, restock.

Pay. $30k entry to $55k for a strong line cook; sous chef and chef beyond.

Path. Universal core → knife skills → stocks and sauces → garde manger → meats → international → plating → kitchen operations. Credentials: ServSafe Food Handler, ACF Certified Culinarian.

See it. The historic kitchen line, Gallery G7, and the café — staffed by hospitality students.

Reading further

The panel's series (What a Trade Is) hangs together in Gallery G10, the Hall of Makers. Each panel in the series is printed at 48 inches on aluminum composite, lent to schools and libraries, and archived here with its reading.

The program behind the panel: Culinary Arts

9.0–12.0 months full-time. Curriculum: Knife skills; stocks/sauces; garde manger; meats; international cuisine; plating; kitchen ops.

Courses

• 1. Universal Core: Safety, Math, Communication & Career — 148 hr (core), $1,185
• 2. Knife skills — 146 hr (trade), $1,925
• 3. Stocks/sauces — 146 hr (trade), $1,925
• 4. Garde manger — 146 hr (trade), $1,925
• 5. Meats — 146 hr (trade), $1,925
• 6. International cuisine — 146 hr (trade), $1,925
• 7. Plating — 146 hr (trade), $1,925
• 8. Kitchen ops — 146 hr (trade), $1,925
• 9. Capstone Project — 216 hr (capstone), $2,160
• 10. Externship / Worksite Placement — 324 hr (externship), $1,295
• 11. Certification Exam Preparation — 90 hr (exam_prep), $900

Credentials: ACF Certified Culinarian; ServSafe Food Handler.

Every course above carries a written exam, an observed skills demonstration, a signed log and a safety audit; the program ends with the capstone, the externship and the credential exam.