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    Chef CV: Skills, ATS Keywords & Examples

    Chef CVs are scanned for the kitchens you've worked in, the cuisines you know, and proof you perform under pressure on service. Lead with that and the page does its job.

    Hard skills to highlight

    • Cuisine specialisms (e.g. French, Italian, pastry)
    • Kitchen sections (sauce, larder, grill, pastry)
    • Food hygiene and HACCP certification
    • Menu development and costing
    • Stock control and ordering
    • Kitchen management / brigade supervision

    Soft skills that matter

    • Calm under pressure on service
    • Speed and consistency
    • Team leadership
    • Creativity and palate

    ATS keywords to include

    • food hygiene / HACCP
    • menu development
    • food cost / GP
    • kitchen management
    • covers / service
    • stock control
    • mise en place

    Sample Chef summary

    “Chef de partie with 6 years in 2-AA-rosette kitchens. Strong on sauce and larder sections, food-hygiene certified, and consistent through 200-cover services. Helped develop a seasonal menu that lifted GP 6%.”

    How to structure a Chef CV

    • Name the venues, calibre (rosette/Michelin/covers), and cuisines you've worked in.
    • List food-hygiene/HACCP certification — it's a hard requirement.
    • Quantify scale: covers per service, brigade size, GP/food-cost improvements.
    • Show progression through kitchen sections or ranks.

    Common Chef CV mistakes

    • Not naming venue calibre, covers, or cuisine type.
    • Omitting food-hygiene certification.
    • No numbers on covers, team size, or cost control.
    • Listing dishes instead of skills and impact.

    See how your Chef CV scores

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