This guide will help you hire kitchen staff and build a strong back-of-house team with the best job posting platforms, free job descriptions and proven retention strategies.
Best Places To Hire Kitchen Staff
Job growth in restaurants has steadily increased since 2020.
In fact, by the end of 2023, the restaurant industry became the second-largest private sector in the U.S., with 1.5 million jobs or 10% of the total workforce.
To effectively hire kitchen staff and hospitality professionals, building relationships and networking within the local community, with other hospitality companies, and industry professionals is essential.
Attending industry expos, job fairs, and food festivals gives you the chance to meet and interview potential event staff and hospitality staff for roles in banquet halls and event spaces.
Creating relationships with other event or hospitality companies can help you find cooks and meet the specific needs of different venues.
Networking can provide consistent access to potential hires who can get the job done right and is a strategic way to recruit kitchen staff for a variety of hospitality settings.
With many other dining establishments vying for the same talent, you need to be strategic in your hiring process.
Working with agencies or platforms that have a vast network of pre-vetted candidates can streamline the process and help you find staff tailored to your specific needs.
Below, we’ve listed various places where you can start posting a job.
Hiring Kitchen Staff on Job Platforms
General job boards like ZipRecruiter, Indeed and Monster offer broad reach but often attract unqualified candidates, leading to longer hiring times and higher costs.
Creating job postings for open positions on job boards is important to reach a wide audience and attract qualified kitchen staff.
Using job boards helps get the word out about open positions via online postings, making it easier to fill vacancies efficiently.
A platform like OysterLink is built for the service industry, helping employers find qualified candidates for just $150 per post.
Its streamlined posting process saves time, so hiring managers can focus on choosing the right talent — not getting stuck in a slow recruitment cycle.
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Hiring on Social Media
Using your company’s social media accounts to advertise job openings isn’t new.
According to a survey, 94% of recruiters say they use social media for hiring.
With so many people active on social media, it’s a smart way for employers to reach potential hires quickly through employee networks.
Social media also makes it easy for current staff to share openings, facilitating employee referrals — which are more likely to produce impressive candidates who are less likely to quit.
While it can speed up hiring, social media also comes with some drawbacks.
| Pros of Social Media | Cons of Social Media |
|---|---|
| Quick to post jobs | Can introduce bias by viewing applicants’ profiles |
| No payment required unless boosting a post | Limited character count on platforms like TikTok and X restricts details |
| Easy to share, speeding up referrals | Sifting through candidates takes a lot of work as anyone can apply |
| Great for showcasing company culture through photos, stories and updates | Job seekers who experienced scams on recruitment via social media may be hesitant to apply |
On-Demand Staffing Agencies
On-demand staffing platforms like Qwick and Snagajob connect employers with shift-based workers to quickly fill open roles.
emporary staff can help manage increased workloads during busy periods, special events, and unexpected staff shortages, ensuring that service quality remains high during peak times.
Using gig apps and platforms can connect businesses with experienced temporary kitchen workers who are ready to step in when needed.
They offer flexibility to scale staffing up or down based on demand and make it easier to manage and fill shifts efficiently.
Employers share shift details, and the platform recommends matching candidates. From there, companies choose a worker to fill the shift.
| Pros of On‑Demand Staffing Agencies | Cons of On‑Demand Staffing Agencies |
|---|---|
| Quick access to qualified candidates | Can be expensive |
| Faster hiring process | Less control over the recruitment process, potentially resulting in a candidate mismatch |
| Allows employers to quickly scale or reduce workforce as needed | Limited interaction with the candidate during the hiring process can lead to a culture gap once they’re onboard |
| Ability to fill niche or hard‑to‑staff roles through agency expertise | Can lead to a high turnover rate |
High-performing temporary staff should be considered for future shifts or even permanent positions.
Creating a positive work environment helps retain temporary kitchen staff for future shifts and encourages loyalty among temporary workers.
Recruitment Agencies
Recruitment agencies focus on full-time hires and follow a longer, more thorough process than on-demand staffing platforms.
Their comprehensive vetting process ensures that only the best candidates and top talent are presented to employers.
Staffing agencies have access to a vast network of qualified candidates who have been vetted for their skills and experience, making it easier to find highly skilled kitchen staff.
Using a cook staffing agency can save time and effort by managing initial screening and interviewing, and they can quickly match businesses with the best candidates for both temporary and permanent roles.
dditionally, staffing agencies handle administrative tasks such as taxes and payroll, allowing businesses to focus on operations.
This approach helps maintain service quality and efficiency without the need to hire more full-time staff.
With tools like social media and job boards on the rise, some question if agencies are still relevant. If you’re unsure, explore the pros and cons below.
| Pros of Recruitment Agencies | Cons of Recruitment Agencies |
|---|---|
| Saves time and effort | High cost |
| Higher chances of getting skilled candidates | Limited employer branding |
| Access to wider talent networks and hard‑to‑reach candidates | Agencies may focus too much on job fit and overlook company culture, causing potential mismatches |
Higing Kitchen Staff With the Use of Technology
Using technology can speed up hiring. ATS helps manage applications and schedule interviews. Video calls streamline early screening, while online tests assess skills before in-person steps.
Having access to resources such as industry-specific job sites, training materials, and workplace support is also essential for effective hiring and ongoing staff development.
Word of Mouth
Word-of-mouth is a powerful way to find skilled kitchen staff. Referrals save time and offer insight into both a candidate’s skills and fit within your team.
Fostering open communication within your team encourages employee referrals and helps create a positive work environment.
| Pros of Word of Mouth | Cons of Word of Mouth |
|---|---|
| Higher chances of getting candidates who are both culturally fit and skilled | Limited candidate pool |
| Cost‑effective | Potential bias |
| Speeds up the hiring process | Risk of favoritism or perceived unfairness among existing staff |
Conducting Interviews With Applicants
Now that you know where to post jobs and have clear descriptions, it’s time to conduct interviews to assess both skill and culture fit.
Meeting candidates in person, whether at interviews, industry events, or job fairs, is essential for evaluating their skills, experience, and suitability for kitchen roles.
During the interview process, pay close attention to the candidate's personality, as this is crucial for determining their fit with your team and work environment.
Offering trial shifts allows you to observe candidates in action in a real kitchen environment before making a final decision.
According to a study, 89% of hiring failures happen because the candidate wasn’t a good fit culturally — not because they lacked skills.
Implementing a structured interview process
Conducting structured interviews is crucial to assess candidates effectively.
Consider the following steps:
- Prepare Standardized Questions: Develop a set of questions focusing on experience, problem-solving abilities, and adaptability.
- Practical Assessments: Include a hands-on component where candidates demonstrate their culinary skills in a controlled setting.
- Cultural Fit Evaluation: Assess whether the candidate's values and work ethic align with your restaurant's culture, promoting a harmonious work environment.
- Reference Checks: Conduct reference checks to verify a candidate's past performance, work ethic, and reliability through reviews and ratings from previous employers.
Ask the right questions
Interview questions should reveal personality, skills and cultural fit.
It's important to assess whether candidates have the right skills for the role, especially for positions like line cook, where experience cooking, food and flavor knowledge, and multitasking ability are essential.
Look for self-motivated individuals who are team players, have high attention to detail, reliability, and adaptability to thrive in a fast-paced kitchen environment.
Pro Tip: OysterLink offers curated questions for every kitchen, hotel and events role—including 50 top Chef questions and categorized Cook questions (skills, experience, behavior).
Watch their body language
A candidate’s actions can speak louder than words. For leadership roles like Executive Chef, confident posture and presence matter just as much as answers.
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Trust your gut
Even if a candidate seems perfect on paper, trust your instincts. If something feels off, seek more input before making a decision.
Onboarding and Training New Kitchen Staff
A successful hospitality company knows that hiring the right kitchen staff is only the first step—how you onboard and train new employees can make all the difference in the food service industry.
A well-structured onboarding process introduces new staff to your kitchen environment, clarifies job expectations, and helps them quickly become productive members of the team.
This not only supports smooth kitchen operations but also sets the stage for consistent quality and exceptional guest satisfaction.
In the fast-paced world of hospitality, comprehensive training is essential. New hires should receive hands-on instruction in food safety, proper cooking techniques, and the specific standards your business upholds.
Training should also cover teamwork, communication, and the unique flow of your kitchen, ensuring every employee understands how their role contributes to the overall guest experience.
Investing in thorough onboarding and training pays off in multiple ways. Employees who feel supported and confident in their roles are more likely to stay with your company, reducing high turnover rates that are common in the restaurant industry.
Well-trained staff deliver better service, maintain food quality, and help create a positive atmosphere that guests notice and appreciate.
Ultimately, prioritizing onboarding and training is a smart strategy for any hospitality business aiming to build a reliable, skilled team and deliver memorable experiences to every guest.
Advice From a Seasoned Restaurant Consultant
OysterLink recently interviewed Emily LaRuffa, a seasoned hospitality professional with over two decades of professional bar, restaurant and hotel experience.
We asked her how she manages to attract young people to start working in the hospitality industry. This was part of her response.
How to attract young people to start working in the hospitality industry?
Emily: "My first approach is getting to know where a person is at. Understanding the motivation and goals of every person can help us guide them towards a career path in hospitality.
A lot of people end up in hospitality to pay the bills but end up loving it. The important part is to showcase a potential career path to them, show them they don’t have to stay in a Server role for a long period of time. People can quickly grow from the hourly level positions to become Captains or Sommeliers and earn incredibly well. From there they can go into management and build on that."
Emily LaRuffa, Restaurant Consultant and owner of Oracle Hospitalityc
Partnering with local culinary programs and culinary schools is another effective way to hire kitchen staff for both temporary and full time roles in the food industry.
Culinary programs often provide job placement opportunities and connect employers with passionate, aspiring cooks.
These institutions can help source both entry-level candidates and seasoned kitchen staff, creating a reliable pipeline of talented workers ready to step in when needed.
Local culinary schools are especially valuable for finding skilled temporary kitchen staff and evaluating potential hires for permanent positions.
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