What’s the difference between a chef and a cook?

In a professional kitchen, the type found in an upscale restaurant, hotel, or catering company, the Executive Chef is the head honcho. Even though an E.C. has superior cooking skills (and usually a degree or certificate from a culinary school), a large part of his or her duties are administrative. An E.C. has to plan menus, order supplies, and schedule the staff. The Sous Chef is the second banana. This hands-on executive supervises the kitchen staff and makes sure everything is prepared properly and on schedule. The S.C. sometimes pitches in and helps the Executive Chef with paperwork and the planning, costing, and ordering of food and kitchen supplies. A Line Chef (sometimes called a Station Chef) is in charge of a particular area within a large kitchen. In a banquet hall, an L.C. might coordinate and supervise all the roasting, baking and broiling. (In a smaller kitchen, a Line Chef is probably the person actually doing the roasting, baking and broiling.)

A plain old cook, on the other hand, is a person without a degree who deftly prepares a variety of different foods. He or she concentrates on tasty, hearty portions in a minimum amount of time, at a reasonable price, and usually with a minimum of thought to presentation.