Finding reliable kitchen talent isn’t easy.
Ninety percent of restaurant operators say understaffing has a moderate to significant impact on their business’ ability to grow. You post a job opening, sort through applications, hire someone who seems like a fit, spend weeks training them—and then watch them move on. The cycle repeats, draining resources and wearing down the team members who stay.
The challenge is finding people who want to build careers in professional kitchens. Workers seeking short-term income behave differently than professionals committed to developing their craft. They respond to feedback differently, invest their energy differently, and make stay-or-leave decisions based on other priorities.
Culinary school graduates represent a distinct talent pool. They enter the workforce with foundational training in knife skills, food safety, and cooking techniques. Importantly, they’ve already invested time and money into the profession, often a sign of long-term commitment and higher performance. For job seekers, this educational credential signals professional intent and sets them apart in a crowded applicant pool.
We’ll explore how employers can connect with culinary school graduates who are actively seeking career-oriented positions, what sets these candidates apart from the general labor pool, and how specialized hiring platforms can help identify this talent before competitors do.
(Sources: “State of the Restaurant Industry 2024,” National Restaurant Association, “Annual average quits rates by industry and region, not seasonally adjusted,” U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, “The Hidden Costs of Undertrained Restaurant Staff: Why Investing in Training Pays Off,” Auguste Escoffier Global Solutions)
Understanding what sets culinary school graduates apart from typical job applicants means looking at the financial impact of current hiring patterns and the unique skills these candidates bring to the kitchen. The financial picture reveals why the status quo isn’t sustainable.
The hospitality industry maintains the highest turnover rate of any U.S. sector.
In 2024, the annual quit rate in accommodation and food services reached 4.1%, according to the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics. While that’s down from the pandemic-era peak of 5.8%, it remains the highest of any industry. Between January and April 2024 alone, nearly 3 million hospitality workers left their positions, roughly three times the national average across all industries.
Understaffing means that the majority of restaurant operators report reduced hours during normal operating periods. High turnover leads to understaffing, increasing the workload for those who remain and driving even more turnover (and higher costs). Hiring for volume alone cannot break this cycle.
→ Read This Next: How to Reduce Staff Turnover in Your Restaurant
Culinary school graduates often onboard faster while making fewer costly errors during their first weeks on the line.
The National Restaurant Association’s sample job descriptions for culinary positions emphasize food preparation skills, food safety and sanitation, proper cooking techniques, and quality control as core requirements. These competencies form much of the core curriculum of culinary education programs. The result is direct alignment between what schools teach and what kitchens need.
But technical skills alone don’t explain the difference. Jim Taylor, a restaurant consultant with more than two decades of experience advising independent operators, describes the practical impact: “I would rather pay a person $20 an hour that knows three stations and is a good salesperson than pay someone $15 an hour that knows one station and doesn’t sell.”
Beyond technical skills, culinary graduates demonstrate career commitment through their educational investment. Data from the U.S. Census Bureau shows that the majority of individuals with personal and culinary services degrees work in food-related occupations, with 19% working as chefs and head cooks, 7% as cooks, and 5% as food service managers, among other culinary roles.
Many entry-level culinary positions welcome candidates with limited experience. The National Restaurant Association’s sample job descriptions for roles like line cooks and prep cooks typically indicate that previous experience is preferred but not required. Recent graduates fit this profile while bringing educational credentials that distinguish them from other entry-level candidates.
Of course, not every culinary graduate will be the right fit for every operation. Kitchen culture, specialty focus, and individual work style still matter. But starting with candidates who’ve already committed to the profession narrows your search to people more likely to stay and grow with your team.
(Sources: “Labor Market Analysis for: 1306.30 Culinary Arts,” Centers of Excellence for Labor Market Research, “Restaurant Employee Demographics,” National Restaurant Association)
What if your next hire already knew proper knife techniques, food safety protocols, and kitchen hierarchy?
When new hires come in with food safety certifications, knife skills, and an understanding of kitchen hierarchy, operators can spend less time covering the basics. Training new staff is a major investment, since restaurants must pay employees during training periods before they contribute to revenue. That cost shrinks when essential training has already happened elsewhere.
Retention represents the more substantial long-term savings. Labor costs consume approximately 25% of revenue for most restaurants, but this percentage climbs when turnover forces constant recruiting and retraining. Organizations that invest in employee education benefits often report improved retention and reduced turnover costs, with the savings from avoided recruitment and retraining often exceeding program expenses.
Ben Eubanks of Lighthouse Research & Advisory reframes the traditional concern: “Traditionally, the biggest concern for many leaders is this question: What if we educate this person and they leave? Instead, forward-thinking leaders are asking: What if we don’t educate them and they stay?”
The same logic applies to hiring decisions. Employing someone already educated in the field reduces the risk that they lack genuine interest in the profession.
Understanding the value of culinary graduates is one thing. Reaching them before competitors do requires knowing where they’re actually looking for work.
Career-driven culinary graduates typically search beyond general job boards. Many use specialized platforms, attend career fairs, and work with school placement offices.
General job boards may produce a high volume of applications, but they often dilute candidate quality. These postings attract people seeking any job rather than professionals pursuing culinary careers. The time spent filtering applications and interviewing unqualified candidates slows hiring in an industry where speed is critical to success.
Matt Heston, Chief People Officer at The Saxton Group, observed: “The faster you’re able to connect with [applicants], the more likely you are to hire them.”
Traditionally, manually scheduling interviews and making hiring decisions can take weeks, yet most hospitality job seekers (89%) expect interviews within days of applying. Top prospects accept other offers while operators work through their hiring queue.
Southern Rock Restaurants reduced time from application to hire from 14 days to under 24 hours by implementing targeted screening. The improvement came from connecting with the right candidates faster, not generating more applications.
Several platforms now address this gap by focusing exclusively on culinary and hospitality talent. These specialized networks attract candidates who’ve invested in culinary education or are pursuing long-term career opportunities rather than temporary work.
One such platform, EConnect through Auguste Escoffier Global Solutions, gives employers access to a pool of Auguste Escoffier School of Culinary Arts students, graduates, and career-focused culinary professionals.
Platforms like EConnect provide constant access to new talent—in Escoffier’s case, with new graduates every six academic weeks nationwide. These candidates arrive having completed externships with hands-on kitchen experience beyond classroom training.
Auguste Escoffier School of Culinary Arts requires students to complete hands-on industry externships before graduation. These placements could serve as extended interviews, allowing employers to evaluate technical skills, work ethic, cultural fit, and professionalism in a real-world setting before extending job offers. This approach can significantly reduce hiring risk compared to relying on interviews and references alone.
Participating in career events at culinary schools can also position your operation as an employer of choice for motivated graduates. Career fairs and information sessions let you present your workplace culture, advancement opportunities, and commitment to employee development directly to students nearing graduation.
Regular collaboration with culinary school career services can help you build a reliable pipeline of qualified talent. These professionals can connect you with candidates whose skills and goals align with your open roles. By maintaining those relationships, you can receive referrals for strong candidates as they become available rather than competing with dozens of other employers on public job boards.
If you’ve successfully hired culinary school graduates, referral programs can help you widen your pipeline. Graduates often stay in touch with classmates and can recommend peers who share their training and work ethic. Offering referral bonuses encourages these introductions and helps bring in candidates who are already pre-vetted through trusted connections.
Connecting with culinary school graduates is one step. Convincing them to choose your operation over competing offers requires understanding what career-driven candidates actually prioritize.
Career growth often matters just as much as starting pay. Many culinary school graduates look for employers who offer mentorship, training, and a workplace culture that invests in long-term skill development.
For job seekers, career development opportunities rank among the top five criteria candidates have when evaluating new jobs.
“It’s not as much about money as before. Instead, there’s a greater emphasis on what else employers are bringing to the table.” – Carly Dunn, Glory Days Grill
(Sources: “Research Insight: Workforce Technology,” National Restaurant Association, “Building the Agile Future,” Linkedin Learning)
That said, compensation can’t be an afterthought. These candidates understand their market value. Offering significantly below-market wages while emphasizing “growth opportunities” won’t attract top talent. The most effective approach combines fair compensation with genuine advancement pathways and development support.
Mobile-friendly job postings are essential. One company found that 86% of applicants used mobile devices to search and apply, and most of the applications were submitted between 11:30 p.m. and 5:00 a.m. Postings that require desktop navigation or lengthy forms can easily lose candidates who browse opportunities during commutes or breaks.
☐ Describe what employees can become, not just day-one duties
☐ Mention training programs, mentorship, or education benefits
☐ Use clear language and action verbs
☐ Break up text with bullet points and bold key information
☐ Avoid generic phrases like “fast-paced environment”
☐ Ensure mobile-friendly formatting
Across the industry, operators are discovering that the same tools transforming guest experiences can also transform how they hire and keep talent.
“More than 80 percent of restaurant operators say that technology gives them a competitive advantage, and we’re seeing that in hiring,” Dr. Chad Moutray, Vice President of Research and Knowledge for the National Restaurant Association, told the organization. “By integrating automation and AI-powered tools, restaurants are reducing hiring times, enhancing employee engagement, and fostering a workplace culture that supports long-term retention.”
Technology addresses both speed and candidate experience. Applicant tracking systems, automated interview scheduling, and text-to-apply options reduce administrative burden while meeting candidate expectations.
The interview itself should assess both technical capability and cultural alignment. Ask candidates about their long-term goals, how they handle feedback, and what they want to learn in their next role. These questions reveal whether someone views the position as career development or temporary income. That distinction matters even more once someone joins your team.
Hiring culinary school graduates solves immediate staffing needs, but retention requires ongoing investment in their professional development. Without growth opportunities, even the most committed professionals eventually leave for employers who support their advancement.
Forty-one percent of employees say they will leave their job if it does not provide adequate training opportunities. Culinary school graduates enter with foundational training, but they still expect employers to support continued growth. Hiring someone with educational ambition creates an implicit obligation to support that ambition.
Education perks can function as retention tools, not just recruitment attractions.
Several models exist for supporting employee education while they continue working. These range from tuition reimbursement programs to partnerships with educational institutions that offer flexible scheduling.
Work & Learn, offered through Auguste Escoffier Global Solutions, is one example of this model. Employees attend Auguste Escoffier School of Culinary Arts online or on campus at Escoffier’s Boulder, Colorado, or Austin, Texas locations, working toward a degree or diploma while remaining employed.
Partner employers can provide employees with access to special scholarships at the school—a $1,000 scholarship upon sign-up, with potential employer-matching tuition assistance up to $5,250 per year.
Because the program includes online options, employees don’t need to take a leave of absence or relocate. Those studying online can bring what they’re learning directly into the kitchen the next day.
“My job is to be able to develop these people so that they’re the next generation of my business, of our industry. I can focus on growing my company, and I can let the pieces that I develop play within the business. We all work and we all gain from that. That’s really what we’re after, but more importantly, that’s what the Work and Learn program does for us here at the Angry Cactus.
It gives us a great amount of retention. Everybody that’s been in the program sticks around. They’re bought in. They understand that this is where their career path is. They’re passionate about it just like I am about this career. It really is contagious.”
— Chef Tim Condon, owner of Angry Cactus Bar in San Angelo, Texas
Ninety percent of employers offering tuition assistance benefits say positive outcomes outweigh costs, citing improved retention, increased loyalty, and stronger workforce pipelines.
These programs can create competitive advantage in both recruitment and retention. You can attract culinary graduates by demonstrating commitment to their continued education, then retain them by delivering on that promise.
Additional development resources, such as ESource (a learning platform through Escoffier Global), provide on-the-spot training and assessed learning for skill maintenance without pulling staff off the floor. Similar micro-learning platforms exist across the industry for operators looking to supplement formal education with just-in-time training.
If you want to attract culinary professionals who are building careers, not just looking for another paycheck, you need to be intentional about how you hire. The operators who succeed are the ones connecting with culinary school graduates through specialized platforms, offering hands-on industry externship opportunities, and investing in continued education.
Platforms like EConnect give you direct access to students and graduates from Auguste Escoffier School of Culinary Arts who are actively seeking employers committed to professional development. Externships allow you to evaluate candidates in your kitchen before making hiring decisions.
Education partnership programs like Work & Learn enable employees to pursue culinary degrees while remaining on your team, which research shows improves retention and builds internal leadership pipelines.
Get in touch with Auguste Escoffier Global Solutions for more information on posting positions through EConnect, hosting externs, or partnering on Work & Learn programs to strengthen your culinary workforce.
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