A grill cook cooks food on a grill. The cook also keeps the work area clean and safe. Grill cooks make burgers, steaks, chicken and fish. They work in restaurants, diners, hotels and hospitals.
A clear grill cook job description helps in two ways. It helps bosses find the right cook. It also helps cooks know what the job needs before they apply.
This guide explains the duties, skills, pay and career path of a grill cook. It also gives you a free template, resume tips and answers to common questions.
Grill Cook Job Description at a Glance
A grill cook cooks meat, fish and vegetables to order. The cook follows recipes and safety rules. Most grill cooks report to a head chef, sous chef or kitchen manager.
Grill Cook Duties and Responsibilities
A grill cook turns orders into cooked food. The cook must be fast and safe. These duties are a lot like the duties of most cooks. Cooks follow recipes, prepare food, keep the kitchen clean and work with a team. A grill cook also watches heat and time at one station.
Common menu items are burgers, steaks, chicken, fish, sandwiches and grilled vegetables. Some kitchens add rice or potatoes. Some grill cooks also make salads.
Cooking and prep
- Season and cook meat, fish and vegetables on the grill
- Follow recipes, portion sizes and plating rules
- Read tickets and cook orders in the right order
- Get food ready before service by trimming, marinating and portioning
- Check that each dish looks and tastes right before it leaves
Food safety and cleaning
- Follow health rules and company safety rules
- Use a thermometer to check that food is cooked safely
- Keep raw food away from ready-to-eat food
- Label, date and store food the right way
- Clean the grill, tools and counters during and after service
Station and supplies
- Set up and clean the grill station each shift
- Track, label and rotate food. Use the oldest food first. This is called FIFO
- Check that fresh food is still fresh
- Tell the chef when supplies are low
- Report broken equipment fast
Teamwork
- Talk clearly with servers, cooks and the chef
- Help other stations when it is busy
- Handle special requests and allergy notes with care
- Stay calm and polite under pressure
Grill Cook Skills and Qualifications
The best grill cooks cook well and work fast. They stay calm when it is busy. These are the skills most bosses want.
Cooking skills
- Grilling, searing and flat-top cooking
- Knowing when meat, chicken and fish are done
- Basic knife skills
- Knowing food safety, allergies and cross-contamination. This is when germs move from raw food to other food
- Reading tickets or screens fast
- Using grills, fryers, ovens and thermometers
People and work skills
- Managing time and cooking many orders at once
- Clear talk with the team
- Care for small details
- Strength to work long, busy shifts
- Wanting to learn and take advice
- Being organized and getting along with others
- Reading orders and recipes well
- Good hand-eye skill with knives, tongs and tools
- Hard work, and the ability to work alone when needed
Nice to have
- Past work as a line cook, short-order cook or prep cook
- Work in busy kitchens
- Training at fry, sauté or prep stations
- Basic ordering and inventory skills
Education, Experience and Certifications
A grill cook does not need a college degree. Cooks usually need no formal school. Most learn on the job. Some learn in an apprenticeship. Many states do not ask cooks for a certificate.
In real life, bosses often ask for:
- School: none, or a high school diploma
- Experience: kitchen work is a plus, but many places train new cooks
- Food handler card: needed in many states, counties or workplaces, so check local rules
- Extra training: a certificate from a culinary school, a culinary degree or a food safety class is a plus, not a must
How to get a food handler card. Rules change by state and county. The class is often short and ends with a test. Many classes are online. Ask your local health office if the class is accepted.
Grill Cook Experience Levels
Some restaurants teach new cooks. Fine dining and special restaurants often want one to two years on the grill. Pick the level that fits your job.
Lead Grill Cook Job Description
A lead grill cook job description has all the normal duties plus more:
- Run the grill station and keep orders on time
- Check food quality before it leaves
- Teach new grill cooks and line cooks
- Help the chef with ordering, counts and schedules
- Fix problems in rushes, with broken tools or when staff are short
How to Become a Grill Cook
You can become a grill cook with or without a degree. Cooks often learn on the job, and some learn in apprenticeships. The best way is to start working in a kitchen.
- Know the basics. Check the age and work permit rules where you live.
- Get a food handler card if your state, county or boss needs one.
- Start in an entry job. Dishwasher, prep cook and fast food cook jobs are common first steps.
- Practice key skills. Learn knife basics. Use a thermometer. Learn how steak, burgers and chicken look when they are done.
- Ask to try the grill. Show that you are on time, fast and clean.
- Make your resume and apply. Use the resume examples below. Be ready for a short cook test.
- Keep growing. Learn more stations and take food safety classes. A culinary program or an apprenticeship can help you grow toward sous chef or head chef.
Work Environment and Physical Demands
Grill cooks work in hot, fast kitchens. They stand for most of the shift. Job posts often list:
- Standing for a long time, often eight hours or more
- Working near heat, flames and hot tools
- Lifting up to about 50 pounds (about 23 kg). Some bosses outside the US say 25 kg
- Moving fast in tight spaces
- Small burns and cuts, which training and safety gear help prevent
- Shifts on early mornings, late nights, weekends and holidays
Shifts may cover the breakfast rush, lunch, dinner or a night shift. Most cooks work full time, but part-time work is common.
Grill cooks work in many places. These include casual and fancy restaurants, fast food, food trucks, cafes, hotels, hospitals and school cafeterias. Food courts in shopping malls and event venues hire grill cooks too. The pace and menu change from place to place, so a good job description names the place.
Grill Station Equipment and Safety
A grill cook should know the tools and the dangers of the station.
Common equipment
- Charbroiler (an open grill) for steaks, burgers, chicken and vegetables
- Flat-top griddle for breakfast foods, smash burgers and sandwiches
- Salamander or broiler for finishing and melting
- Thermometers, tongs, spatulas, brushes and scrapers
Some kitchens also want basic skill with ovens and deep fryers. A grill cook may finish dishes or help at the fry station in a rush.
Safety basics
- Wear non-slip shoes and any safety gear your boss needs, such as heat-safe gloves
- Keep the floor dry and free of grease
- Clean the grill and grease traps on a schedule to lower fire risk
- Never pour water on a grease fire. Turn off the heat and use the fire system or the right extinguisher
- Lift the safe way and ask for help with heavy things
- Report burns, cuts and broken tools right away
Allergy care
- Read the allergy note on every ticket. Ask if it is not clear
- Use clean tools and a clean cooking surface for allergy orders
- Never guess. Ask the chef or manager
Safe Cooking Temperatures
A grill cook uses a thermometer to check that food is safe. The table shows common minimum temperatures. Your local health office sets the rule you must follow. Always check the thickest part of the food.
| Food | Minimum safe temperature |
| Chicken and other poultry | 165°F (74°C) |
| Ground beef and other ground meat | 155–160°F (68–71°C) |
| Steaks and whole cuts of beef | 145°F (63°C), then rest 3 minutes |
| Pork | 145°F (63°C) |
| Fish | 145°F (63°C) |
Grill Cook Performance Standards
Good standards show a cook what great work looks like. Each kitchen sets its own goals. Common ones are:
- Ticket times: orders leave the station on time
- Doneness and heat: food is cooked the way the guest asked and to a safe temperature
- Same every time: portions, taste and plating match the recipe
- Waste: very little food is burned, dropped or remade
- Clean station: the station passes checks during and after service
- Teamwork: clear talk and help for other stations in rushes
Grill Cook Salary and Career Path
Cooks in the U.S. earned a median of $35,760 a year in 2024. That is $17.19 an hour. Jobs for cooks should grow 5 percent from 2024 to 2034. That is faster than average.
| Job | Typical median pay (U.S.) |
| Cooks (all types) | $35,760 a year, or $17.19 an hour (2024) |
| Chefs and head cooks | About $62,470 a year (May 2025) |
Pay changes by city, kind of restaurant and experience. Fine dining and busy places in costly cities often pay more. Small towns and entry-level fast food jobs often pay less.
For a wider view, the average grill cook salary is about $33,650 a year. A common rate is $16.92 an hour. Typical rates run from $8.05 to $29.00 an hour. Pay depends on experience, place and boss.
A common career path
- Prep cook or dishwasher
- Grill cook or line cook
- Lead grill cook or senior line cook
- Sous chef
- Head chef or executive chef
Grill cooks grow by learning more stations, showing up on time, teaching others and learning ordering and schedules. It also helps to keep up with new grilling skills and food trends.
Sample Grill Cook Job Description Template
Copy the template into Word or Google Docs. Change the words in brackets. Save it as a PDF if you need one. Change the duties to fit your kitchen.
You may also hear this called a job specification or job profile. Most people use these words the same way. It is a short paper about the job, its duties and its needs.
GRILL COOK
Location: [Restaurant name, city]
Job type: [Full-time or part-time]
Reports to: [Head chef or kitchen manager]
Pay: [$X to $Y per hour, plus tips or benefits]
ABOUT US
[Two or three short lines about your restaurant, food and team.]
JOB SUMMARY
We need a Grill Cook to cook tasty grilled food to order. You will follow our recipes and portion sizes. You will keep your station clean. You will work with the kitchen team to serve good food on time.
WHAT YOU WILL DO
– Season and cook meat, chicken, fish and vegetables on the grill and flat-top
– Follow recipes, portion sizes and plating rules
– Cook orders the right way and on time, even when it is busy
– Set up, stock and clean the grill station each shift
– Follow food safety, cleaning and allergy rules
– Label, date and rotate food, and tell us when supplies are low
– Keep tools and work areas clean and safe
– Talk clearly with cooks, servers and managers
WHAT YOU NEED
– [0 to 2] years in a kitchen or on a grill is a plus. We will train the right person
– Knowledge of food safety and safe cooking temperatures
– Able to work fast and stay calm
– Able to stand for a long time and lift up to [50] pounds
– Able to work evenings, weekends and holidays
– A food handler card, or a plan to get one
WHAT WE OFFER
– [Fair hourly pay]
– [Staff meals, flexible shifts, paid training, room to grow]
HOW TO APPLY
[Link or phone number]
[Company name] is an equal opportunity employer.
Short Job Ad
The job description is the full paper. A job ad is the short version you post on job boards and social media. Use this one to start.
Grill Cook, [Restaurant name], [City]
[$X to $Y per hour] | [Full-time or part-time]
Join our kitchen team as a Grill Cook. You will cook burgers, steaks, chicken and more to order. You will keep your station clean and help us serve great food on time. No degree needed. We will train the right person. Evenings and weekends needed.
Apply today: [link or phone number]
Tips for Writing a Grill Cook Job Description
A good job description is clear, honest and easy to read. These tips bring in more and better applicants.
- Use a common job title. People search for “Grill Cook.” Add “Lead” or “Weekend” only if it fits.
- Show the pay. A pay range builds trust and often brings more applicants.
- Start with a short summary. Say what the cook will make, where and for whom.
- Be exact about duties. Name the tools, the food and how busy it is.
- Split must-haves from nice-to-haves. Do not demand experience if you will train.
- Be honest about hours and the work. Say if there are nights, weekends, heat and lifting.
- Sell the job. Share training, staff meals, growth, tips or benefits.
- Keep it short. Try for one page with bullet points.
- Add an equal opportunity line. Make it easy to apply, even on a phone.
Other things to include
- Hard and soft skills: list cooking and food safety skills apart from teamwork and talk skills
- Company culture: one or two lines about your values and team
- Growth and training: say if a cook can move up to lead grill cook or sous chef, and what training you offer
- Benefits: include hours, paid leave, staff meals, tips and other perks, not just pay
- Skill gaps: if your team needs a skill, like busy breakfast service, say so
- Fair hiring: do not ask for details that are not about the job, such as marital status or religion
Hiring steps at a glance
- Decide the level you need: entry, experienced or lead
- Write the job description and add the pay range
- Post it on job boards, your website and social media, and ask your team for referrals
- Check applications for the right experience and how long people stayed at past jobs, then do a short phone call
- Hold an interview and a cook test
- Check references and any food handler card
- Make an offer and start the onboarding checklist below
How to Interview and Test a Grill Cook
A short talk plus a cook test shows more than a resume. Some bosses ask people to cook menu items at the interview.
Interview questions
- Tell me about the busiest shift you worked on the grill. How did you keep up?
- How do you know when a steak, burger or chicken breast is done?
- What safe temperatures do you check for chicken and ground beef?
- How do you keep raw and cooked food apart?
- What do you do when many tickets come in at once?
- How would you handle an order with a food allergy?
- Tell me about a time you did not agree with a coworker or chef. What happened?
Cook test
- Ask the cook to make two or three menu items to order, like a burger and a chicken breast, in a set time
- Watch the setup, temperature checks, clean hands, speed and neatness
- Score every cook with the same checklist
- Check local work rules before you use paid or unpaid trial shifts
First-Week Onboarding Checklist for a New Grill Cook
A planned first week helps a new grill cook learn fast and make fewer mistakes.
- [ ] Finish paperwork and check the food handler card, if needed
- [ ] Tour the kitchen. Find the safety gear, first aid and fire system
- [ ] Learn the menu, recipes, portion sizes and plating rules
- [ ] Learn how to set up, clean and close the station
- [ ] Review food safety, allergy and fire safety rules
- [ ] Learn the ticket or screen system
- [ ] Shadow an experienced grill cook for the first shifts
- [ ] Cook real orders with help during a slow shift
- [ ] Meet with the chef at the end of the week
Grill Cook Job Description for a Resume or CV
If you are looking for a job, turn the duties above into short bullet points. Start each one with an action word. Use numbers when you can. Use words from the job post.
The same lines work for a CV. CV is the word used more in the UK and many other countries. Use the points below as a guide. Rewrite them with your own real work.
Grill Cook Job Description Resume Examples
- Cooked more than 150 steak, burger and chicken orders per shift on a charbroiler and flat-top, with ticket times under 10 minutes
- Kept doneness and plating the same by following recipes and portion rules
- Followed food safety steps and temperature logs, and helped keep a clean health check record
- Set up and cleaned the grill station each day, and cut waste with careful prep and FIFO
- Taught three new line cooks the grill station steps and safety rules
Resume tips
- Put a short skills list near the top: grilling, food safety, reading tickets, knife skills and time management
- Add your food handler card or other certificates with dates
- Say what kind of kitchen you worked in, like a 120-seat restaurant or a hospital cafeteria
- Swap the example numbers for your own true numbers. Never make them up
Grill Cook Cover Letter Tips
A short cover letter can help you stand out. Keep it to three or four short parts: why you want the job, what you can do on the grill and why you like this restaurant. Change the words in brackets.
Dear [Hiring manager],
I am applying for the Grill Cook job at [Restaurant]. I have [X years] of kitchen work. I have cooked burgers, steaks and chicken on a busy grill and flat-top.
I follow food safety rules. I am fast and calm at busy times. I work well with a team. I also have a [food handler card, if you have one].
I would love to show my skills in a cook test or trial shift. Thank you for your time.
Sincerely,
[Your name] | [Phone] | [Email]
Grill Cook vs Line Cook vs Fry Cook vs Grill Chef
These job titles overlap. Bosses use them in different ways. Here is how they are often used.
| Title | Main job | Usual level |
| Grill cook | Cooks food on the grill or flat-top and runs that station | Entry to middle |
| Line cook | Works any station on the line, such as grill, sauté or fry | Entry to middle |
| Fry cook | Run the fryers and make fried food. Common in fast food and short-order kitchens | Entry |
| Prep cook | Gets food ready before service instead of cooking to order | Entry |
| Lead grill cook | Runs the grill station and often teaches other cooks | Middle to senior |
| Grill chef (grillardin) | In charge of cooking on a grill or open flame in a classic kitchen team | Senior station job |
Restaurant cooks, sometimes called assistant cooks or line cooks, work at set stations with the stoves, grills, pans and food they need. A grill chef is the person in charge of cooking on a grill or open flame.
Fry Cook Job Description
A fry cook job description is all about the fryer. Common duties are:
- Fry foods like fries, chicken, seafood and starters to order
- Watch the oil heat and the frying time
- Portion, bread and stage food before service
- Keep the fry station clean and follow hot oil safety rules
It is usually an entry job in fast food and short-order kitchens.
Line Cook Job Description
A line cook job description is wider than a grill cook’s. Line cooks work at one station, such as grill, sauté, fry or salad. They set it up before service, cook to order, plate dishes and keep the station clean. Many kitchens move line cooks between stations.
Grill Line Cook Job Description
A grill line cook is a line cook who works the grill station. The job mixes grill cook duties with line duties. The cook cooks meat, fish and vegetables to the right. The cook also sets up the station, works with tickets and talks with the expeditor and other stations.
Grill Cook and Prep Cook Job Description
Some kitchens mix two jobs in one. The person gets food ready before service by washing, chopping, marinating and portioning. Then the person cooks on the grill during service. If your kitchen works this way, add prep duties and an early start time to your post.
Grill Cook Job Descriptions at Popular Restaurant Chains
Many people search for a job post at one company, like a McDonald’s or Wendy’s grill cook job description. The main duties match this guide. The cook cooks to order, follows recipes and portion rules, keeps the station clean and follows food safety rules. What changes is the menu, the tools and the company’s own steps.
- Fast food (McDonald’s, Wendy’s, Dairy Queen): many orders, fast ticket times, and recipes and tools set by the brand
- Fast casual (Chipotle, CAVA): recipes and prep rules set by the brand, and a job that may mix prep with cooking
- Family and casual dining (Cracker Barrel, Bob Evans): a wider menu, often with breakfast, and table-service tickets
- Contract food service (Sodexo): cooking in places like hospitals, schools and workplaces, which may include special meal needs
Always read the current post on the company’s careers page. Duties, pay and needs change over time and by place. If you write your own post, use the template above and add the details that are special to your brand.
Frequently Asked Questions
A grill cook cooks meat, fish and vegetables to order on a grill or flat-top. The cook follows recipes and food safety rules and keeps the station clean and stocked.
You need grilling skill, food safety know-how, fast ticket reading, good time use and clear talk. You also need strength to work in a hot, busy kitchen.
Not always. Many bosses hire new cooks and teach them on the job. Kitchen work helps.
No degree is needed. Some places need a food handler card, so check local rules.
Cooks earned a median of $17.19 an hour in 2024. Pay depends on place, boss and experience.
They overlap. A grill cook works the grill station. A line cook may move between many stations.
The main duties are alike. Chains add their own recipes, tools and steps. Always read the exact post.
Common steps are lead grill cook, sous chef and head chef. Learning more stations and leading others helps you move up.
Conclusion
A good grill cook job description is clear about duties, skills, hours and pay. It helps bosses hire faster. It helps cooks apply with confidence. Use the template in this guide as a start. Change it to fit your kitchen. Keep it honest and simple. If you are looking for a job, match your resume to the same duties and words.
Sarah Whitman writes job descriptions and role guides that explain duties, skills and requirements in a clear, organized way. She covers technical, office and everyday roles, so job seekers, students and hiring teams can quickly see what a position involves.