How to read this line cook resume example
The sample above is not a template to copy word for word - copied resumes read as copied. It is here to show the shape of a page that gets past a first screen: one column, standard headings, and bullets that end in an outcome rather than a duty. Covers per service, stations held, and ticket times.
- Every bullet opens with a verb and carries a number. That is the pattern, not a coincidence.
- The summary makes a claim and then supports it in the first bullet underneath.
- Skills are named tools, not adjectives, and each one appears again in the experience section.
- The earlier role is short. Recent work carries the weight of the page.
The numbers in a line cook resume
The most common thing missing from a line cook resume is a number. Not because the work had none, but because nobody wrote them down at the time. These are the measures a line cook can usually reach for, and the example uses them.
- Ran grill and saute stations through 200-cover services in a scratch kitchen.
- Held average ticket time under 12 minutes through the Friday and Saturday rush.
- Cut prep waste 25% by rewriting the par sheet around actual usage.
Before and after: rewriting a weak bullet
Most line cook resumes are one edit away from being much stronger, and the edit is the same every time: replace the description of the job with the result of doing it. The pairs below are the same work, written twice.
- Weak: "Responsible for station management and related tasks." Strong: "Ran grill and saute stations through 200-cover services in a scratch kitchen."
- Weak: "Worked on knife skills projects across the team." Strong: "Held average ticket time under 12 minutes through the Friday and Saturday rush."
- Weak: "Helped improve processes and supported line cook initiatives." Strong: "Cut prep waste 25% by rewriting the par sheet around actual usage."
Adapting the example to your own history
Work backwards from the posting. Find the two or three things it actually screens for, then make sure the top third of your page answers them. Everything below that is supporting evidence.
- Reorder your bullets so the one closest to the posting comes first in each role.
- Rewrite the summary for the specific job. It is the only part a human reliably reads.
- Cut any skill you would not want to be asked about for ten minutes.
- Keep Station management, Knife skills, Food safety visible in context, not stranded in a list.