What is the difference between being a 'cook' and being a 'chef' ?

Question

As in the following text:

Employment opportunities include working in hotels, motels, restaurants, casinos, clubs and cafes, food processing companies, aeroplane catering, staff restaurants and cafeterias, hospitals, food services and catering companies as a cook or as a chef.

Answer 1

Chef is French for Chief, as in chief cook.

The second in command is called a sous-chef, or under-chief.

The Chef is in charge of the whole kitchen, & sets the menu, etc.

Sous-chefs usually specialize in one thing, like dessert pastry etc.

A cook just follows orders from the chef or owner.

Answer 2

One is a hobby and the other is a profession.

Answer 3

some say that cook is a verb and chef is an adjective, while others debate that it is the difference between formally trained and not.

Answer 4

perhaps it means with or without formal training

Answer 5

The chef has a diploma from a cooking school whereas a cook doesn't.

Answer 6

Robert S is partially right, I was a sous chef in hotels for over 20+ years and while he has some of it right not all is correct, he speaks of speciality chefs, they are the station chef or chef de parties, as a sous chef, I ran the kitchen for the executive chef, and the difference between a cook and a chef is in some the other answers, cooks are trained but usually only to a limit, were a chefs do a term(s) at a culinary school, has many years of training and rises up in the ranks to become a chef or sous chef, it is hard to start out that way, unless you win the lottery or your family owns the place.

Cooks to the everyday works and most of the harder jobs, a chef will cook, but is in charge of the ordering, personnel, menu planning, and supervising the other sous chefs and chef de parties. Anyone can call themselves a chef, but the proof is in there ability's and experience and working under pressure to deadline, like in other businesses

Answer 7

??? you know

why waste 5 points...