The chain of command
The brigade is a ladder, not a flat team. Each rank knows exactly who they answer to and what they own, which is why a well-run kitchen sounds so quiet during a 200-cover service.
| Role | French title | Reports to | What they actually do |
|---|---|---|---|
| Executive chef | Chef de cuisine | Owner / operations | Owns the menu, food cost, supplier relationships and the standard on the pass. In a group, the executive chef sits above several head chefs. |
| Head chef | Chef de cuisine | Executive chef | Runs one kitchen day to day: rotas, ordering, training, allergen control and the quality of every plate that leaves. |
| Second chef | Sous chef | Head chef | The head chef's deputy. Calls service when the head chef is off, checks mise en place, and fixes problems before they reach the pass. |
| Station chef | Chef de partie | Sous chef | Runs a single station — sauce, fish, grill, larder, pastry — and is accountable for its prep, its consistency and its timings. |
| Assistant station chef | Demi chef de partie | Chef de partie | Works a station under supervision and covers it on days off. The usual step before running a section outright. |
| Junior chef | Commis chef | Chef de partie | Rotates through sections learning prep, knife work and station discipline. Most careers are made or lost here. |
| Kitchen porter | Plongeur | Sous chef | Dish and pot wash, deliveries, deep cleaning. The single role most likely to sink a service if it is understaffed. |
| Apprentice | Apprenti | Commis chef | Trainee splitting time between the kitchen and formal study. |
The stations (parties)
Escoffier's insight was to split the food, not just the people. Every dish is assembled from components made in parallel across the sections below, then brought together at the pass.
| Role | French title | Reports to | What they actually do |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sauce chef | Saucier | Sous chef | Stocks, sauces, sautéed dishes and most meat cookery. Traditionally the most senior chef de partie in the brigade. |
| Fish chef | Poissonnier | Sous chef | Butchery and cookery of fish and shellfish, plus their sauces and fumets. |
| Roast chef | Rôtisseur | Sous chef | Roasted and braised meats, jus, and often the grill and fryer beneath them. |
| Grill chef | Grillardin | Rôtisseur | Everything over live fire or on the plancha, and the timing that ties it to the pass. |
| Fry chef | Friturier | Rôtisseur | Fried items, oil management and batter or crumb consistency. |
| Vegetable chef | Entremetier | Sous chef | Vegetables, starches, soups, eggs and most hot garnishes. |
| Larder chef | Garde manger | Sous chef | Cold section: salads, charcuterie, terrines, dressings and cold starters. |
| Pastry chef | Pâtissier | Head chef | Desserts, breads, viennoiserie and petits fours — usually a brigade within a brigade. |
| Butcher | Boucher | Sous chef | Breaks down whole carcasses and birds, portions and ages, controls yield. |
| Relief chef | Tournant | Sous chef | Floats across stations to cover breaks, holidays and pressure points. |
| Announcer | Aboyeur | Head chef | Calls tickets, sets timings and controls the pass. In most modern kitchens the head chef or sous chef does this. |
How the modern brigade has shrunk
Very few kitchens carry a saucier, a poissonnier and a rôtisseur as separate jobs. Wages, space and shorter menus have collapsed the classical brigade into three or four working sections: hot starters and veg, meat and fish over fire, cold larder, and pastry. A single chef de partie may cover what three once did, with the sous chef floating as the old tournant.
- Fine dining: closest to the original — distinct sections, dedicated pastry, a sous chef per shift.
- Neighbourhood restaurant: head chef, sous chef, two chefs de partie, one commis, one KP.
- Hotel and banqueting: a large brigade, but organised around production timelines rather than à la carte tickets.
- Fast casual: the hierarchy survives as shift leads and line cooks; the station discipline is identical.
Working your way up
Progression through the brigade is earned on consistency, not speed. A commis becomes a demi by holding one station clean through a busy week; a chef de partie becomes a sous by fixing other people's sections without being asked. Learn the craft in the technique library, then keep a record of what you can actually cook on the Chef's Circle app.
Frequently asked questions
- What is the kitchen brigade system?
- The kitchen brigade system (brigade de cuisine) is a hierarchy of chef roles and stations formalised by Georges Auguste Escoffier in the late 19th century. It splits a kitchen into specialist sections — sauce, fish, roast, vegetables, larder, pastry — each run by a chef de partie reporting up through the sous chef to the head chef, so large volumes of food can be cooked to one standard.
- Who invented the kitchen brigade system?
- Georges Auguste Escoffier, drawing on his experience of military organisation, codified the brigade de cuisine while working in grand hotels including the Savoy and the Carlton in London. He published the structure alongside his kitchen method in Le Guide Culinaire (1903).
- What are the ranks in a kitchen brigade, in order?
- From the top: executive chef, head chef (chef de cuisine), sous chef, chef de partie, demi chef de partie, commis chef, apprentice, and kitchen porter. Pastry usually runs its own parallel ladder under a pâtissier.
- What is the difference between a chef de partie and a sous chef?
- A chef de partie is responsible for one station and everything that leaves it. A sous chef is responsible for all stations, runs service in the head chef's absence, and handles rotas, ordering and quality control across the whole kitchen.
- Is the brigade system still used today?
- Yes, but compressed. Fine dining and hotels still use recognisable brigades; most restaurants run a flatter version — head chef, sous chef, two or three chefs de partie and a commis — where one person covers several classical stations. The reporting logic and station discipline survive even when the job titles do not.
- What does 'yes chef' actually signal in a brigade?
- It is an acknowledgement, not deference: it confirms an instruction has been heard and will be actioned. In a working brigade, clear callbacks on timings and covers are what stop a service from unravelling.
